Elayos Adult and Children Safeguarding Policy

1. Policy Commitment

Elayos primarily works with vulnerable women and birthing people and their babies. However, it is committed to safeguarding all children, young people and vulnerable adults that come into contact with our work. Children, young people and vulnerable adults who access or who are involved in our services should:

  • Be made aware of this policy.

  • Have alleged incidents recognised and taken seriously.

  • Receive fair and respectful treatment throughout.

  • Be involved in any process as appropriate.

Elayos will take every reasonable step to ensure that all children, young people and vulnerable adults are protected, where our staff, committee members, trustees, volunteers and students are involved in the delivery of our work. All suspicions and allegations of abuse will be taken seriously and investigations will be undertaken swiftly so that appropriate and required action is taken as soon as possible.

Elayos enables all our staff, committee members, trustees, volunteers and students who work with us to make informed and confident decisions regarding safeguarding. We expect everyone (staff, committee members, trustees, volunteers and students) to have read, understood and adhere to this policy and related procedures.

Equal Opportunities Statement

We believe that all children, young people and vulnerable adults have an equal right to protection from abuse, regardless of their age, race, religion, ability, gender, language, background or sexual identity and consider the welfare of the child/young person/ vulnerable adult is paramount. 

Comments and actions that contribute to discrimination, harassment or victimisation are not acceptable and will be challenged. Such incidents will be recorded and shared with parents, carers and the relevant agencies when necessary and appropriate. Please read our Equality and Diversity Policy for more information. 

2. Roles and Responsibilities

Elayos has a Designated Person who is responsible for Safeguarding and Child Protection; this is Amelia Sommers (Co-Director) Email: amelia@elayos.co.uk Phone: 07915961754 and in their absence the role will be undertaken by the Deputy safeguarding officer, Hope Plumb (Co-Director) Email: hope@elayos.co.uk Phone: 07488356976 

The role of the Designated Person is to assume overall responsibility for safeguarding across the organisation. Responsibilities involve:

  • Monitoring and recording concerns

  • Making referrals to social care, or police, as relevant, without delay

  • Liasion with other agencies

Roles include: 

  • To be familiar with Elayos policies and procedures

  • Support and advise staff and volunteers in fulfilling their roles

  • Provide a point of reference to advise on safeguarding issues

  • Liaise with the board safeguarding officer

  • Promote safeguarding best practice 

  • To ensure that the policies and procedures are reviewed annually and are fit for purpose

  • To ensure that any amendments and changes are communicated to the deputy, trustees, staff and volunteers

  • To ensure that safer recruitment policies are operated in the recruitment of all workers (both volunteers and paid), including that all relevant workers have up to date DBS checks. 

  • To keep a database of all DBS checks, and make sure that they are renewed every 5 years or using the update service. 

  • To be aware of the names and numbers of appropriate contacts within social care and the police in case a referral needs to be made. 

  • To be aware of when to seek advice, and when it is necessary to inform others

  • To ensure that appropriate records are kept and that they are handled and stored confidentially

  • To arrange and promote training in safeguarding to any relevant people

  • To keep up to date record of volunteer safeguarding training

  • To update their own safeguarding training every 3 years

  • To make arrangements for someone to take over when they leave, and to publicise throughout Elayos who this is

It is not the role of the Designated Person or Elayos to decide whether abuse has taken place or not. It is therefore vital that staff, committee members, trustees, volunteers and students raise all cases of suspected or alleged abuse in line with the procedures identified in this policy as there may already have been concerns expressed by other staff, committee members, trustees, volunteers or students and failure to report concerns may put children, young people, and vulnerable adults at risk. Details of concerns and actions taken should be shared with the board at the earliest convenience.

If the safeguarding concern is regarding either Amelia Sommers or Hope Plumb, the Elayos Safeguarding Board Representative Abi Vedder should be contacted who will adhere to the procedures listed in this document. 

Abi Vedder Email: abi@vedder.com - Phone 07971488395

3. Definitions and Signs of Abuse (source: NSPCC)

The four main types of abuse are: physical, neglect, sexual and emotional.

