The document discusses the evolution of safeguarding policies from a focus on protection to a broader concept of safeguarding for both children and vulnerable adults. It explores the social and political context driving these changes, and the role and responsibilities of volunteers in ensuring proper safeguarding measures like training, supervision, and reporting procedures are followed to protect both those being served and the volunteers themselves. Critics argue the term "safeguarding" has become too broad and professionals unclear on who to target for interventions.

1. SAFEGUARDING
Safeguarding children and
vulnerable adults
The role of the Volunteer

2. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
• To explore what safeguarding means through
the social and political context.
• Clarify role and responsibilities in
safeguarding.
• Is there a difference between safeguarding
and protecting?
• The role of the volunteer in safeguarding.
• Safeguarding the volunteer.

3. The Social and Political Landscape
• Society – ‘There is no such thing. There are
individual men and women and their are families
and no government can do anything except
through people and people look to themselves
first’ (Thatcher, 1987).
• The welfare systems were reviewed with the
policy and political focus on the family and the
individual taking responsibility for their own lives.
• A reduction in state intervention in the family was
promoted.
• A growth in volunteering services – Home Start.

4. Wicked Issues
• Social exclusion.
• Inter-generational problems identified as the following:
 Unemployment
 Poverty
 Racism
 Poor housing
 Teenage pregnancy
 Crime
 Anti-Social behaviour
 Truancy
 Social isolation
 Substance misuse
 Mental health

5. Tough Love
• Joined-up solutions for joined-up problems.
• Social rights come with social responsibilities.
• Policies targeted parents with children who were
deemed errant or families that were called ‘toxic’.
• Policies and interventions were considered
moralistic in character with an emphasis on being
tough with parents.
• The biggest growth of legislation to deal with the
problems aimed at transforming the futures of
the next generation.

6. Schoolboy Torturers
• Doncaster torture case: Brothers, 12 and 10,
used sticks and noose on boys

7. Secrets
• A slow evolutionary process for adults who
needed protection.
• Initiatives, guidance and recommendations –
no legislation.
• Two areas of concern – physical assault of
older people and the sexual abuse of adults
with learning difficulties.

8. Vulnerability
• How is this defined?
DoH (2000) – ‘Abuse is the violation of an
individuals human and civil rights by any other
person or persons’.

9. Having a Voice
• Acknowledge that many adults were not
heard or that they did not want to speak out
about abuse.
• Communicating with others particularly for
those with dementia, learning disabilities and
limited accessibility.
• Incidence reporting was limited and data lax.
• Limited number of professionals trained.

10. Safeguarding Children
• In children’s services a move from protecting to
safeguarding linked to policies developed by the
social inclusion policy department. Aimed at
targeting those families who were identified as
‘toxic’.
• A move that was then embedded in Every Child
Matters as the result of the death of
Victoria Climbie.

11. Safeguarding Vulnerable Adults
• In adult services there was a similar move
from protection to safeguarding.
• The move and recommendations were aimed
at widening society and professional
understanding about who is ‘in need’.
• Legislation took much longer to be
implemented.

12. Needle in a Haystack

13. Criticisms
• Wide ranging debates about the move from
protecting to safeguarding. Loudest challenge has
come from those involved in policies linked to
children.
• Challenges have said that professionals and
society do not know who to target for
interventions and services.
• Equal challenges have been made about multi-
disciplinary working together and who is now
responsible and accountable.

14. Child Death
The death of Peter Connolly and the
following inquiry has led to a wide
ranging review of services for children
in England, Wales, and Northern
Ireland ever seen.
Professor Eileen Munro was
commissioned to review services for
children and the focus was on Child
Protection. Munro (2010 and 2011)
has recommended that the term
safeguarding was too wide and easily
over generalised by professionals. She
is now recommending a move to using
the term Child Protection. However,
the term safeguarding remains in
policy and practice documents. The
future is about who provides
protection services and who provides
safeguarding.
Clues are in the use of the ‘Big Society’
and the Locality Bill.

15. Adult deaths
About 400 more people died at
Stafford Hospital between 2005 and
2008 than would be expected, the
Healthcare Commission said.
Inquiries into the care of vulnerable
adults at Stafford hospital was one of
the first major investigations into
patient care. There have followed a
number of other investigations in the
deaths and professional misconduct of
nursing staff across England.
Services for adults have refocused
within a similar time-line for those in.
Adult services identify protective work
within the framework of positive
attention to the vulnerable adults
welfare.

16. Pause and Reflect
• Do you think there is a difference between the
terms safeguarding
and protecting?

17. SOHAM

18. BICHARD INQUIRY - CRB
• Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006.
• Introduced a new vetting and barring scheme.
• Recruitment of staff and volunteers more robust.
• Introduction of a list of those barred from working with
children and adults.
• Further vetting introduced in 2010.
• Produced a media outcry about the use of CRB checks
for volunteers – support with reading groups in
schools. A range of literary writers voiced their anger.
This led to the system being reviewed.

19. Safeguarding and Volunteering

20. Keeping children and adults safe
• Apart from CRB checks, • Robust recruitment.
what other steps can • Training and learning.
we take to help • Supervision.
safeguard vulnerable
children and adults ? • Assessing risks.
• Lone working policies.
• Knowledge about the
group you are providing
a service for.

21. A Culture of Safety – Safeguarding the
Volunteer
• Understand and have access to appropriate
policies and procedures.
• Be clear about who you report to.
• Find out if the agency has a supervision policy.
• Know what the procedures are for reporting
allegations or claims of abuse.
• Does the agency have a training policy?

22. The Big Society
• The role of the volunteer in the community and service
provision is expected to grow under the current coalition
government.
• Research suggests that communities are served well by
volunteers (Edwards and Mooney, 2001).
• There are concerns about expectations and role of the
volunteer in providing services – volunteer social workers!
• Women have identified the need for volunteers to be
financially recognised and feminist writers – Dominelli
(2006) are cautious. Highlighting the fact that women
historically make up the largest group of unpaid
carers/volunteers propping up state services and that this
needs to be exposed.

23. Reading
• http://www.volunteering.org.uk/resources/good
practicebank/Core+Themes/ProtectionandSafegu
arding/apartfrom.htm
• Brown, K. (2010) Vulnerable Adults and
Community Care, 2nd ed, Exeter: Learning
Matters.
• Cocker, C; Allain, L. (2011)(eds) Advanced Social
Work with Children and Families, Exeter, Learning
Matters.
• http://nvs.sagepub.com/content/30/3/444.short
Non-profit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly