Implemented: 28 January 2022
Review Date: 28 January 2023
Principles
The Vulnerable Children's Act 2014 is aimed at improving the protection of children at risk of abuse or neglect, including stronger vetting of adults who work with children.
Porirua Canoe Kayak Club (PCKC) is committed to the prevention of abuse and to the wellbeing of children, young people, vulnerable adults and their families.
PCKC recognise the responsibility to provide and promote a safe environment that protects children from harm and exploitation while participating in Waka Ama. Such an environment should cater for their physical and emotional wellbeing and aim to ensure that all children and young people are treated with dignity and respect. We will help to ensure the safety and protection of all children involved in PCKC activities through adherence to this policy. PCKC will promote this policy and awareness and understanding of child protection.
All services provided by PCKC adhere to the articles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, Tino Rangatiratanga (Self determination), Kāwanatanga (Governorship), Ōritetanga (Equality) and the rights and responsibilities accorded by Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
All services provided by PCKC uphold the values of our organisation and we are committed to: a) ensuring that individuals who demonstrate enthusiasm and commitment are not prevented from participating through lack of finance.
b) expecting that all members develop appropriate skills to their full individual potential and pass on their knowledge, skills and experience to other members.
c) ensuring that all club activities be undertaken in a spirit of whanaungatanga and that cultural differences and spiritual and emotion values are recognised and appreciated. d) ensuring that all club activities be undertaken in a manner that enables and encourages participation by people of all gender identities.
This Policy is written under the following considerations:
• The welfare of children is the primary concern.
• Child protection is everyone’s responsibility.
• All children, whatever their age, culture, ability, gender, language, ethnicity, socio-economic status, religious belief, and/or sexual identity have the right to protection from all the forms of harm.
• Children have the right to express views on all matters which affect them, should they wish to do so.
• Our organisation will work in partnership with children and parents/carers to promote the welfare, health, and development of children.
• Children and young people engaged with PCKC have a right to feel safe and comfortable in that engagement.
This policy has been developed based on the template dated 9/10/2020 provided to waka ama clubs by Ngā Kaihoe o Aotearoa. It will be reviewed annually and updated regularly in the light of operational experience and in line with changes in legislation and associated policies.
The responsibility for the review and implementation of this policy rests with the PCKC President or delegated authority. Any review will be approved by the Committee of PCKC
PCKC’s aim in implementing this policy is to promote good practice by:
• promoting the health and welfare of children by providing opportunities for them to take part in Waka Ama safely.
• helping to prevent the possibility of false accusations.
• protecting the organisation and our community against the damage, that would result if a child under our care was abused.
• recruiting, training, supporting and supervising staff, members and volunteers to adopt best practice to safeguard and protect children from harm and to reduce the risk of allegations or complaints against themselves.
• respecting and promoting the rights, wishes and feelings of children.
• responding to any allegations of misconduct or harm to children in line with this Policy and these procedures, as well as implementing, where appropriate, the relevant investigation, disciplinary and appeals procedures.
Scope
The scope of this policy covers all children who interact with PCKC whether visiting the site or being present at any programmes, events or activities delivered by PCKC. This includes children of staff and volunteers.
Definitions
For the purposes of this policy “Child” means a boy or girl under the age of 14 years, “Young person” means a boy or girl of or over the age of 14 years but under 18 years; but does not include any person who is or has been married or in a civil union (Children, Young Person, and Their Families Act 1989, Section 2).
For the purposes of this Policy “staff” means all those employed by PCKC, whether paid or voluntary, full time, part-time or contract.
This child protection policy adheres to the following Acts:
• Health and Disability Commissioner Act 1994
• Children Young Persons and Their Families Act 1989
• Privacy Act 1993
• Human Rights Act 1993
• Education Act 1989/1998
• Domestic Violence Act 1995
• Care of Children Act 2004
• Child Young Person and their Families Act 1989
• Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers' Rights
• Vulnerable Children’s Act 2014
Definition of child abuse The Children, Young Persons and their Families Act, 1989, defines child abuse as "…the harming (whether physically, emotionally, sexually), ill-treatment, abuse, neglect, or deprivation of any child or young person”.
