Witney Town Band Safeguarding Policy and Guidance

Witney Town Band are a member of Brass Band England and our Safeguarding Policy is created in accordance with their guidelines. We apply for Child Performance Licences (BOPAs) through their affiliation.

Witney Town Band Safeguarding Policy

This policy applies to all members, volunteers or anyone working on behalf of Witney Town Band.

The purpose of this policy:

To protect children who are associated with Witney Town Band from harm. This includes children of adults who are involved with the band.
To provide members of the band, as well as children and their families, with the overarching principles that guide our approach to child protection.

Witney Town Band believes that a child, young person or adult with care and/or support needs should never experience abuse of any kind. We have a responsibility to promote the welfare of all children, young people and adults at risk and to keep them safe. We are committed to practice in a way that protects them.

Legal framework

This policy has been drawn up based on law and guidance that seeks to protect children and adults at risk, namely:

Children Act (1989)
United Convention of the Rights of the Child (1991)
Data Protection Act (1998) and subsequent data protection guidance
Sexual Offences Act (2003)
Children Act (2004)
Protection of Freedoms Act (2012)
Working Together to Safeguard Children: A guide to inter-agency working to safeguard and promote the welfare of children; HM Government (2018)
The Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act (2006)
The Human Rights Act (1998)
The Children and Families Act (2014)
Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) code of practice: 0 to 25 years. Statutory guidance for organisations which work with and support children and young people who have special educational needs or disabilities; HM Government (2014)
General Data Protection Regulations (European Union) (2017)
Information sharing: advice for practitioners providing safeguarding services to children, young people, parents and carers; HM Government (2015)
The Care Act (2014)
The Care Act (2014) Care and Support Statutory Guidance (specifically the safeguarding section of this)
The Mental Capacity Act (2005)

The UK's four nations – England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales – each have their own framework of child protection legislation, guidance and practice to:

identify children who are at risk of harm
take action to protect those children
prevent further abuse occurring. Although the child protection systems are different in each nation, they are all based on similar principles. A summary of the key legislation and guidance is available from: https://learning.nspcc.org.uk/child-protection-system

We believe that:

children should never experience abuse of any kind
we have a responsibility to promote the welfare of all children, to keep them safe and to practice 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
working in partnership with children, their parents, carers and other agencies is essential in promoting young people’s welfare
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
some children are additionally vulnerable because of the impact of previous experiences, their level of dependency, communication needs or other issues. Extra safeguards may be needed to keep children who are additionally vulnerable safe from abuse

We will seek to keep children safe by:

valuing them, listening to and respecting them
appointing a nominated child protection lead for children, a deputy and a lead trustee/board member for safeguarding
adopting child protection and safeguarding best practice through our policies, procedures and a code of conduct for members and volunteers.
developing and implementing an effective online safety policy and related procedures.
providing effective support and training for volunteers with responsibility for safeguarding.
recruiting staff and volunteers safely, ensuring all necessary checks are made.
sharing information about safeguarding and good practice with children, parents, volunteers and members.
making sure that children and their families know where to go for help if they have a concern
sharing concerns with agencies who need to know and involving parents and children appropriately.
using Witney Town Band’s procedures to manage any allegations against staff and volunteers appropriately
ensuring that we provide a safe physical environment for our children, members and volunteers by applying health and safety measures in accordance with the law and regulatory guidance
building a safeguarding culture where members and volunteers, children and their families treat each other with respect and are comfortable about sharing concerns
sharing information about anyone found to be a risk to children with the appropriate bodies. For example, Disclosure and Barring Service, Police or Social Services.

Useful contact details:

In an emergency, please contact 999 and ask for the police.

Band Safeguarding/Welfare Officer (Sarah Findlay): secretary@witneytownband.org.uk

Thames Valley Police (Witney): 01865 841148

West Oxfordshire District Council Children’s Social care department: 0345 050 7666 (MASH – Monday – Friday) or 0800 833 408 (out of hours emergency team)

NSPCC Helpline: 0808 800 5000 or help@nspcc.org.uk

ChildLine: 0800 1111 (textphone 0800 400 222) or www.childline.org.uk

The Samaritans: https://www.samaritans.org/

National Domestic Abuse Helpline: https://www.nationaldahelpline.org.uk/

Brass Bands England Safeguarding Officer: 01226 771015

We are committed to reviewing our policy and good practice annually. This policy was last reviewed on 31st August 2025.