Policies
Safeguarding policy
Everyone who takes part in SIA’s work has the right to be safe. This is how we protect them, and what to do if you are worried.
SIA works with children and young people in schools and STEAM labs, with women and young people in our training and incubation programmes, and with communities across Balochistan. We do not tolerate abuse, exploitation or harassment of anyone, by anyone working with SIA.
This page summarises SIA’s safeguarding policy. It covers children (everyone under 18) and adults at risk, and it includes protection from sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment.
Last updated: CONFIRM: date this policy was approved.
CONFIRM: SIA checks that this summary matches its adopted safeguarding policy, and its legal adviser reviews it before launch.
Worried about someone?
If anyone is in immediate danger, call the police on 15 first. Then tell us: you can stay anonymous.
Part 1
Who this policy applies to
- SIA staff and board members
- Volunteers, facilitators, trainers and mentors
- Consultants and partner organisations when they deliver SIA activities
- Anyone who visits an SIA hub or event to work with participants, including journalists
Part 2
What we do to keep people safe
Careful recruitment
We check references for everyone who will work with children or adults at risk before they start. CONFIRM: which background checks SIA carries out.
Training and a code of conduct
Everyone covered by this policy is briefed on it and signs our code of conduct before they start. CONFIRM: SIA’s code of conduct and briefing.
Safe activities
Activities with children take place in open, visible places with more than one adult present, and with the school’s or a parent’s agreement.
Safe contact online
We contact young people only through official SIA channels, and group chats with under-18s include a teacher or parent. CONFIRM: SIA’s rule for online contact.
Photos with consent
We record consent for photos of people who can be recognised (a parent’s or guardian’s for anyone under 18), and never show photos marked “no consent”. See our photo and media consent policy.
A named lead
A safeguarding lead receives every concern and makes sure it is acted on. CONFIRM: the safeguarding lead’s name and role.
Part 3
What no one working with SIA may ever do
- Hurt, threaten, bully or humiliate anyone.
- Have any sexual contact with a child, or show a child sexual material.
- Ask for money, gifts, favours or a relationship in exchange for a place, a grant, a certificate or any other help.
- Spend time alone with a child out of sight of other adults, or invite a child to their home.
- Contact a participant under 18 privately, or share their photo or details, without permission.
- Treat anyone unfairly because of their gender, religion, ethnicity, disability or background.
- Ignore a concern, or keep it to themselves.
Breaking these rules leads to action, up to ending the person’s work with SIA, and we report crimes to the authorities.
Part 4
How to report a concern
- If someone is in immediate danger, call the police on 15. Then tell SIA as soon as you can.
- Tell us what worried you. Use the complaints and feedback form, message us on WhatsApp, or tell any SIA team member, who must pass it on to the safeguarding lead the same day. You can stay anonymous.
- Write down what you saw or heard: the date, the place and the words used, as soon as you can. Do not investigate yourself, and do not confront the person involved.
- We act. The safeguarding lead responds within CONFIRM: 24 hours, makes sure the person affected is safe and supported, and decides the next steps.
Part 5
What happens after a report
- We take every concern seriously, even if it turns out to be a misunderstanding.
- We share it only with the people who need to know to keep someone safe.
- The person affected is offered support, and their wishes are heard.
- When the law requires it, or someone is at risk, we refer the concern to the police or the relevant authority.
- No one who reports a concern in good faith will be treated worse for it.
- Records are kept securely, separate from other files.
CONFIRM: how often SIA reviews this policy (for example every year and after any serious incident), and the date of the next review.
