Safeguarding

Safeguarding protecting adults and children

We take the safeguarding of our patients, both adults and children, very seriously. We recognise that everyone has the right to be safe from abuse, neglect and fear and we all have a responsibility to prevent, recognise and act on abuse quickly to prevent harm and reduce the risk of abuse or neglect to children and ‘adults at risk’. We put the wellbeing of our patients at the heart of everything that we do and will ensure that any safeguarding concerns will be explored.

We will always use a think family approach to safeguarding. This helps us to:

Identify services which can respond effectively to families most in need of support’
Identify families at risk of poor outcomes to provide support at the earliest opportunity
Meet the full range of needs within each family they are supporting or working with
Strengthen the ability of family members to provide care and support to each other.

What is safeguarding?

Safeguarding aims to protect a person’s health, wellbeing and human rights, enabling them to live in safety and free from harm, abuse, neglect and exploitation. Safeguarding is about people and organisations working together to prevent and reduce the risks and experience of abuse and neglect, while making sure that the individual’s wellbeing is promoted. Whilst safeguarding affects everyone, we recognise that safeguarding is particularly important for those deemed at risk, such as children and ‘adults at risk’.

Who is classed as a child or an ‘adult at risk’?

With regards to safeguarding, a child is defined as anyone under the age of 18. An adult at risk is someone aged 18 or over, who may have care and support needs because of their mental health or other disabilities, age or illness and may be unable to take care of themselves against significant harm or exploitation. Professionals from other agencies.

What is abuse?

Abuse is a violation of an individual’s human and civil rights by any other person or persons. Friends, strangers, family and professional staff can all be guilty of abuse. The following list is a guide to the sort of behaviour which could raise a safeguarding concern:

Self-neglect
Physical abuse
Sexual abuse
Domestic abuse
Psychological/emotional abuse
Modern day slavery
Discriminatory abuse
Financial/material abuse
Neglect and acts of omission
Organisational abuse.

Safeguarding and us – how we manage concerns

Sometimes when we are worried about people we work with or their children, we may need to ask other services for help to make sure they are safe and able to thrive.

If we have concerns, we may ask you if we can refer to the local authority or other services to ensure that you are given the support you need to be safe.

Sometimes our concerns are so great that we may need to make contact with the local authority or police in an emergency, this could be without consent.

We will always try discussing our concerns directly with the people we are worried about before contacting another agency.

What to do if you have concerns about someone

In an emergency or at immediate risk, please call 999.

If there are no immediate risks but you have concerns about you or someone you know, please call the Local Authority (LA) where the person at risk resides.

Middlesbrough

01642 065070 – adults

01642 7266004 – children

Stockton

01642 527764 – adults

01428 284284 – children

Hartlepool

01429 523390 – adults

01428 284284 – children

Redcar & Cleveland

01642 065070 – adults

01642 130700 – children