SAFEGUARDING CHILDREN POLICY
Approved on 28th July 2026
Next review before 31st August 2027
This policy applies to all staff, including the board of trustees, paid staff, volunteer and freelance workers, students and anyone working on behalf of the Young People’s Puppet Theatre (the YPPT).
The purpose of this policy is:
to protect children, young people and vulnerable adults involved in YPPT projects. This includes the children of adults involved in YPPT projects.
to provide staff and volunteers with the overarching principles that guide our approach to safeguarding.
The YPPT believes that a child, young person or vulnerable adult should never experience abuse of any kind. We have a responsibility to promote the welfare of all children and young people and to keep them safe. We are committed to practice in a way that protects them and recognise that Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility.
The YPPT’s Designated Safeguarding Lead is Michelle Green. The Designated Safeguarding Lead can be contacted at dsl@yppt.org.uk.
YPPT works mainly with children and young people on projects which are hosted by schools, during school hours and with the children’s teacher or another member of school staff present. Therefore, any safeguarding concerns which arise on YPPT projects are dealt with in accordance with the schools’ Safeguarding Policies and Procedures.
As YPPT expands its services to run projects outside of school, the safety and wellbeing of all children and vulnerable adults involved remains a top priority. YPPT expects all incidents and concerns related to safeguarding to be taken seriously, no matter where they occur. Any YPPT employee, volunteer or freelancer who has a safeguarding concern must raise it immediately to the project leader. The project leader will then record the concern via an email report to YPPT's designated safeguarding lead. The designated safeguarding lead will offer guidance and support to the project leader, and if necessary, will escalate the concern to the appropriate authorities. The project leader may also be advised on next steps to take, such as talking to parents or guardians involved in the project. It is essential that all YPPT employees, volunteers and freelancers working on projects outside of school are aware of and follow these safeguarding procedures to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all involved.
Legal framework
This policy has been drawn up on the basis of law and guidance that seeks to protect children, namely:
Children Act 1989
United Convention on the Rights of the Child 1991
Data Protection Act 1998
Sexual Offences Act 2003
Protection of Freedoms Act 2012
Care Act 2014
Relevant government guidance on safeguarding children, including the Charity Commission’s guidance on safeguarding and protecting people for charities and trustees
Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) 2026-2027 (draft pending publication in September 2026 (updated every September)
Types of Abuse:
1. Neglect
This is the most common type of child abuse. It often happens at the same time as other types of abuse.
Neglect may occur during pregnancy as a result of maternal substance abuse. Once a child is born, neglect may involve a parent or carer failing to:
a. provide adequate food, clothing and shelter (including exclusion from home or abandonment)
b. protect a child from physical and emotional harm or danger
c. ensure adequate supervision (including the use of inadequate caregivers)
d. ensure access to appropriate medical care or treatment
It may also include neglect of, or unresponsiveness to, a child’s basic emotional needs.
2. Physical Abuse
This is a form of abuse which may involve hitting, shaking, throwing, poisoning, burning or scalding, drowning, suffocating or otherwise causing physical harm to a child
Physical harm may also be caused when a parent or carer fabricates the symptoms of, or deliberately induces, illness in a child. Fabricated illness is rare, but it can and does happen and can cause children to have unwarranted medical tests. It is also harmful in respect of their mental health and wellbeing.
In the UK it is unlawful for a parent to smack, or otherwise physically chastise a child, unless it is ‘reasonable punishment’. Reasonable has different meanings to different people. However, when it comes to safeguarding the guidance is clear that any chastisement that leaves a mark (red mark or bruising), or involves an implement (eg. wooden spoon, slipper, stick, belt) is a child protection concern and must be reported to Social Care as soon as possible.
3. Sexual Abuse
Forcing or enticing a child or young person to take part in sexual activities, not necessarily involving violence, whether or not the child is aware of what is happening.
Sexual Abuse includes both physical contact and non-contact behaviours, for example showing a child sexual images or grooming
It can occur online, online grooming can facilitate ‘real world’ offences
Women can commit sexual offences
Children can be sexually abused by other children
The activities may involve physical contact, including assault by penetration (for example rape or oral sex) or non-penetrative acts such as masturbation, kissing, rubbing and touching outside of clothing. They may also include non-contact activities, such as involving children in looking at, or in the production of, sexual images, watching sexual activities, encouraging children to behave in sexually inappropriate ways, or grooming a child in preparation for abuse.