3.1 Physical abuse

Physical abuse happens when a child or adult is deliberately hurt causing physical harm. It can involve hitting, shaking, kicking, throwing, burning or suffocating. All children have accidents which may cause cuts, bumps and bruises. These tend to affect the bony areas of their body. Injuries that may indicate physical abuse include:

  • bruises on babies that are not yet crawling or walking 

  • bruises on the cheeks, ears, palms, arms and feet 

  • bruises on the back, buttocks, tummy, hips and backs of legs 

  • multiple bruises in clusters, usually on the upper arms or outer thighs

  • bruising which looks like it has been caused by fingers, a hand or an object, like a belt or shoe 

  • large oval-shaped bite marks. Burns or scalds 

  • any burns which have a clear shape of an object, for example cigarette burns 

  • burns to the backs of hands, feet, legs, genitals or buttocks. Other signs of physical abuse include multiple injuries (such as bruising, fractures) inflicted at different times. If a child is frequently injured, and if the bruises or injuries are unexplained or the explanation doesn’t match the injury, this should be investigated. It’s also concerning

3.2 Neglect

Neglect is not meeting a child’s basic physical and/or psychological needs. This can result in serious damage to their health and development. Neglect may involve not:

• providing adequate food, clothing or shelter 

• supervising a child or keeping them safe from harm or danger(including leaving them with unsuitable carers) 

• making sure the child receives appropriate health and/or dental care

• making sure the child receives a suitable education 

• meeting the child’s basic emotional needs – this is known as emotional neglect. 

Neglect is the most common type of abuse. It often happens at the same time as other types of abuse. 

Neglect can be difficult to identify. Isolated signs may not mean that a child is suffering neglect, but multiple and persistent signs over time could indicate a serious problem. Some of these signs include: 

• children who appear hungry - they may not have lunch money or even try to steal food 

• children who appear dirty or smelly 

• children whose clothes are inadequate for the weather conditions 

• children who are left alone or unsupervised for long periods or at a young age 

• children who have untreated injuries, health or dental problems 

• children with poor language, communication or social skills for their stage of development 

• children who live in an unsuitable home environment.

3.3 Sexual Abuse

Sexual abuse is forcing or enticing a child to take part in sexual activities. It doesn’t necessarily involve violence and the child may not be aware that what is happening is abuse. Child sexual abuse can involve contact abuse and non-contact abuse. Contact abuse happens when the abuser makes physical contact with the child. It includes: 

• sexual touching of any part of the body whether the child is wearing clothes or not 

• rape or penetration by putting an object or body part inside a child's mouth, vagina or anus 

• forcing or encouraging a child to take part in sexual activity 

• making a child take their clothes off or touch someone else's genitals.

Non-contact abuse involves non-touching activities. It can happen online or in person and includes: 

• encouraging or forcing a child to watch or hear sexual acts 

• making a child masturbate while others watch

• not taking proper measures to prevent a child being exposed to sexual activities by others 

• showing pornography to a child 

• making, viewing or distributing child abuse images 

• allowing someone else to make, view or distribute child abuse images. 

• meeting a child following online sexual grooming with the intent of abusing them. 

Online sexual abuse includes: 

• persuading or forcing a child to send or post sexually explicit images of themselves, this is sometimes referred to as sexting 

• persuading or forcing a child to take part in sexual activities via a webcam or smartphone 

• having sexual conversations with a child by text or online. 

Abusers may threaten to send sexually explicit images, video or copies of sexual conversations to the young person's friends and family unless they take part in other sexual activity. Images or videos may continue to be shared long after the abuse has stopped. 

Abusers will often try to build an emotional connection with a child in order to gain their trust for the purposes of sexual abuse. This is known as grooming.


Spotting the signs of sexual abuse

There may be physical signs that a child has suffered sexual abuse. These include: 

• anal or vaginal soreness or itching 

• bruising or bleeding near the genital area 

• discomfort when walking or sitting down 

• an unusual discharge 

• sexually transmitted infections (STI) 

• pregnancy. 

Changes in the child’s mood or behaviour may also cause concern. They may want to avoid spending time with specific people. In particular, the child may show sexual behaviour that is inappropriate for their age.