Physical abuse is a non-accidental act on a child that results in physical harm. This includes, but is not limited to, beating, hitting, shaking, burning, drowning, suffocating, biting, poisoning or otherwise causing physical harm to a child. Physical abuse also involves the fabrication or inducing of illness.
Emotional abuse is the persistent emotional ill-treatment of a child such as to cause severe and persistent adverse effect on the child's emotional development. This can include a pattern ofrejecting, degrading, ignoring, isolating, corrupting, exploiting or terrorising a child. It may also include age or developmentally inappropriate expectations being imposed on children. It also includes the seeing or hearing the ill treatment of others.
Sexual Abuse involves forcing or enticing a child or young person to take part in sexual activities (penetrative and non-penetrative, for example, rape, kissing, touching, masturbation) as well as non contact actssuch asinvolving children in the looking at or production ofsexual images,sexual activities and sexual behaviours.
Neglect is the persistent failure to meet a child's basic physical and/or psychological needs, causing long term serious harm to the child's heath or development. It may also include neglect of a child's basic or emotional needs. Neglect is a lack: of action, emotion or basic needs.
Family Violence is physical, emotional, sexual and other abuse by someone (usually but not always a man) of a person (usually but not always a woman) with whom they have or have had some form of intimate relationship with, such as marriage or cohabitation, in order to maintain power and control over a person. It is important to be vigilant to any signs, particularly if children are being affected.
Roles and responsibilities of PCKC club members
All PCKC club members have a responsibility to keep children safe and have a role in reporting concerns of potential or actual abuse.
Sustained abuse and neglect of children, wherever it occurs, can have major long-term effects on all aspects of children's health, development and well-being and their ability to sustain stable and meaningful relationships in the future. It is the intention of PCKC to ensure that all staff understand their roles and responsibilities in ensuring the safety of children at all times.
It is the responsibility of club members to be vigilant, have knowledge and awareness of the indicators of neglect, potential or actual abuse and to report any concerns,suspicions or allegations ofsuspected abuse immediately and ensure that the concern is taken seriously and reported.
PCKC and the services provided, sit at the centre of our communities and are uniquely placed to recognise and respond to concerns for the wellbeing of children. There are several ways or situations where concerns might be raised with a member of staff which may not involve a child making a disclosure directly to a member of staff.
Club members should, therefore, be alert and aware of the fact that a range of situations could give rise to concerns about child protection.
PCKC CHILD PROTECTION POLICY PROCESS AND PROCEDURES
Child protection procedures
This section outlines clear guidance for the PCKC Committee and club members on how to respond to a concern of child abuse.
All concerns of potential, suspected, or alleged abuse must be brought to the attention of the President of PCKC. If the President is unavailable, then consultation should occur with a designated committee member. This must occur within 24 hours of the reported incident.
A decision will be made as to whether to seek further advice and/or notify Oranga Tamariki.
If a child makes a verbal disclosure to a club member, it is important that the Committee take what the child says seriously. PCKC has a duty of care to the children to whom it provides services. A failure to report a significant concern about a child is a breach of that child's human rights.
Under no circumstances should a club member attempt to investigate or deal with concerns regarding child abuse alone.
All decisions taken, including if the concern does not require notifying Oranga Tamariki must be recorded in writing and kept securely in a Child Protection file with the reasons clearly identified and explained.
Giving information to protect children better is not a breach in confidentiality.
Wherever possible the family/whānau should be kept informed of what information has been shared and to which agency, and for what purpose. Guidance of sharing information with family/whanau is to be sought from either the Police or Oranga Tamariki. Principle 11 of the Privacy Act, 1993, states "disclosure of the information is necessary to prevent or lessen a serious threat".
