At Youth for Peace, we are committed to ensuring the safety, well-being, and dignity of all individuals, especially children and vulnerable adults, who may come into contact with our organization's activities and initiatives. This Child & Vulnerable Adult Protection Policy outlines our approach to preventing harm, abuse, and exploitation and establishes a framework for maintaining a safe environment.
1. Purpose and Scope
This policy is designed to safeguard children and vulnerable adults from any form of abuse, harm, or exploitation that may occur in connection with Youth for Peace programs, events, and operations, whether conducted directly by Youth for Peace or in collaboration with partners and affiliates. This means we will always work to:
- Protect adults, children, and young people from maltreatment;
- Identify adults, children and young people who may be in need of extra support; and
- Ensure that our programs and activities keep adults, children, and young people
This policy aims to give clear direction to staff, volunteers, trustees, and participants in our programs and activities about expected behavior and our responsibilities to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, young people, and adults, especially vulnerable adults. This includes directions related to prevention, protection, and support.
This policy applies to all those who coordinate, lead, or participate in Youth for Peace programs or activities or who receive services from Youth for Peace.
2. Definitions
- Child – anyone under the age of 18
- Vulnerable Adult – an individual who, due to age, disability, illness, or other circumstances, may be at a higher risk of harm or exploitation
- Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and adults –
- Protecting adults, children and young people from maltreatment
- Preventing impairment of children’s or adult's health or development
- Taking action to enable all children and adults to have the best outcomes
- Child protection – refers to activities undertaken to prevent children from suffering, or being likely to suffer, significant harm
- Abuse – a form of maltreatment of a child or adult. Somebody may abuse or neglect an adult or child by inflicting harm, or by failing to act to prevent harm. Adults and children may be abused in a family or in an institutional or community setting by those known to them or by others (e.g. via the internet). They may be abused by an adult or adults, or another child or children.
- Neglect – a form of abuse and is the persistent failure to meet a child or adult's basic physical and/or psychological needs, likely to result in the serious impairment of one’s health or development.
- Physical Abuse – includes hitting, slapping, pushing, kicking, misuse of medication, restraint or inappropriate sanctions.
- Sexual Abuse – includes indecent exposure, sexual harassment, rape, inappropriate looking or touching, sexual teasing or innuendo, sexual photography, subjection to pornography or witnessing sexual acts, indecent exposure and sexual assault or sexual acts with any child, or to which an adult has not consented or was pressured into consenting.
- Organizational Abuse – includes neglect and poor care practice within an institution or specific care setting as a result of the structure, policies, processes, and practices within an organization.
- Discrimination – abuse that centers on a difference or perceived difference particularly with respect to race, gender, religion, age, disability, sexual orientation, or any protected characteristics under local and/or national legislation.
- Emotional or Psychological Abuse – includes threats of harm or abandonment, deprivation of contact, humiliation, blaming, controlling, intimidation, coercion, harassment, verbal abuse, isolation or withdrawal from services or supportive networks.
3. Prevention Measures
- Screening and Background Checks: All employees, representatives, registered volunteers, and interns with Youth for Peace shall undergo appropriate screening and background checks as required by local laws and regulations.
- Training: All personnel regardless of whether their programs include children shall receive introductory training on child and vulnerable adult protection, recognizing signs of abuse, appropriate behavior, and reporting procedures. Those staff who work directly with children shall also receive additional training on child and vulnerable adult protection, according to training requirements required in the location their Youth for Peace programs are being led.
- Supervision and Monitoring: Activities involving children and vulnerable adults shall be adequately supervised and monitored to prevent any form of harm or inappropriate behavior. Adequate supervision and monitoring includes the following practices:
- Staff, employees, representatives, volunteers, interns, or donors should not take a child or children into a private place out of view of other
- Abiding by the “two-adult” rule, wherein two or more adults, who have passed a background check by Youth for Peace or a partnering organization, supervise all activities where children are involved and are present at all
- If, in an emergency situation, one adult must be with one child for a period of time (e.g. a child needs to be driven to the emergency room by a program leader and the drive is 20 minutes), regular communications between the adult and the child’s parent is required and all effort should be made to reunite the child with their parents or other adults who have passed a background check as soon as
- Parental Consent: Any child participating in Youth for Peace activities or programs must have parental consent, which may be in the form of a signed permission form, email confirmation, or in-person verbal assent.
4. Reporting and Response
- Mandatory Reporting: Any suspicion or disclosure of abuse, harm, or exploitation involving a child or vulnerable adult must be reported immediately or as soon as possible to the designated Youth for Peace Child Protection and/or local authorities as required by law.
- Confidentiality: Information related to any reported incidents shall be treated with the utmost confidentiality while ensuring that appropriate authorities are informed as necessary.
- Response: Disciplinary action will be taken for any Youth for Peace staff, representative, intern, or volunteer found in breach of this policy, up to and including immediate removal from their position and terminated contract. Collaboration with any partner organization whose employees, volunteers, or other representatives are found in breach of this policy will similarly be terminated.
5. Code of Conduct
- Professional Behavior: All personnel interacting with children and vulnerable adults are expected to maintain the highest standards of professional behavior and avoid any actions that could be construed as abusive or exploitative.
6. Communications and Social Media
- Use of Imagery: Prior consent shall be obtained from parents or legal guardians before using images or videos of children or vulnerable adults in promotional or other materials, whether online or in print.
- Social Media Guidelines: With appropriate consent, when sharing content involving children or vulnerable adults, Youth for Peace staff and representatives respect their privacy, and avoid revealing personal or sensitive information.
7. Partnerships
- Due Diligence: All potential partner organizations shall be assessed in terms of their child and vulnerable adult protection measures before entering into collaborations. Included in this assessment is ensuring that all staff, representatives, and volunteers working with children as part of Youth for Peace’s programs or activities have undergone background checks and are approved by the partner organization to work with children or vulnerable adults.
8. Non-Retaliation
- Protection of Whistleblowers: Individuals who report suspected abuse, harm, or exploitation in good faith shall be protected from any form of retaliation.
9. Review and Revision
- Regular Review: This policy shall be reviewed every 2 years by the executive leadership to ensure its effectiveness and relevance.
10. Acknowledgment
All personnel and partners shall read, sign, and adhere to this Child & Vulnerable Adult Protection Policy as a condition of their association and/or employment with Youth for Peace.
By adopting this policy, Youth for Peace reaffirms its commitment to creating a safe environment where children and vulnerable adults are protected from harm, abuse, and exploitation. This policy reflects our values and contributes to our mission of fostering positive peace in the communities we serve.