3.4 Emotional Abuse

Emotional abuse involves:

• humiliating, putting down or regularly criticising a child 

• shouting at or threatening a child or calling them names 

• mocking a child or making them perform degrading acts 

• constantly blaming or scapegoating a child for things which are not their fault 

• trying to control a child’s life and not recognising their individuality 

• not allowing a child to have friends or develop socially 

• pushing a child too hard or not recognising their limitations 

• manipulating a child 

• exposing a child to distressing events or interactions 

• persistently ignoring a child 

• being cold and emotionally unavailable during interactions with a child 

• not being positive or encouraging to a child or praising their achievements and successes. 


Spotting the signs of emotional abuse

There aren’t usually any obvious physical signs of emotional abuse but you may spot changes in a child's actions or emotions. Some children are naturally quiet and self-contained whilst others are more open and affectionate. Mood swings and challenging behaviour are also a normal part of growing up for teenagers and children going through puberty. Be alert to behaviours which appear to be out of character for the individual child or are particularly unusual for their stage of development. 

Babies and pre-school children who are being emotionally abused may: 

• be overly-affectionate towards strangers or people they haven’t known for very long 

• not appear to have a close relationship with their parent, for example when being taken to or collected from nursery 

• lack confidence or become wary or anxious 

• be unable to play 

• be aggressive or nasty towards other children and animals.

Older children may:

• use language, act in a way or know about things that you wouldn’t expect for their age 

• struggle to control strong emotions or have extreme outbursts 

• seem isolated from their parents 

• lack social skills or have few, if any, friends 

• fear making mistakes 

• fear their parent being approached regarding their behaviour

• self-harm


4. Reporting Incidents

All allegations or suspicions must be treated seriously and reported appropriately. 

Step 1: 

Inform the Safeguarding Lead or Deputy as soon as possible and log it accordingly via our client log and safeguarding form

Step 2: 

The designated person for safeguarding will then devise an appropriate plan of action. The exact nature of the action taken will be determined by the individual circumstances, but it may include the involvement of external authorities, such as the Children’s Advice and support service (CASS) or the Birmingham Adult Social services team. This will then be followed up in a written report within 24 hours. 

Any allegation made against a Person in a Position of trust (group leader, volunteer, staff member) should be reported to the designated person for safeguarding immediately. The matter will be investigated and the appropriate action taken. The designated person for safeguarding should inform the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) who will advise of next steps.

If a disclosure of abuse is made by a group user, care should be taken to explain to them the procedure that will be followed and they should be told that it may not be possible for Elayos to maintain confidentiality.


4. Good Practice

Recruitment, Induction and Training

All staff, committee members, trustees, volunteers and students working or volunteering directly with children, young people or vulnerable adults are: Carefully recruited in line with good recruitment practice, to include:

  • At least two verified references

  • Have full and up to date Criminal Record checks if their role meets the eligibility criteria outlined by the Disclosure and Barring Service.

  • Familiarisation with the Safeguarding Policy and Procedure.

  • Receive appropriate training and are provided with up to date and relevant information and guidance.

  • Are provided with support appropriate with their responsibilities in relation to Safeguarding, and their requirement to maintain safe relationships.

  • Are aware of their role in respect of the disclosure or discovery of abuse, the procedure for doing so and report the disclosure or discovery of abuse to the Designated Person for Safeguarding.

Record Keeping

  • Any concerns will be recorded in writing on the database to comply with data protection legislation and shared with the safeguarding officer who will take the relevant action.

  • Records should only include contacts and referrals made including date, time, reason and referral agency. Elayos will assist other relevant organisations, as far as it is able, during any investigation of abuse or neglect. This will include disclosing written and verbal information and evidence.

5. Contact Details Emergency

Contact Number

If a child / vulnerable adult is in immediate danger you should contact the police on 999 or 101.

Birmingham contact numbers

For concerns for a child or young person, Birmingham's Children’s advice and support team (CASS) Team here

If you are unsure about who to contact then please read the Right help, right time information here

In the event of concerns for a vulnerable adult within Birmingham, the matter should be reported to the Adult Social Care Team here

Birmingham Safeguarding Children Board Procedures Manual can be found via this link:   http://westmidlands.procedures.org.uk


6. Policy Review

Adapted:23/01/24

Next Policy Review Due: 01/25