SAFEGUARDING POLICY FOR YOUNG PEOPLE AND VULNERABLE ADULTS
POLICY STATEMENT
The South West Association of Training Providers Ltd (Swatpro) is committed to practices that protect Young People and Vulnerable Adults from abuse, exploitation, bullying, harassment, neglect, and self-harm.
Swatpro will ensure that the board of directors, senior leaders, staff, and delivery partners understand and accept their responsibilities to develop awareness of safeguarding risks and issues and know exactly how to identify and report any incidents.
Swatpro will work with local safeguarding organisations, including local authorities, Police, Health, Education Skills Funding Agency, and other community and referral groups to support the safeguarding of all learners.
The policy is reinforced by the Safeguarding Support Guide, detailing referral agencies, reporting procedures, signs of abuse or risk, and incident forms.
ACCOUNTABILITY & RESPONSIBILITY
- The Swatpro board has overall responsibility for safeguarding and supports the Swatpro lead in reviewing policy, process, and monitoring.
- Key safeguarding items are embedded in partner contracts and service level agreements.
- All staff and partners must have trained safeguarding personnel.
- Swatpro’s Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) will work with partner DSLs and deputies to monitor and manage incidents, communicate with appropriate agencies, and include lessons learned in the self-assessment process.
- Partners must report safeguarding incidents involving staff or learners to the Swatpro DSL, provide updates, and inform of outcomes. The DBS will be informed as standard.
- Safeguarding remains a standing agenda item at team, senior leadership, and board meetings.
TRAINING
- Swatpro staff receive annual safeguarding training.
- Partner records are monitored to ensure company-wide safeguarding awareness and qualified leads.
- Each partner must have a designated safeguarding lead who meets regularly with Swatpro’s DSL.
- DSLs and deputies retrain every 2 years; all other contact staff every 3 years. This is tracked via Swatpro’s Single Central Register (SCR).
PARTNER REQUIREMENTS
Partners must:
- Review safeguarding processes against best practice and assess risk
- Follow DfE and Ofsted guidelines
- Undertake safeguarding training and stay informed of legislation
- Maintain a SCR of staff qualifications, training, and DBS checks
- Report concerns via MyConcern (unless otherwise agreed)
- Inform Swatpro of staff allegations, share updates and outcomes
HANDLING ALLEGATIONS AGAINST STAFF
- Allegations are taken seriously, investigated thoroughly, and reported appropriately.
- The DSL informs the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) immediately.
- If the allegation involves the DSL, the Board assigns an alternative senior leader.
- Allegations are managed in line with Part 4 of KCSiE 2025
- Outcomes are reported to relevant authorities, including the DBS.
DISCLOSURE AND BARRING SERVICE CHECKS
- All staff working frequently with Young People or Vulnerable Adults must be DBS checked.
- Annual due diligence and in-year reviews confirm compliance.
- DBS checks are updated every 3 years and tracked via the SCR.
PREVENT DUTY STATEMENT
Under the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015, Swatpro and its partners must prevent individuals from being drawn into terrorism.
All staff and learners must uphold Human Rights and British Values, including democracy, rule of law, individual liberty, mutual respect, and tolerance.
Swatpro works with professional bodies, external agencies, and community partners to safeguard against radicalisation and extremism.
ATTENDANCE MONITORING AND SUPPORT
In line with the statutory guidance Working Together to Improve School Attendance, Swatpro and its partners will:
- Monitor learner attendance consistently
- Identify and respond to patterns of absence
- Collaborate with local authorities and families
- Include attendance data in safeguarding reviews
Attendance concerns are treated as safeguarding risks and addressed proactively.
ONLINE SAFETY – EMERGING RISKS
To reflect KCSiE 2025 updates, Swatpro’s safeguarding guide and training now include:
- Definitions of disinformation, misinformation, and conspiracy theories
- Staff guidance on identifying and responding to these risks
- Updates to filtering and monitoring systems
- Promotion of digital literacy and critical thinking
These measures protect learners from harmful online narratives.
SUPPORTING GENDER-QUESTIONING LEARNERS
Swatpro is committed to inclusive, respectful support for all learners. In anticipation of forthcoming DfE guidance, Swatpro will:
- Provide sensitive, tailored support
- Avoid assumptions or irreversible actions without consultation
- Train staff to respond compassionately
- Review this section upon release of formal guidance
ACCESSIBILITY AND CLARITY OF POLICY
To ensure understanding across all stakeholders, Swatpro will:
- Simplify policy language where needed
- Provide accessible formats (e.g., easy-read, translated versions)
- Promote the policy across platforms for visibility
REVIEW
Procedures are reviewed annually and aligned with the Self-Assessment Review (SAR) and new legislation or guidance. The DSL leads the review process.
