Safeguarding Procedures

1.0 Introduction

These procedures are part of the Safeguarding Policy and specify how the Green Party of England and Wales discharges its responsibilities contained within the Safeguarding Policy. It outlines the responsibilities, systems and processes for implementation of the Policy at all level of the Party.

2.0 Responsibilities

  1. The Green Party Executive is responsible for overall implementation of the policy, and the appointment of an Executive Lead for Safeguarding who is responsible for offering advice and support on the development and implementation of the Policy.
  2. The Green Party Regional Council, who has responsibility for overseeing GPEx;’s implementation of the policy, as part of its responsibility for wider party welfare.
  3. The Disciplinary Committee is responsible for investigating and making decisions on any disciplinary cases that arise from breaches of the Safeguarding Commitment.
  4. The Green Party’s National Safeguarding Officer has the following responsibilities:
  5. The Safeguarding Officer is the Green Party’s most senior member of staff – the Chief Executive Officer. They are responsible for maintaining, implementing and reviewing the Green Party’s Safeguarding Policy and the Green Party’s Safeguarding Procedures. The Safeguarding Officer is assisted in their safeguarding duties by a wider safeguarding team, comprising the Safeguarding Lead on the Green Party Executive and the Safeguarding Assistant (a staff member, who will assist with the burden of day to day safeguarding responsibilities). Together these three individuals form the Green Party’s National Safeguarding Team. The Safeguarding Officer and their team can be contacted through safeguarding@greenparty.org.uk or through 020 36919 391. The duties of the Safeguarding Officer and their team are as follows:
    • To receive, record and act (including contacting external authorities such as the police where required) on all safeguarding concerns reported to the Green Party, to ensure that the no child, young person or adult at risk is put at risk through their involvement with the Green Party.
    • To ensure that safeguarding information about an individual safeguarding concern is shared appropriately within the Green Party, including local Parties and relevant Green Party groups.
    • To embed a culture of safeguarding throughout the Green Party, through requiring every member to sign the Safeguarding Commitment and requiring local Party Chairs to fulfil their safeguarding responsibilities.
    • To monitor the extent to which local Party Chairs are fulfilling their safeguarding responsibilities.
    • To keep up to date with legislation and best practice concerning safeguarding, and to update Green Party Safeguarding Policy as necessary.
    • To participate in safeguarding training and maintain an up to date DBS Certificate.
    • To regularly report on the application of the Green Party’s Safeguarding Policy to the Green Party Executive, including the number of safeguarding concerns reported and recorded.
    • To regularly review Safeguarding Policy, in particular the extent to which it is understood and applied across the Green Party. Date of next Review – September 2020.
  6. The Chairs of Local Green Parties have a responsibility to follow the guidance set out in the Green Party’s Safeguarding Guidance for Local Green Party Chairs (Appendix B). This guidance sets out how Chairs can maintain safe boundaries for all children, young people and adults at risk involved in their Local Party, and to report any concerns to their welfare they are made aware of.
  7. Individual Green Party members have a responsibility to agree and adhere to the Green Party Safeguarding Commitment (Appendix A). This commits members to playing their individual part in ensuring that the Green Party is a safe space for children, young people and adults at risk – by behaving professionally around children, young people and adults at risk and reporting any safeguarding concerns to both their local Party chair and the national safeguarding team, and reporting any immediate concerns of abuse and neglect to police and local authorities.
  8. Every Green Party region has a safeguarding champion, who supports local parties in the region to implement the safeguarding policy. The Young Greens also have a safeguarding champion.

3.0 Safeguarding Procedures governing everyone.

The below diagram sets out how all Green Party safeguarding responsibilities interact, to form a cohesive safeguarding procedure that allows safeguarding concerns to be reported and responded to.

Green Party Safeguarding Procedure
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