Safeguarding

This page gets into some of the essentials of our Safeguarding Policy and Practices. Content on this page is updated periodically to reflect the full Safeguarding Young People Policy, which is reviewed periodically. All volunteers must understand this policy and the spirit in which it was created before they participate in live sessions with young people. 

If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to safeguarding@linkonlinelearners.org.

Introduction

Link Online Learners is a not-for-profit organisation run by a collective of educational innovators linked by the non-profit HundrED.org

Link Online Learners offers the following activity for members: 

Building a Virtual Community of Global Citizens
Facilitating a global social network through live video chats, to share 
intercultural experiences, foster new perspectives and facilitate 
collaborative action on ideas, interests and innovations.

LOL has a specific management team tasked with responsibility for safeguarding these young people. LOL has adopted this Safeguarding Young People Policy and expects every adult volunteering at LOL to support it and comply with the safeguarding policy. 

Further to the intent of the safeguarding policy and practices statement, LOL has extended our scenario planning and volunteer staff training to encompass a wide range of online situations that may arise. Our scenario planning assures that all live session staff have immediate guidelines and crisis communication channels to follow to ensure that all young people are kept safe from harm.
 
Consequently, this policy shall apply to all core volunteers, members or anyone volunteering on behalf of LOL. Youth Members (members) are under 18 years of age: Volunteers aged between 19-21 are considered Youth Mentors. All adult volunteers are over 21 years of age. All safeguarding concerns MUST be reported directly to LOL’s Designated Safeguard Lead (DSL) who can be contacted via the email: safeguarding@linkonlinelearners.org. 
 
If anyone is unsure about whether anything may constitute a safeguarding issue they MUST always raise their concern with the DSL. It is not the responsibility of the person concerned about real or possible abuse to make a judgement about whether abuse has happened or conduct an ‘investigation’ to establish whether there has been abuse. A safeguarding referral cannot be anonymous.

This policy is intended as a Duty of Care statement to protect both the adult volunteers and youth members globally who take part in LOL online sessions.  

As a collective of volunteers we believe that no young person taking part in our activities should experience abuse or harm. The purpose of this safeguarding policy is intended to provide clear boundaries and overarching behaviours to those who represent LOL, and to guide our approach and practices to the protection and safeguarding of our membership.

Every young person deserves to grow up expecting a safe and nurturing environment, it is unfortunate however, that there are circumstances where young people need guidance and protection from risk as stipulated in the widely accepted *UNCRC, including:

  • Inappropriate supervision 
  • Unsafe environments and activities
  • Bullying, cyber-bullying, acts of violence and aggression
  • Radical political or religious viewpoints
  • Physical and emotional abuse and neglect
  • Domestic violence
  • Self-harm
  • Sexual abuse
  • Grooming
  • Criminal activity
  • Exploitation and modern slavery


 * In 1989, governments across the world adopted the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), recognising that all children have the right to be treated with dignity and fairness, to be protected, to develop to their full potential and to participate.