PRACTICE
Swatpro reports all safeguarding activities to the board.
A safeguarding group, including Swatpro and partner DSLs and champions, meets at least every six months to review referrals and support arrangements.
POLICY PROMOTION
The policy is published on the company website https://swatpro.org.uk, shared via email, and stored on the Swatpro & Partners Safeguarding intranet.
SWATPRO KEY CONTACTS
|
Role |
Name |
|
Tel |
|
Lead DSL |
Kathleen Harrison-Ford |
supportme@swatpro.org.uk |
01392 437659 |
|
Deputy Lead DSL |
Sarah Gibbs |
supportme@swatpro.org.uk |
01392 437659 |
|
Deputy DSL |
Stacy Harrall-Phillips |
supportme@swatpro.org.uk |
01392 437659 |
|
Nominated Director |
Rod Davis |
supportme@swatpro.org.uk |
01392 437659 |
SIGNED ON BEHALF OF THE COMPANY
Dated: 5th November 2025
Signed: Rodney Davis – Chief Executive, Swatpro
SWATPRO PREVENT POLICY
POLICY STATEMENT
South West Association of Training Providers Ltd (Swatpro) will commit to practices that protect and prevent from radicalisation and extremism in response to the PREVENT Duty requirements.
Swatpro will continue to ensure that the board of directors, senior leaders, staff, and partners recognise and accept their responsibilities to develop the awareness of the risks and issues involved in the PREVENT duty. Additionally, it commits to them all being fully conversant with firstly how to identify, and then how to report any incidents.
Swatpro will commit to working with the Channel Team, PREVENT coordinators, the Police and Education Skills Funding Agency to ensure the safeguarding of all learners.
This policy is reinforced by the ‘PREVENT Procedures Guide,’ which details information on protecting apprentices and learners from radicalising influencers, ensuring that apprentices, learners, and employees are resilient to extreme narratives; identifying changes in apprentices, learners, and employees; Channel processes and the raising and recording of incident concerns.
PREVENT DUTY STATEMENT
Under the United Kingdom Government’s ‘Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015’ a requirement was laid upon “specified authorities” including ‘Training Providers’, when exercising their functions, to have due regard to the need to PREVENT people from being drawn into terrorism.
The Swatpro Board is fully committed to safeguarding including promoting the welfare of all learners and staff against radicalisation and extremism.
This statement reinforces the requirement for all staff at Swatpro and its partners to be fully engaged about being extra vigilant regarding safeguarding, radicalisation, and extremism. The company remains committed to continuing to work in partnership with professional bodies, external agencies, and partners in our local community, to ensure that all learners are safe from harm.
All staff, learners and services contracted to Swatpro are required to uphold and promote the fundamental principles of ‘Human Rights and British Values’ and exemplify these in their practice, including democracy; the rule of law; individual liberty; mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.
PREVENT VULNERABILITIES TO BE WATCHED FOR:
Identity crisis – adolescents / adults who are exploring issues of identity can feel both distant from their parents / family and cultural and religious heritage, and uncomfortable with their place in society around them. Radicalisers can exploit this by providing a sense of purpose or feelings of belonging. Where this occurs, it can often manifest itself in a change in a person’s behaviour, their circle of friends, and the way in which they interact with others and spend their time.
Personal crisis – the young person may be experiencing family tensions, a sense of isolation, and low self-esteem, they may have dissociated from their existing friendship group and become involved with a new and different group of friends. They may be searching for answers to questions about identity, faith and belonging.
Personal circumstances – migration; local community tensions; and events affecting the young person’s country of origin may contribute to a sense of grievance that is triggered by personal experience of racism or discrimination in the UK and/or grievances about UK foreign policy decisions.
Unmet aspirations – the young person may have perceptions of injustice; a feeling of failure; rejection of civic life.
Criminality – experiences of imprisonment, previous involvement with criminal groups, and poor resettlement / reintegration.
Autism, learning disabilities and mental health – young people who experience difficulties with social interaction, empathy with others, understanding the consequences of their actions and awareness of the motivations of other. They may lack the ability to think critically, compare ideologies or challenge what they are being told in person or online.
Unemployment or under-employment - individuals may perceive their aspirations for career and lifestyle to be undermined by limited achievements or employment prospects. This can translate to a generalised rejection of civic life and adoption of violence as a symbolic act.
Grievances - the following are examples of grievances which may play an important part in the early indoctrination of individuals into the acceptance of a radical view and extremist ideology:
A misconception and/or rejection of UK foreign policy
A distrust of western media reporting
Perceptions that UK government policy is discriminatory (e.g., counter-terrorist legislation).