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. We must be alert to the fact that sexual abuse can occur within a family. Grooming can often be by someone who has frequent access to the child for example a parent, family member, sibling, family friend etc.
Sexual abuse can take place online, and technology can be used to facilitate offline abuse. Research highlights that online child sexual abuse can have as much of an impact on a child as abuse that only takes place offline and can lead to the same psychological difficulties (Hamilton-Giachritsis et al, 2017).
4. Online Sexual Abuse
This is a real issue for now for children with the rise of mobile phones and social media and needs to be a big focus for school staff to educate.
The Internet Watch Foundation – IWF – in 2012 removed 13,000 web pages from the internet – in 2023 they removed 275,652 web pages. Each single web page has thousands of images – so that equates to millions of images of children being sexually abused. Images often of girls 11-13 but they are getting younger and there is a big increase in images of boys too.
92% of images removed contained “self generated” content of children aged 7-10yrs ( manipulated, coerced – often in their own bedroom. Parents unaware). “self generated” not a helpful term as these children are being coerced, manipulated and blackmailed for the images.
The term ‘self-generated’ imagery refers to images and videos created using handheld devices or webcams and then shared online. Children are often groomed or extorted into capturing images or videos of themselves and sharing them by someone who is not physically present in the room with them, for example, on live streams or in chat rooms. Sometimes children are completely unaware they are being recorded and that there is then a image or video of them being shared by abusers. Many of these images are taken at home in children’s bedrooms or in family bathrooms when the child is alone or with another child such as a sibling or friend.
'Self-generated' material has risen year on year. Much younger children appearing in this type of abuse imagery. YPPT staff and trustees must challenge stereotypes of who an abuser can be. Women can and do sexually abuse children as well as men. Children can also sexually abuse other children.
Deep fakes: AI-generated sexual imagery. A significant number of children have some kind of experience with a nude deepfake. Overall, 13% of children have had an experience with a nude deepfake (including sending or receiving one, encountering a nude deepfake online, using a nudifying app or someone they know having used a nudifying app). This means around half a million (529,632) teenagers in the UK, or 4 teenagers in a class of 30, have had an experience with a nude deepfake.
5. Emotional Abuse
The persistent emotional maltreatment of a child such as to cause severe and persistent adverse effects on the child’s emotional development. The key words within the definition are severe and persistent.
Making a child feel they are worthless, unloved, inadequate or only have value insofar as they meet the needs of another
Making fun of them, or silencing their views
Having unrealistic expectations
Causing them to feel frightened, or in danger
Seeing or hearing the ill-treatment of another
Serious bullying, including cyber bullying
Exploiting or corrupting them
There is an element of emotional abuse in all types of abuse and neglect, however it can also be a form of abuse in its own right.
Emotional abuse can be both active or passive – examples include a parent deliberately belittling their child, or simply being unable to recognise and respond to a child’s emotional needs due to their own issues – for example severe mental health issues
6. Domestic Abuse
Domestic abuse is defined as: any incident, or pattern of incidents, of: controlling, coercive, threatening behaviour, violence or abuse between those aged 16 or over who are, or have been, intimate partners or family members regardless of gender or sexuality.
1:4 Women experience domestic abuse
1:6 Men experience domestic abuse
In the UK 2 women are killed every week due to domestic abuse
Domestic abuse is a gendered crime – the majority of victims are women in heterosexual relationships. For both women and men the majority of perpetrators of domestic abuse are male. Any incident of domestic abuse the police attend where a child lives is notified to social care – it is the most common reason for contact with statutory social work services. However research by the Crime Survey for England and Wales found that only 18% of victims reported in the last year. Therefore we can see that domestic abuse must be happening, and going unreported. As frontline workers school staff might be able to identify cases of domestic abuse before any other agency.
Even if children are not in the room where an incident may have occurred they are still considered to have been exposed to it if they are in the same household. They are likely to have been aware or have heard what was happening and this can have the same impact on them or in some cases this can be even more of a frightening experience.
2022 – NSPCC = January 2022 marked the start of children being officially recognised as victims of domestic abuse in the Domestic Abuse Act.
