Gaia Innovation works with schools, colleges, universities and employers to provide young people with the inspiration, motivation, knowledge, skills and opportunities they need to help them achieve their potential. We are committed to providing safe and supportive environments for everyone involved in our organisation and the people we work with. We believe that everyone, and specifically those who are in vulnerable circumstances and less able to protect themselves, has the right to be kept safe from harm, exploitation, abuse and neglect.
Every Gaia Innovation representative has a personal responsibility for safeguarding children and adults. They do this by considering the safety and well-being of all those involved in our activities and by protecting children and adults from harm, exploitation, abuse and neglect, reporting concerns whenever this happens.
Our safeguarding commitment
We will –
To meet this commitment, we will ensure that:
Identifying and Reporting Safeguarding Concerns
Our safeguarding duty of care
We promote a proactive response to keeping children and adults safe, encouraging their active participation in keeping themselves and others safe.
This means that Gaia Innovation representatives will:
What this means for the individuals we work with?
Children, young people and adults will receive good quality services from people who have the skills and abilities to deliver them safely and to a high standard. This includes our duty to protect them from harm. Everyone will be treated with dignity and respect, included in and given a choice over decision making which impacts them, unless they lack the capacity to do so or it would put them at serious risk of harm, exploitation, abuse and neglect.
What this means for people in the communities where we work?
If we encounter individual cases of harm, exploitation, abuse and neglect in communities and places where we work, even if they are not directly related to our activities, we will refer them on to the appropriate persons or agencies. When the appropriate agencies fail to reasonably respond, we will escalate our concerns to the next appropriate authority.
What is a safeguarding concern?
A safeguarding concern is when you are worried about the safety or well-being of a child or adult because of something seen or heard, or information which has been given to you. A safeguarding concern can also involve a Gaia Innovation representative, or a representative from another organisation, endangering the safety or wellbeing of others.
If you have a safeguarding concern please advise the Gaia Innovation Safeguarding Officer ([email protected]) in the first instance. We will then liaise with the appropriate educational establishment to report the concern.
Alternatively, if you are worried about the safety or welfare of a child you should call the NSPCC adult helpline for confidential advice on 0808 800 5000.
If you are worried about the safety or welfare of an adult you should call the police (if they are in immediate need of help) or your local adult social care team.