Definition of Safeguarding
Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is defined as: protecting children from maltreatment; preventing impairment of children's mental and physical health or development; ensuring that children grow up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care; and taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes.
Commitment to Safeguarding
The Cycle Training team and the Walking Training team are committed to safeguarding children, young people and vulnerable adults and we expect everyone who we work with to share this commitment.
We take all welfare concerns seriously and will follow our safeguarding policy in all the training we do.
Cycle training service safeguarding policy
Date approved: September 2024
Next review date: September 2025
Policy purpose, scope and values
The purpose of this policy statement is to protect from harm the people who receive Surrey County Council cycle training service. Also, it is to provide staff and users with the overarching principles that guide our approach to safeguarding.
This policy applies to anyone working on behalf of Surrey County Council cycle training service, including paid staff, volunteers, sessional workers, agency staff and students.
Children and young people should never experience abuse of any kind. We have a responsibility to promote the welfare of all children and young people, to keep them safe and to practise in a way that protects them.
The welfare of children is paramount in all the work we do and in all the decisions we take.
All children, regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation have an equal right to protection from all types of harm or abuse.
Legal framework
This policy has been drawn up on the basis of legislation, policy and guidance that seeks to protect children in England. A summary of the key legislation and guidance is available on the NSPCC website.
Supporting documents
This policy statement should be read alongside our organisational policies, procedures, guidance and other related documents including within the risk assessment and code of conduct covering:
- Role description for the designated safeguarding officer - see below
- Dealing with disclosures and concerns about a child or young - code of conduct
- Managing allegations against staff and volunteers - code of conduct
- Recording concerns and information sharing - code of conduct
- Code of conduct for staff - code of conduct
- Behaviour codes for trainees - consent form (consent form refers to terms and conditions that are part of the booking form for courses)
- Photography and sharing images guidance - code of conduct and consent form (consent form refers to terms and conditions that are part of the booking form for courses)
- Safer recruitment - County Council Safer Recruitment policy
- Managing complaints - County Council Complaints, Comments and Compliments
- Whistleblowing - County Council counter fraud initiatives and strategies
- Health and safety - risk assessment
- Induction, training, supervision and support - risk assessment
- Adult to child supervision ratios - risk assessment and cycle training delivery guide delivered by Bikeability.
We will:
- value, listen to and respect children
- appoint a nominated Designated Safeguarding Lead for children and young people
- provide effective management of, and skills for, staff through recruitment, supervision, support, training and quality assurance measures
- record and store and use information securely, in line with data protection legislation and guidance
- use County Council safeguarding, whistleblowing and complaints procedures appropriately.
We recognise that some children are additionally vulnerable because of the impact of previous experiences, their level of dependency, communication needs or other issues.
Role description for the Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL)
The designated safeguarding lead will:
- Model and promote Surrey County Council's commitment to safeguarding children in all aspects of their work and conduct.
- Take responsibility for dealing with concerns about the safety of children raised by staff or volunteers.
- Liaise with C-SPA or the LADO about concerns when appropriate.
- Ensure the safeguarding policy is available to schools, parents and other stakeholders through the Surrey Cycle Training website.
Designated Safeguarding Officer - David Sharpington, Cycle Training Manager.
Phone/email: 03456 009009, ask for cycle training.
Frequently asked questions
Instructors are recruited using the County's Safer Recruitment policy. All instructors and office staff must have an enhanced DBS check with children's barred list before starting the role and must have a new check every 3 years. All staff are under obligation to declare any updates in between.
For cycle training, there will be a minimum of two instructors with any one group, unless there are specific, pre-agreed circumstances with either the school or as advertised.
For walking training, there will be a minimum of two instructors except for smaller schools, where there may only be one Instructor who attends to lead the training.
Occasionally there may be additional adults, for example, other staff from within Surrey County Council visiting the training or someone from an outside organisation, such as an external training body. The school, or if a public session, the parents/riders, will be notified of this. People from any third party organisations will not be left unsupervised with trainees but we will require them to have a DBS check, which will be shown to the school.
Occasionally, an additional adult, from either Surrey County Council or an external organisation, may not have a DBS check. The school will be notified of this in advance and the school's approval sought. If the school does not approve, the person will not attend the course.
At no time will any additional adults be left unsupervised with trainees.
All Instructors periodically undertake Safeguarding training that is approved by the Surrey Safeguarding Children Board. Instructors also periodically received Emergency First Aid training.
Instructors undertake other training that can help improve outcomes, such as Understanding Autism and Restorative Conversations. For Cycle training Instructors, safeguarding is also covered in the Level 2 Award in Cycle Training, the award instructors have to complete before delivering training.
The cycle training DSL is David Sharpington, Cycle Training Manager. The training over and above the safeguarding training mentioned above is Designated Safeguarding Lead Training (not for schools, colleges or early years settings). It is delivered by Surrey County Council and repeated every 3 years. If David is unavailable, the cycle training office team are Deputy DSLs. The Walking Training DSL is Jonny Ray, Senior Safer Travel Officer. Jonny Ray has received the same DSL safeguarding training as David Sharpington. If Jonny is unavailable, the walking training office team are Deputy DSLs.
We aim to make all cycle and walking training as inclusive as possible. We ask that parents/schools communicate any needs on the consent form when booking training, or through the school office, so that we can make any necessary adjustments to the training to support all children.
Please see the cycle training privacy statement.
Please use the Surrey County Council Contact Centre and ask for cycle training or the Safer Travel Team.
