Safeguarding is extremely important to the Ri, and we require everyone associated with the Ri, such as staff, Trustees and volunteers, to share our commitment to safeguarding children and adults at risk.
Our safeguarding policies and procedures are here to support and protect all individuals associated with the Ri as well as the people that we work with, and to help create a safe and secure environment for all, where safeguarding is paramount and inaction or silence around concerns of abuse or poor practice is not acceptable.
Our policies and procedures are accessed via the following links:
Safeguarding concerns
Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility. The key steps in dealing with any safeguarding concerns are known as the four Rs.
Recognise
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Recognise a concern, disclosure or accusation
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Take these seriously and do not dismiss them
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Listen to everything being shared
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Do not ask leading questions or investigate
Respond
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Respond appropriately
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Reassure anyone sharing a concern, disclosure or accusation that they are doing the right thing in speaking up
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Do not promise confidentiality
Report
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Report all concerns to the DSOs or appropriate responsible person ASAP
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Tell anyone sharing concerns that you will pass them on to the appropriate people to help keep everyone safe
Record
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Record all the relevant information
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This will be required so the Ri’s Designated Safeguarding Officers can assess what to do, and in case concerns need to be passed on to external organisations
Key contacts
The Ri’s Designated Safeguarding Officers (DSOs) are the first point of contact for anyone who has a safeguarding question or concern, needs to report a disclosure or who needs advice. If you are unsure, it is much better to ask than to risk not reporting something which may be a genuine safeguarding concern.
Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility. All safeguarding concerns or disclosures MUST be reported to the Ri’s Designated Safeguarding Officers or relevant responsible person (as detailed below) within 24 hours.
EMERGENCIES
If anyone is at immediate risk of harm or you think a crime is being committed, you should call the appropriate emergency services without delay and without having to seek consent.
You should then also immediately call the DSOs (or relevant responsible person at the Ri if you cannot reach the DSOs or if it is not appropriate to involve them). You can also seek advice via a national helpline.
Designated Safeguarding Officers
- Designated Safeguarding Officer (DSO):
- Samantha Durbin, 07741 657 952
- Deputy Designated Safeguarding Officer(s) (DDSOs):
- Rachel Dorris (contact number pending)
- Jemma Naumann, 07734 449 268
- DSOs’ contact email address: safeguarding@ri.ac.uk
Additional responsible people
- If a concern involves one of the DSOs, or you do not feel your concern has been acted on appropriately, you should contact the Ri’s Director of Science and Engagement, Daniel Glaser
- If a concern involves the Ri’s Director of Science and Engagement, you can contact the DSO and the Director of the Ri, Katherine Mathieson
- If a concern involves the Director of the Ri, you can contact the DSO and with them will make a report to the Lead Trustee for Safeguarding and the Chair of Trustees.
- If the concern involves all of the above responsible people, you can report to the Lead Trustee for Safeguarding, Chair of Trustees and the most appropriate non-implicated director.
- The Trustee responsible for safeguarding is Professor Alison Woollard
- You can use the above email contacts to request a phone conversation about the concern being reported.
Safeguarding helplines
If you cannot reach the DSOs or a relevant responsible person, you can also seek advice via national helplines for safeguarding children or adults at risk, as appropriate:
This page was last updated on 27 May 2022.