Introduction - Everyone's Responsibility

1. Everyone - All Staff and Volunteers

Everyone, whatever their job, role, profession, status or place of work, paid or voluntary, has a responsibility under these Procedures to:

• Understand the nature of Abuse, how people might be at risk of Harm and work to prevent it;
• Know what is in these Procedures, and what their own service's safeguarding arrangements are to protect People at risk;
• Know how to raise a Safeguarding Adult concern (see Procedures);
• Report allegations or suspicions of adult abuse or neglect to their line manager and the Safeguarding Adult Team (via the Single Point of referral). This includes suspicions about a colleague or manager, irrespective of their status, profession or authority;
• Know what services, advice and support are available locally to People at Risk, and how to access help when needed.

In its broadest terms, safeguarding is everybody's business. Adult abuse can happen to anyone, anywhere, and responsibility for dealing with it lies with us all as public, volunteers and professionals.

The first priority should always be to ensure the safety and protection of the adult at risk. All staff and volunteers from any service or setting should know about the Safeguarding Adults Procedures. All staff and volunteers from any service or setting who have contact with adults at risk have a responsibility to be aware of issues of abuse, neglect or exploitation.

Everyone's responsibilities:

• Protecting the rights of people to live in safety, free from abuse and neglect;
• People and organisations MUST WORK TOGETHER to prevent and stop both the risks and experience of abuse or neglect;
• People and organisations make sure that the person's wellbeing is promoted including, where appropriate, taking fully into account their views, wishes, feelings and beliefs in deciding on any action;
• Recognising that people sometimes have complex interpersonal relationships and may be ambivalent, unclear or unrealistic about their personal circumstances and therefore potential risks to their safety or wellbeing;
• Providers, and other professionals where relevant, should work with the person to establish what being safe means to them and how that can be best achieved.

Staff or volunteers should:

• Be aware that they must call the police and/or an ambulance where appropriate in situations where the abuse of the adult indicates an urgent need for medical treatment, or where there is immediate risk of harm indicating urgent action is needed to protect the person;
• Be authorised to make a report to the police if a crime has been committed, and ensure action is taken to preserve evidence. This could be where there has been a physical or sexual assault, especially if the suspect is still at the scene;
• Know that they must make a clear factual record of their concern and the action taken;
• Keep their safeguarding knowledge up to date through attending required training.

The Responsibilities of All People Who Work in Health and Social Care

It is the responsibility of all people who work in Health and Social care to work in a way that will help to prevent abuse. This means providing good quality care and support and putting the individual at the centre of everything, empowering them to have as much control over their lives as possible.

Everyone needs to be alert to the possibility of abuse. Remember, it can happen in any setting and anyone could be the abuser, so it is important to learn to recognise the signs of abuse and should be done if you suspect it.

Employees will need to read their workplace policies and procedures for safeguarding which will provide information on the steps to follow in reporting concerns of abuse. It is good practice for workplaces to have a designated safeguarding lead, and in health and social care this is often the manager.

2. Role and Responsibility of Managers

The role and responsibility of the manager in any service or agency that cares or supports adults at risk is:

• To ensure the adult at risk is made safe;
• To ensure that any staff or volunteer who may have caused harm is not in contact with service users and others who may be at risk;
• To keep staff aware of their duty to report any concerns, allegations or suspicions of abuse to their line manager, or if the line manager is implicated, to another responsible person;
• Operate safe recruitment practices and routinely take up and check references and ensure DBS processes are followed for all staff and appropriately risk assessed;
• Adhere to and operate within their own organisation's whistleblowing policy and support staff that raise concerns;
• Ensure staff access safeguarding training commensurate with their role and responsibilities;
• To act cooperatively with all relevant partners, in order to respond appropriately and objectively to all concerns about abuse and neglect of people at risk.

3. Everyone's Responsibility and Making Safeguarding Personal

Making Safeguarding Personal (MSP) must not simply be seen in the context of a formal safeguarding enquiry but in the whole spectrum of safeguarding activity, including day to day care and support outside of formal safeguarding arrangements.

The Making Safeguarding Personal approach applies in prevention as well as to responses to abuse and neglect. Prevention and early intervention require empowering both staff and people living in communities to recognise the potential for abuse or neglect and to raise concerns. All staff working with people with care and support needs are encouraged to prevent abuse and neglect and intervene at an early stage where there are concerns.