7. Harmful Practices
Forced Marriage / Breast Flattening/Ironing / Honour Based Violence / Female Genital Mutiliation (FGM)
Harmful practices are persistent practices and behaviours that are grounded on discrimination on the basis of sex, gender, age and other grounds as well as multiple and/or intersecting forms of discrimination that often involve violence and cause physical and/or psychological harm or suffering.
Harmful practices: disproportionately affect girls and women, but can affect boys and men too. Individuals affected by harmful practices often experience poly-victimisation – they have often experienced more than one type of abuse. There are links between various harmful practices, e.g., FGM and early forced marriage.
Honour’ Based Violence/abuse: Is a form of violence/abuse that is committed to defend or protect the ‘honour’ of a family or community when an individual has expressed views, or acted in a way, that transgresses family/community norms and expectations or ‘honour codes’. This can lead to physical, emotional and sexual violence, forced marriage, threats to kill, isolation, being held against their will, and other violence.
Forced Marriage (different to arranged marriage) - is a marriage conducted without the consent of both parties and where duress is a factor. Duress can include threats, intimidation, physical sexual or emotional violence etc. Forced Marriage is a criminal offence – civil orders can be sought to prevent a forced marriage (Forced Marriage Protection Order – anyone can apply for these, even the person needing protection themselves)
Breast flattening/ironing –is a practice whereby the developing breasts of a girl (usually pre-pubescent) are pounded with an implement, and/or bound, to prevent development and ‘protect’ from unwanted male attention
Child abuse linked to faith or belief: Belief in witchcraft, spirit possession and other forms of the supernatural leading to children being blamed for bad luck, accused of as being witches, possessed by evil spirits/djinns and subsequently abused. Fear of the supernatural is also known to be used to make children comply with being trafficked for domestic slavery or sexual exploitation. Notable cases include Victoria Climbie, Ayesha Ali, Kristie Bamu, Khyra Ishaq
Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE): is a form of child sexual abuse. It occurs where an individual or group takes advantage of an imbalance of power to coerce, manipulate or deceive a child or young person under the age of 18 into sexual activity, usually in exchange for something the victim needs or wants, and/or for the financial advantage or increased status of the perpetrator or facilitator. Young people may be given things such as gifts, money, drugs, alcohol, status or affection in exchange for taking part in sexual activities. Young people may be tricked into believing they're in a loving, consensual relationship. They often trust their abuser and don't understand that they're being abused. This has been seen in a number of high profile cases – notably Rotherham and Oxford. The young person may depend on their abuser or be too scared to tell anyone what is happening. They might be invited to parties and given drugs and alcohol before being sexually exploited. They can also be groomed and exploited online.
The abuse can be perpetrated by individuals or groups, males or females, and children or adults. The abuse can be a one-off occurrence or a series of incidents over time, and range from opportunistic to complex organised abuse. CSE can affect any child or young person (male or female) under the age of 18 years, including 16 and 17 year olds who can legally consent to have sex. The victim may have been sexually exploited even if the sexual activity appears consensual. (Under 13 is always rape – they cannot consent). Whilst age may be the most obvious, this power imbalance can also be due to a range of other factors including sex, sexual identity, cognitive ability, physical strength, status, and access to economic or other resources.
Child Criminal Exploitation (CCE): is where an individual or group takes advantage of an imbalance of power to coerce, control, manipulate or deceive a child or young person under the age of 18 into any criminal activity:
in exchange for something the victim needs or wants; and/or
for the financial or other advantage of the perpetrator or facilitator; and/or
through violence or the threat of violence.
The victim may have been criminally exploited even if the activity appears consensual. Child criminal exploitation does not always involve physical contact; it can also occur through the use of technology.
County Lines: criminal gangs using young people to transport drugs/money/phones to other areas. There is evidence that increasingly younger children are being exploited through CCE, and that gangs are seeking to target children aged 10-12, as these children are less likely to be stopped by police. Therefore they are more likely to be ‘successful’ in meeting the aims of the perpetrators, and earning them money. Children can experience extreme violence and threats against their families to coerce them into continuing to ‘work’ for the gang/network.
Cuckooing: is a form of exploitation where criminals take over someone’s home to use it as a base for illegal activities such as drug dealing, county lines or facilitating other crimes. Victims are often left with little choice but to cooperate. “Cuckooing” (also known as “forced home invasion”) – a tactic used by criminals, typically drug dealers, to take over the homes of vulnerable individuals, such as care leavers or those with addiction, physical or mental health issues, and use the property as a base for criminal activity. This is a common characteristic of the county lines business model and can occur in a range of settings such as rental and private properties, student accommodation, prisons, and commercial properties.