The following have also been found to contribute to people being drawn into certain groups which support terrorist related activity:
Ideology and politics
Provocation and anger (grievance)
Need for protection
Seeking excitement and action
Fascination with violence, weapons and uniforms
Youth rebellion
Seeking family and father substitutes
Seeking friends and community
Seeking status and identity
A misconception and/or rejection of UK foreign policy
A distrust of western media reporting
Perceptions that UK government policy is discriminatory (e.g., counter-terrorist legislation)
ACCOUNTABILITY & RESPONSIBILITY
The Swatpro board has overall responsibility for PREVENT and is committed to both this PREVENT policy and its wider implementation through their annual contracts and service level agreements.
Swatpro’s DSL [Designated Safeguarding Lead] acts as the PREVENT lead for the company and will continue to work with the partners safeguarding DSL or team to ensure that the monitoring and management of PREVENT Channel referrals and incidents are completed in the correct manor and are communicated to the Regional PREVENT team.
The Swatpro board will continue to support the Swatpro lead in completing risk assessments and training materials for staff. The PREVENT leads will continue to meet regularly to discuss PREVENT developments, matters arising and learner referrals to the Channel programme.
Swatpro will continue to ensure that both itself and its partners who deliver services to learners have trained PREVENT DSLs [Designated Safeguarding Leads] in place within their organisations.
Further Swatpro remains committed to ensuring that all its staff, its partners and learners are directly supported in PREVENT, through appropriate training, awareness sessions, teaching & learning materials, and resource development.
Swatpro and partners commit to undertake risk assessments using the Prevent Duty Self-Assessment Toolkit - FE and DFE (Department for Education) Risk Assessment Template to identify where and how learners or staff may be at risk of being drawn into terrorism.
Safeguarding and PREVENT will remain as agenda items at each team, senior leadership, and board meeting.
Swatpro will ensure its partners continue to report any PREVENT incidents to the Swatpro Safeguarding Lead, provide updates throughout the investigation and inform them of the outcome.
TRAINING
Swatpro staff to continue to be trained at a minimum annually in PREVENT which must include training on how to implement the policy.
Swatpro to regularly monitor partners records to check that they have provided adequate PREVENT training, have the appropriate awareness, and are qualified to the required level. As part of annual partner due diligence Swatpro will continue to verify that every partner has a PREVENT lead. These persons will be communicated with and regularly meet the Swatpro safeguarding & PREVENT lead.
Swatpro ‘s partners are contractually required to:
- review their own processes and procedures against best practice guides and assess risk to ensure their process works effectively and responds efficiently in recording incidents
- complete risk assessments for PREVENT requirements on all centres and on employers’ premises
- follow the guidelines set out by the agencies such as DFE (Department for Education) and Ofsted
- undertake annual training on PREVENT to raise awareness and keep informed of up-to-date legislation and issues
- maintain an accurate and current Single Central Record (SCR) of all staff qualifications, safeguarding training and Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks
- ensure all staff have completed PREVENT awareness sessions and Channel programme module as a minimum.
Swatpro to continue to enforce its requirement that all staff be PREVENT and Channel trained annually by monitoring & tracking as part of Swatpro’s single central register.
REVIEW
Swatpro’s PREVENT and Channel procedures to be checked annually to ensure processes and procedures are up to date in line with changes to requirements.
Swatpro to report all PREVENT activities & issues directly to the board of directors.
The Swatpro board through the auspices of the CEO will support the DSL (Designated Safeguarding Leads) in an ongoing reviewing of policy, process, and monitoring of PREVENT.
A safeguarding group, made up of Swatpro and its partner safeguarding and PREVENT champions, will meet a minimum of every six months to review activities, referrals, and support arrangements.
POLICY PROMOTION
The policy is promoted on our website https:///swatpro.org.uk and is also shared with partners via email and stored within the Swatpro & Partners intranet site.
SWATPRO KEY CONTACTS
Swatpro Lead Designated Officer
Name: Kathleen Harrison-Ford
Email: supportme@swatpro.org.uk
Tel no: 01392 437659
Swatpro Deputy Lead Designated Officer
Name: Sarah Gibbs
Email: supportme@swatpro.org.uk
Tel no: 01392 437659
Swatpro Deputy Designated Officer
Name: Stacy Harrall-Phillips
Email: supportme@swatpro.org.uk
Tel no: 01392 437659
Swatpro Nominated Director
Name: Rod Davis
Tel no: 01392 437659
SIGNED ON BEHALF OF THE COMPANY
Dated: 26th February 2025
Rodney Davis - Chief Executive Swatpro