Safeguarding Policy
Safeguarding is fundamental to our philosophy of care. It underpins everything that we do. We aim to; reduce the potential for abuse, provide person-centred care, promote rights and choices.
Governance
Our robust and up-to-date Safeguarding Policy outlines commitments and names our safeguarding lead; supported by other policies including Health and Safety, Recruitment, Incident Reporting, Gifts and Wills and Whistleblowing. Policies reviewed annually - earlier should safeguarding issues arise. Policies reflect local procedures (Derbyshire and Derby SABs Safeguarding Adults Policy and Procedures) and we comply with the Care Act 2014, Regulation 13 Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations and in full compliance with our Duty of Candour. Our Whistleblowing policy assures staff of confidentiality and support in the event of speaking out about a colleague’s conduct. Policies are reviewed annually to confirm compliance; all staff are fully conversant in these policies.
As our named Safeguarding Lead, Registered Manager Lazin Ndlovu takes leadership responsibility for our safeguarding arrangements, promoting good professional practice, providing advice and expertise for colleagues and ensuring safeguarding training is in place.
Processes
We actively manage safeguarding risk through: safe recruitment (extensive screening: comprehensive interview, employment history, up-to-date Enhanced DBS checks, address and reference verification and induction); provision of role-specific safeguarding training, refreshed annually; support including Employee Handbook and team meetings as reminders of safeguarding training; comprehensive risk assessments/risk management plans; collaboration with other agencies (such as learning from others at provider forums) and effective information sharing for the protection of Service Users; and proactive implementation of best practice/lessons learned, including through information gathered from provider forums/CQC guidance.
Staff are appropriately trained and work in an enabling way that encourages and helps individuals to do as much as they can for themselves including making their own choices and developing confidence and independence through positive risk management associated with a particular choice of activity to enable engagement rather than seeing risk as a barrier to participation.
For example, supporting X, a with Paranoia Schizophrenia, we supported his wish for independent travel by managing risks through mitigation and contingency planning. He wanted to be allowed to travel independently to his psychiatrist appointments. We reduced the risk by working in partnership with his Care Coordinator and Psychiatrist to formulate a care plan on how this need could be achieved. In line with the expectations of Local Authority we completed a Herbert Protocol (this is form that carers, family or professionals of a vulnerable person can fill in. it contains a list of medications required, mobile numbers, places previously located, a recent photograph and the details of Health and Social Care Professionals involved in their care). containing all relevant information of what staff support client X to do should he fail to return to the Service following his appointment or fail to report at his Psychiatrist’s office. The protocol was made available to other professionals involved in his care for their input and approval. Also, as part of the plan service user X had to have risk assessments completed this included road safety awareness and his interaction with members of the public while out of the service. The Support Worker at the Service were required also to ensure that before he sets off for the bus, they will note the time he exited the service, what he was wearing and telephone the psychiatrist secretary to advise that he had set off and the time frame it should roughly take him to be at their office. We had developed a good rapport with the Psychiatrist Team and this helped as they will also maintain same levels of communication with ourselves. After his appointment they will call the Service and advise how he presented on arrival and how the review went, this helped to ensure on his return to the supported service he will get the support he may require. The risk management plan was discussed with the individual and a multidisciplinary team and is kept under regular review.
Service User X grew in confidence and started taking more steps towards more independence with support from Support Staff and Health Care Professionals this included going to the GP, Dentist and other appointments independent of support staff.
Training
All staff receive safeguarding training on commencing employment and at least annually thereafter (including safeguarding responsibilities under Code of Conduct, employment contract, and requirement to raise any safeguarding concerns with mechanisms/timeframes for reporting) which includes the Mental Capacity Act/ DoLS and Whistleblowing. Training includes: definitions, identification of signs, suspicion, allegations, disclosure, as well as in close monitoring of the nuances of behavioural and mood changes. Staff are made aware of our reporting procedures and are given contact details of the local authority Safeguarding Team. Understanding and competency is checked through observation of role-play scenarios and tests at the end of the training, as well as ongoing spot checks. Safeguarding is also routinely discussed in team meetings.
Continuous improvement
Safeguarding is integral to our organisational culture and practice at all levels: we operate rigorous preventative systems to prevent incidents, manage incidents thoroughly and make sustainable improvements to prevent future risk. We aim to work with adults who are at risk of abuse and neglect to have greater control in their lives.
Safeguarding is a total approach encompassing planning, workload management, staff supervision and support, recruitment, training and leadership. We work with Service Users to help them understand abuse and know what to expect of our services, our standards and their right to speak out. We support people to understand unacceptable behaviours and actions by others and we empower them to build their own capacity through strategies such as positive behaviour support (PBS).
Proactively, risks are assessed and risk management plans kept up to date for each Individual. Reactively, we learn from incidents. Safeguarding alerts are recorded by the Safeguarding Lead and reviewed monthly to track and address trends. Key findings from records are used to identify patterns and underlying causes, such as through the Antecedent-Behaviour-Consequence (ABC) Model to identify and reduce triggers.
Last Review- March 2023
Next review- March 2024
Completed by- Director of services
John Chambers