Coerced internal concealment (also known as “plugging”) – the practice whereby a child or vulnerable adult is controlled or coerced into concealing drugs internally as a method of transportation to avoid detection. Drugs or sim cards are usually concealed within a condom or similar packaging and inserted into a bodily orifice (rectum or vagina) using lubricant or swallowed.
Debt bondage – a form of entrapment when a victim owes money to their exploiters and is made to repay their debt, either financially or through another means such as transporting drugs. The exploiter may groom the victim by initially providing money or goods which the victim will then be made to pay back. The exploiter may also deliberately manufacture a debt, for example by staging a robbery of drugs or cash in the victim’s possession in order to extort money from families or to ensure the victim will continue to perform tasks for them. The debt may also be inherited from parents and siblings
Serious Youth Violence is a prevalent safeguarding issue with the rise in knife crime. All YPPT staff and trustees need to be aware of the risks to the health and wellbeing of young people who are drawn into youth violence and gangs. Often perpetrators are also victims (thin line) – victims can become perpetrators because they no longer want to be victims/they feel they have no choice – we must consider young people both when responding to incidents.
All YPPT staff and trustees should be aware of indicators, which may signal that children are at risk from, or are involved with serious violent crime. These may include increased absence from school, a change in friendships or relationships with older individuals or groups, a significant decline in performance, signs of self-harm or a significant change in wellbeing, or signs of assault or unexplained injuries. Unexplained gifts or new possessions could also indicate that children have been approached by, or are involved with, individuals associated with criminal networks or gangs and may be at risk of criminal exploitation.
YPPT staff and trustees should be aware of the range of risk factors which increase the likelihood of involvement in serious violence, such as being male, having been frequently absent or permanently excluded from school, having experienced child maltreatment and having been involved in offending, such as theft or robbery.
Further information is available in the Home Office’s Preventing youth violence and gang involvement and its Criminal exploitation of children and vulnerable adults: county lines guidance.
Child on Child Abuse: includes sexual violence, such as rape, assault by penetration and sexual assault. this may include an online element which facilitates, threatens and/or encourages sexual violence. sexual harassment (unwanted conduct of a sexual nature), that can occur online and offline. sexual harassment, such as sexual comments, remarks, jokes and online sexual harassment, which may be stand-alone or part of a broader pattern of abuse;
sharing nudes and semi nudes images and or videos (also known as sexting or youth produced sexual imagery);
initiation/hazing type violence and rituals (this could include activities involving harassment, abuse or humiliation used as a way of initiating a person into a group and may also include an online element);and
upskirting, which typically involves taking a picture under a person’s clothing without them knowing, with the intention of viewing their genitals or buttocks to obtain sexual gratification, or cause the victim humiliation, distress or alarm.
All YPPT staff and volunteers should be clear as to the school’s policy and procedures with regards to Child on Child abuse and report it to the school’s DSL and follow up by reporting it to YPPT’s DSL.
It is essential that all victims are reassured that they are being taken seriously, regardless of how long it has taken them to come forward and that they will be supported and kept safe. Abuse that occurs online should not be downplayed and should be treated seriously. A victim should never be given the impression that they are creating a problem by reporting peer on peer abuse including sexual violence or sexual harassment. Nor should a victim ever be made to feel ashamed for making a report or their experience minimised.
There must be support for the potential perpetrator. Statistics show that around half of young people who have displayed harmful sexual behaviour have experienced sexual abuse themselves. The police will take a welfare rather than a punitive approach towards children aged under 10, which is the age of criminal responsibility in England and Wales.
Any person that sends/forward a nude/semi-nude picture of a child as classes as distributing child pornography – even if it is a child/young person sending a picture of themselves. YPPT staff should not view these images and should never forward them on (even if just to share with DSL etc). However, whenever aware that these images have been sent they should alert the DSL immediately so that next steps can be explored.
Key Guidance in this area: Part 5 KCSIE - sets out how schools and colleges should manage reports of child on child sexual violence and harassment.
Incel: a term associated with a mostly online subculture of people, who define themselves as unable to find a romantic or sexual partner despite desiring one, and who may blame, objectify and denigrate women and girls as a result. The growing national discussion around the Adolescence programme on Netflix is highlighting the world of Incels.