Recommended reporting procedures
• If the child or young person is in danger or unsafe, act immediately to secure their safety.
• Listen to the child or young person and reassure them but do not make promises or commitments you cannot keep.
• Ensure that any information or disclosures by the child or young person are written down.
• Do not formally interview the child or young person. Obtain only necessary relevant facts if and when clarification is needed.
• Inform the President of PCKC and agree on appropriate course of action.
• If a decision is made to notify then ensure notification of Oranga Tamariki and the Police.
• After making sure the referral has gone to Oranga Tamariki or to the Police, get support for you from the appropriate people if needed.
Points to note
• Documentation may subsequently be used in court as evidence for either side.
• Avoid making judgment, simply record the facts.
• Interviewing of suspected abuse victims is a specialised procedure best left to those who are trained in such techniques.
Child protection: Good practice guidelines
Everyone involved in Waka Ama should strive to demonstrate exemplary behavior in order to protect themselves from false allegations. Volunteers, coaches, officials, and whānau are expected to follow these good practice guidelines during any activity or events held under the auspices of PCKC or any affiliated organisation. Concerns over failure to follow these guidelines should be reported to Waka Ama New Zealand
Good practice means:
• Always working in an open environment avoiding private or unobserved situation and encouraging open communication.
• Ensure that children use appropriate protective gear and that all equipment and facilities comply with safety regulations.
• Treating all children equally with respect and dignity.
• Always putting the welfare of children first.
• Do not send children off to train alone and out of sight and supervision.
• Ensure that all physical contact with children is relevant and appropriate to the activity.
• Building balanced relationships based on mutual trust and empowering children to share in decision making.
• Involving parents / carers wherever possible.
• Ensuring that if mixed teams/groups are taken away for the day and night, they should be accompanied by both male and female chaperone or team leader who must be police checked and referee vetted for their safety around Children and young people. Always remember that same gender abuse can also occur.
• Giving enthusiastic and constructive feedback rather than negative criticism.
• Recognising the developmental needs and capacity of children – avoiding excessive training or competition and not pushing them against their will.
• Securing parental consent in writing to act in loco parentis if the need arises to administer emergency first aid and/or other medical treatment.
• Keeping a written record of any injuriesthat occur, along with the details of any treatment given.
• Ensure that any filming or photography of children is appropriate.
• Ensure that start and finish times are communicated to caregivers and adhered to so that children are not left unsupervised.
• Request parental consent before transporting children in a vehicle. Ensure that the vehicle isinsured, hasthe appropriate child safety seats, and has a current Warrant of Fitness and Registration and the driver has the appropriate license.
• where it is unsafe to delay, ensure you have parental consent to administer first aid required.
Practices to be avoided
The following situations, practices or behaviours are never sanctioned and must be avoided except in emergencies. Club members, coaches, officials and volunteers should never, while involved in any activity or training under the auspices of PCKC:
• engage in rough physical or sexual provocative games, including horseplay
• share a room with only one child other than your own
• share a room with children unless two or more are present, other than their own
• share a room with any child of the opposite gender other than their own
• enter a child’s room unless they are the parent or are accompanied by another adult
• allow or engage in any form of inappropriate touching
• allow children to use inappropriate language unchallenged
• make sexually suggestive comments to a child, even in fun
• reduce a child to tears by excessive verbal abuse
• engage in any form of verbal or emotional abuse
• encourage a child to engage in bullying or abuse
• allow allegations made by a child to go unchallenged, unrecorded or not acted upon
• do things of a personal nature for children or disabled adults that they can do for themselves
• ensuring that at events, adults (other than the children’s parents) should not enter children’s rooms or invite children into their rooms
• make overnight stopovers travelling to or from an event unless the stopover has been organised by PCKC as part of a team’s travel or the children are travelling with their parent(s)
• not offer alcohol, cigarettes or electronic cigarettes in the presence of children and young people under any circumstances
• not be under the influence of alcohol when in the care of children and young people
• avoid private or unobserved situations, including being alone with a child in the changing rooms
• avoid being the only adult present when staying overnight anywhere with children.
