Safeguarding
AHMA Policy Statement
Altrincham and Hale Muslim Association (AHMA) exists to provide a place of prayer and Islamic education and moral development for local children and families living in and around Hale/Altrincham/ Timperely/Sale area. AHMA acknowledges its duty of care to safeguard and promote the welfare of children/vulnerable adults and is committed to ensuring safeguarding practice reflects statutory responsibilities, government guidance and complies with best practice and the Charity Commission’s requirements. Our policy sets out common values, principles, and beliefs and describes the steps that will be taken in meeting AHMA’s commitment to protect children and vulnerable adults.
Who does this policy apply to?
This policy applies to all staff and volunteers working for or supporting AHMA.
Legal requirements
The Children’s Act 2004 is the primary legislation for Safeguarding and Child Protection and Care Act 2014 for adult protection. These acts place legal obligations on organisations to safeguard and promote the wellbeing of children and adults at risk. This includes ensuring all adults who work with or on behalf of them are competent, confident, and safe to do so.
By having strong safeguarding procedures and practice, we provide a safe place for children and young people to engage with us and the services we provide.
Our Values, Principles and Beliefs
- All child abuse involves the abuse of children’s rights.
- All children have equal rights to protection from abuse and exploitation.
- The situation of all children must be improved through promotion of their rights as set out in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. This includes the right to freedom from abuse and exploitation.
- Child abuse is never acceptable.
- We are committed to practice in a way that protects them and establishing and maintaining an ethos where children and young people feel secure and are encouraged to talk and are listened to.
- We have a commitment to protecting the children to whom we provide education.
- Staff and volunteers of ISB have a responsibility to meet minimum standards of protection for children and vulnerable adults in their care.
We want our congregation and the public to have confidence in our work. Ensuring safeguarding runs through all we do is part of building trust and confidence with the public.
Recruitment
- When we recruit staff and volunteers, we follow safe recruitment processes.
Training
- All our staff and volunteers complete mandatory safeguarding induction training, regardless of whether they work directly with children and young people. They will also receive regular updates.
Procedures
- We have a suite of safeguarding policies and procedures for all of our staff and volunteers that ensures clear, robust action can be taken when required.
It is important to us that the children and families we serve can learn more about our commitment to child safeguarding. This includes our policy, the behaviour they can expect from our volunteer staff and how to contact us if they have any concerns.
If you are worried about a child
If you think a child, young person or adult with care and support needs is at risk, being abused or neglected, please contact the AHMA Designate Safeguarding Lead at safeguarding@ahma.co.uk.
If you have immediate concerns for the safety of yourself or others call 999.
You can also contact the social care team at your local council. You can find their contact details on the Gov.uk website or on your local council’s website.
Accident Reporting
If you have dealt with an accident at any time, please complete the attached form and submit to the AHMA Designated Safeguarding Lead at safeguarding@ahma.co.uk
Please read the following policies
- Safeguarding
- Anti-bullying
- Code of Conduct
- Complaints
- Health and Safety
- Online Safety
- Whistleblowing
- Use of photographic images
- Parental Consent form (downloadable)