Radicalisation/Extremism: Children and young people can be vulnerable to radicalisation, in the same way that they are vulnerable to other forms of grooming and exploitation. Early intervention to explore and challenge extremist ideology, whether that be so called Islamic extremism or the extreme far right, is effective in safeguarding children.
Modern slavery: takes many forms including sexual exploitation, forced labour and domestic servitude, it transcends all demographics. Child Trafficking is a form of Modern Slavery, it occurs when children or young people are tricked, forced or persuaded to leave their homes and are moved or transported and then exploited, forced to work or sold.
We recognise that:
the welfare of the child is paramount, as enshrined in the Children Act 1989
all children, regardless of age, disability, gender, racial heritage, religious belief, sexual orientation or identity, have a right to equal protection from all types of harm or abuse
some children are additionally vulnerable because of the impact of previous experiences, their level of dependency, communication needs or other issues
working in partnership with children, young people, their parents, carers and other agencies is essential in promoting young people’s welfare.
We will seek to keep children and young people safe by:
valuing them, listening to them and respecting them.
adopting child protection practices through procedures and a code of conduct for staff and volunteers.
providing effective management for staff and volunteers through supervision, support and training.
recruiting staff and volunteers safely, ensuring all necessary checks are made for staff, freelancers and volunteers, including a current enhanced DBS certificate, interview and taking up appropriate references.
ensuring that staff, freelancers and volunteers access training on safeguarding, covering how to identify abuse and how to respond to disclosure from children or vulnerable adults.
sharing information about child protection procedures and good practice with children, parents, staff and volunteers.
sharing concerns with agencies who need to know and involving parents and children appropriately.
ensuring that all YPPT staff and volunteers read and adhere to each school’s safeguarding policy whilst working in that establishment.
managing any allegations against staff and volunteers appropriately
ensuring that we provide a safe physical environment on our projects by applying health and safety measures in accordance with the law and regulatory guidance
building a safeguarding culture where staff and volunteers, children, young people and their families, treat each other with respect and are comfortable about sharing concerns.
Dealing with safeguarding concerns about children or vulnerable adults
If a YPPT employee, freelancer or volunteer has any safeguarding concerns about a child or vulnerable adult on a YPPT project, they must report their concern immediately to the school in which the project is taking place in accordance with the school’s Safeguarding Policies and Procedures.
They should also inform YPPT’s Designated Safeguarding Lead that a safeguarding concern has arisen on the project and inform them of the steps that were taken to report the concern in accordance with the school’s Safeguarding Policies and Procedures.
If any allegations are made about a YPPT employee, freelancer or volunteer regarding safeguarding concerns, they must follow the necessary procedures as set out in YPPT's Safeguarding Policy, including reporting the concern to the school's Safeguarding Lead and YPPT's Designated Safeguarding Lead, and cooperating fully with any investigation conducted by the relevant authorities.
Safeguarding in online settings
YPPT may, at the request of one of our school partners, carry out work with children in online settings such as Google Classroom or on Zoom meetings. The same safeguarding principles will apply when working with children in online settings as apply when working on face-to-face projects.
The following protective processes shall be followed:
YPPT shall only work with children in online lessons which have been set up and facilitated by the school. The school shall be responsible for setting up the online classroom and sharing the access details with participants.
The YPPT representative shall familiarise themselves with and adhere to the relevant school’s policies and procedures around online lessons.
The YPPT representative shall comply with the Code of Conduct in relation to online activities.
The YPPT representative shall ensure that at least two adults are present in any online classroom where children are present (e.g. the YPPT representative and the class teacher).
Code of Conduct
All YPPT staff, freelancers and volunteers must comply at all times with the Code of Conduct at Appendix 1 of this Safeguarding Policy whilst on YPPT projects.
Any concerns that a YPPT staff, freelancer or volunteer has acted in breach of the YPPT Code of Conduct, this Safeguarding Policy, a school's Safeguarding Policies and Procedures or otherwise acted in a way which has the potential to harm a child or YPPT beneficiary, this should be reported to the Designated Safeguarding Lead who will take appropriate action.
We are committed to reviewing our policy and good practice annually.
This policy was last reviewed on 28th July 2026
Signed: Michelle Green, Trustee & Designated Safeguarding Lead