Other situations, practices or behaviours , please avoid:
• spending excessive amounts of time along with children away from others
• taking or dropping off a child to an event unless accompanied by another adult or other children
• engaging in communication with a child, on a one-on-one basis, through social media, texting or email, other than for relevant coach/athlete feedback or administration.
If a case arises where these situations are unavoidable (e.g. the child needs urgent and acute medical care, or a parent fails to arrive to pick a child up at the end of an event), it should be with full knowledge and consent of someone in charge or the child’s parents. The circumstances of any exceptions must be reported in detail to PCKC within 48 hours.
Safe recruitment of volunteers All appointments to volunteer positions that have direct and/or frequent unsupervised contact* with children or young people (e.g. Taitamariki to J19 coaches/managers) will be conditional on Police Vetting and safety check. Further information regarding safety checking, including vetting and screening procedures, will be found in the Employment Policy. (*Unsupervised contact means that the contact takes place with no-one else there with a specific role to facilitate, support or supervise the contact.)
Before making any appointment, PCKC will undertake a series of checks to ascertain the candidate’s suitability and safety to work in the organisation. These will adhere to the statutory obligations contained within the legislation such asthe Privacy Act, the Human Rights Act and Vulnerable Children Act.
All appointments will require:
• verification of identification will be undertaken
• verification of qualifications (and registration where appropriate) will be undertaken
• safety checks which include a police check followed by a personal assessment process. Attitudes towards children and safety around them will be assessed during this process.
• Full records of all checks and assessments will be maintained by PCKC.
Supporting volunteers
All club volunteers will be encouraged and supported to engage in practices that align with this child protection policy at the level appropriate to their role.
Safe practices
All club members are expected to behave in a manner consistent with the PCKC Code of Conduct.
A relationship between an adult and a child or young person cannot be a relationship between equals. There is a potential for exploitation and harm of vulnerable young people. Adults have a responsibility to ensure that an unequal balance of power is not used for personal advantage or gratification.
All club members are expected to behave in a manner that maintains appropriate professional boundaries and avoids behaviour which might be misinterpreted by others.
Allegations made against club members
Thissection outlinesthe proceduresto follow should an allegation of inappropriate behaviour towards a child be made against a club member. It is important to recognise that all disclosures of abuse of a child must be taken seriously, reported, and investigated appropriately, with the safety of child being of the highest concern.
Allegations, suspicions, or complaints of abuse against staff, volunteers or representatives of other agencies must be taken seriously and reported to the Club President who will deal with them immediately, sensitively and expediently within the procedures outlined in this document. If necessary, the Club President may seek advice on how to proceed with any allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards a child.
It is not the responsibility of the PCKC Committee to investigate allegations of child abuse.
If the Police decide to undertake a criminal investigation then the club member may be suspended, without prejudice, as a precautionary measure. It is important that no internal investigation is undertaken, and no evidence gathered that might prejudice the criminal investigation.
Confidentiality
Every effort should be made to ensure that confidentiality is maintained for all concerned. Information should be handled and disseminated on a ‘need to know’ basis only. However, PCKC should not work alone in cases of suspected or reported abuse and unless a conflict of interest is involved, the Club President should also be consulted; otherwise another member of the PCKC Committee should be consulted.
Confidentiality and “need to know only” dissemination applies to everyone, including the following people:
• the PCKC President
• the PCKC Committee and any coaching and management team members • the parents of the person who is alleged to have been abused
• the person making the allegation
• Oranga Tamariki
• the police
• the alleged abuser (and parents if the alleged abuser is a child).
Information should be stored in a secure place with limited access to designated people only.