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Safeguarding.
Everyone who comes into contact with our work has the right to be safe from harm. This page explains what we do about that, and how to tell us when we have fallen short.
To report a concern right now: email safeguarding@obaatanpafoundation.org or call +233 24 000 0000 and ask for the Safeguarding Lead.
You can report anonymously. You do not need proof, and you will never be penalised for raising a concern in good faith. If a child is in immediate danger, contact the police or the Department of Social Welfare first, then tell us.
This is a summary written for a website, not a complete policy. Your full safeguarding policy is an internal document that staff sign, that names a designated lead and deputy, and that sets out procedures in detail. Have it reviewed by someone with child protection experience in Ghana before you begin work, and link the full document from this page.
Our commitment
We work with pregnant women, with schoolgirls and with households under real financial pressure. That combination creates power imbalances, and power imbalances are where abuse happens. We treat safeguarding as a condition of operating rather than an item of paperwork.
We accept that no organisation can guarantee harm will never occur. What we can guarantee is that concerns will be taken seriously, acted on quickly, recorded properly, and never suppressed to protect our reputation.
Who this covers
Every trustee, employee, field worker, volunteer, contractor, partner organisation, visiting donor, journalist and photographer, at all times while connected to our work.
What we require
Everyone connected to our work must:
- Treat every person with respect, whatever their age, gender, disability, religion, ethnicity or circumstances.
- Never be alone with a child in a private setting; meetings take place in view of others.
- Never give money, gifts or favours to an individual outside the agreed programme.
- Never exchange assistance of any kind for sexual favours — this is prohibited absolutely and results in dismissal and referral to the authorities.
- Never use physical punishment or humiliation.
- Never photograph or record anyone without their informed consent.
- Report any concern about a colleague's conduct immediately, including where they are unsure.
Recruitment and training
Anyone in a role with contact with children or vulnerable adults is interviewed with safeguarding questions on the record, provides [two] references that we take up in writing, and undergoes a police check before starting. Everyone signs the code of conduct at induction and is retrained annually.
What happens after a report
- Same day. The Safeguarding Lead acknowledges the report and takes any immediate step needed to make someone safe, including suspending a member of staff.
- Within [three] working days. The Lead records the concern and decides, with the Chair of Trustees, whether it must be referred to the Department of Social Welfare or the police. Serious concerns are always referred.
- Investigation. Conducted by someone with no connection to the person complained about. The person who raised the concern is kept informed as far as confidentiality allows.
- Outcome. Recorded in the safeguarding register, reported to the board, and included in our annual report as a number — never with details that could identify anyone.
Photographs and stories
We ask permission before every photograph, in the person's own language, explaining where the image will be used. We do not publish a child's full name with their photograph, and we do not publish anything identifying a child's home or school. Consent can be withdrawn at any time and we will remove the image.
We do not use images that show people as helpless or that we would not be willing to show them and their family first.
Policy owner: [name or role]. Approved by the board on [date]. Next review: [date]. Reviewed annually.