The parish of Winston is committed to the safeguarding of children, young people and adults. We follow the House of Bishops guidance and policies and have our own Parish Safeguarding Officer(s), PSOs. Tom Deakin tel: 07734 469963. The Diocese of Durham’s safeguarding pages contain vital links and information including contacts for the Diocesan Safeguarding Advisor (DSA) who advise our PSOs. If you are concerned that a child or adult has been harmed or may be at risk of harm please contact the DSA. If you have immediate concerns about the safety of someone, please contact the police and your local authority Children or Adults Services."
We take the safeguarding of children, young people and vulnerable adults very seriously.
Our Safeguarding policies are linked below [and is duplicated at this link: https://gainfordwinston.church/st-marys/safeguarding-st-marys/]
We fully endorse the Church of England’s Parish Safeguarding Handbook ‘Promoting a Safer Church’ which asserts:
“The care and protection of children, young people and vulnerable adults involved in Church activities is the responsibility of the whole Church. Everyone who participates in the life of the Church has a role to play in promoting a Safer Church for all.”
How we handle safeguarding concerns:
We require that everyone who carries out activities on behalf of the church knows and abides by our safeguarding policies and procedures. To ensure we have a proactive approach to safeguarding we provide staff and volunteers with safeguarding training. We work to prevent abuse from occurring, seek to protect those at risk and respond well to those who contact us with safeguarding concerns.
The Church of England safeguarding policy statement is based on five foundations and offers six overarching policy commitments:
• Promoting a safer environment and culture.
• Safely recruiting and supporting all those with any responsibility relatedto children, young people and vulnerable adults within the Church.
• Responding promptly to every safeguarding concern or allegation.
• Caring pastorally for victims/survivors of abuse and other affected persons.
• Caring pastorally for those who are the subject of concerns or allegations of abuse and other affected persons.
• Responding to those that may pose a present risk to others.
How do I report abuse or find support?
If you have any information about a safeguarding situation where a child or adult is in immediate danger or requires medical attention call the emergency services on 999.
Contacting Winston Church to discuss or report a safeguarding concern?
If you have any more general Safeguarding concerns, please contact [available via this link https://gainfordwinston.church/st-marys/safeguarding-st-marys/]:
• St Mary’s Safeguarding Officer Sue Taylor
• St Andrew’s Safeguarding Officer Tom Deakin
Note if you contact us by e-mail we will endeavour to provide as fast a response as we are able,
however neither St Mary’s, St Andrew’s Church nor the National Safeguarding Team offers a 24/7 or emergency
response facility.
Alternatively, contact the Diocesan Safeguarding Adviser
Each Diocese has a team who can help if you wish to report current or historic
safeguarding concerns. For St Mary’s that individual is:
• Diocesan Safeguarding Officer Beth Miller call 07968 034075
I need immediate or specialist help, who should I contact?
Our churches may not be able to respond immediately to your Safeguarding disclosure. If you
are in distress or would like 24-hour specialist assistance, here are some helplines to contact:
• NSPCC Child Protection Helpline – 0808 800 5000 (free 24hr number). Call if you are concerned about a child.
• Child-line – 0800 1111 (free 24hr number). Get in contact if you are concerned about a child or young person’s wellbeing.
• National Domestic Violence Helpline – 0808 2000 247 (free 24hr number). Phone if you are experiencing domestic abuse.
• Samaritans Helpline – 116 123 (24hr). Phone if you are struggling to cope and need someone to talk to.
• Action on Elder Abuse Helpline – 0808 808 8141 (free number Mon-Fri 9-5pm)
• National Rape Crisis Helpline – 0808 802 9999 (available every day 12-2:30pm and 7-9:30pm)
Survivor support services
• Emergency Services – If your Safeguarding disclosure represents immediate harm, please cal Police on 101 (non-emergency) or 999 as appropriate.