TUNBRIDGE WELLS ARTS FESTIVAL
Tunbridge Wells Arts Festival © 2011 Registered Charity No. 1038813
CHILD PROTECTION POLICY
TUNBRIDGE WELLS ARTS FESTIVAL
This Policy is to be implemented from 1st January 2006.
Chairman: Nigel Stratton
Hon. Secretary: June Hill
Hon. Treasurer: Bill MacNay
Venue for the 2012 Festival: Kent College, Pembury.
Dates: 10th & 11th March 2012.
Gems Concert: -
PRELIMINARY STATEMENT: The safety of children and members of other vulnerable groups is paramount and all, without exception, have the right to protection from abuse. All suspicions and allegations of abuse will be taken seriously and responded to swiftly and appropriately and all the charity’s trustees and volunteers have a responsibility to report concerns.
1. Purpose & Function of the Festival
The object of the Festival is to advance the education of the public in the Arts, particularly the arts of Music and Speech and Drama, in all their branches. These aims are achieved by providing a platform for performance combined with an educational element from professional adjudicators.
2. The Festival Environment
The Festival is run by a voluntary committee (“the Festival Committee”) assisted during the Festival itself by further voluntary helpers.
The Festival aims to provide a safe environment for all who participate and to inform and involve parents, guardians, carers and teachers of and in this policy and to work in partnership with them to ensure, so far as is reasonably possible, that the policy is carried out and a safe environment is provided.
In both venues, personnel to do with the school, children attending that school and members of the general public will have access to the venue and all participants, parents, guardians, carers and teachers should be aware of this and take appropriate steps to safeguard children under the age of 18 years and vulnerable adults from this potential problem.
3. To Whom Does This Policy Apply
This policy relates to children under the age of 18 years and members of vulnerable groups of any age who are identified to the Festival Committee, prior to their arrival at the Festival and/or the GEMS Concert. This should be done by contacting the address or telephone number at the foot of this document.
In recognising the needs of children from minority ethnic groups and children who are disabled, the Festival actively seeks to meet the needs notified to the Festival by parents, guardians, carers and/or teachers.
4. Festival Personnel
All Festival helpers are volunteers and most of the existing helpers have been helping
for many years and are well known to the Festival Committee. New recruits tend to
be parents of entrants and are usually well-
All new helpers will be asked to provide the names and addresses of 2 referees.
All helpers will be provided with a short job description of the job or jobs to be undertaken by them. All such jobs are reviewed annually to ascertain whether it is necessary to ask the person carrying out that job to obtain an Enhanced Disclosure from the Criminal Records Bureau.
A record of all helpers is held on a central database either by the Helpers Co-
All helpers at the Festival wear a brightly coloured lanyard making it clear that they are part of the Organisation. Members of the Festival Committee and any other helpers in charge of the organisation of a venue wear lanyards of a different colour identifying them as committee members and the position, which they hold. In case of a problem, anyone wearing a lanyard can be approached and will be able to direct you to someone who will know how to help.
The Chairman or Hon. Secretary of the Festival is available at all times during the Festival to answer queries and deal with any problems that arise. The Chairman of the Festival, or in his or her absence the Hon. Secretary or someone nominated by the Chairman to stand in his or her stead, is the Festival Supervisor and any problems should be immediately notified to them, whereupon appropriate action will be taken. The Festival Supervisor will keep in a central register any problems so notified; the date such problem was so notified and the action taken. The Festival treats all such matters with the utmost concern.
The contents of this Policy will be drawn to the attention of all helpers at the Festival by each year sending them a copy of it prior thereto
5. Preparation for Attendance at the Festival
It is the Policy of the Festival to ensure that all parents, guardians and carers of children under the age of 18 years and vulnerable adults receive a copy of this Policy in time to make arrangements to attend the Festival. Individual entrants will have received this Policy with your Competitor’s Ticket, while entrants who have been entered by their teacher will have received it from them as in those circumstances it is their responsibility to ensure that all parents, guardians and carers and vulnerable adults receive a copy.
At all times while on any premises being used by the Festival, children under the age of 18 years and vulnerable adults should be accompanied by one or more responsible adult.
Under no circumstances will the Festival act “in loco parentis” and it is the responsibility of every parent, guardian or carer who is not personally attending with their child or children to satisfy themselves that their child or children will be accompanied to the Festival and adequately supervised by a responsible adult or adults acting on their behalf.
A copy of this Policy will be displayed in all performance venues when being used for the Festival and any changing rooms provided.
6. Performance Areas and Changing Areas
Music
No changing facilities are made available during the Music classes. Practice rooms will be available in the Music Block whenever possible but they are not supervised by anyone on behalf of the Festival and it will be the responsibility of a teacher in respect of their entrants and of the adult responsible for any children under the age of 18 years or for a vulnerable adult to ensure safe use of these facilities.
Speech & Drama
During the Speech and Drama classes single-
As far as they are able to do so the Festival Supervisor will endeavour to ensure that these requirements are being carried out.
A Session President and/or Adjudicators Clerk at all times will supervise each performance venue.
Entrances to the Festival performance venues are also manned at all times and the Festival Supervisor or someone on his or her behalf will check at regular intervals that helpers are in place.
GEMS Concert
Registered Chaperons will be provided for appropriate children under 17 years of age. Otherwise it will be the responsibility of a teacher in respect of their entrants and of the adult responsible for any children under the age of 18 years or for a vulnerable adult to ensure the safe use of these facilities.
The GEMS Co-
7. Photographs, Visual Recording and Press Photography
The use of Tape Recorders, Cameras or Video Cameras during the course of any Class within the Festival or at the GEMS Concert is forbidden and any person violating this rule will be asked to leave the Festival forthwith.
The Festival requires any Press photographer to obtain permission from the parent, guardian or carer of any child under the age of 18 years or of a vulnerable adult before taking a picture of such child or vulnerable adult.
Outside of a class taking place and while on Festival premises or at the GEMS Concert, if any parent, guardian or carer or someone on their behalf wishes to take a photograph of their child or children or of the group in which their child or children has or have participated, they may do so provided that they have obtained the same permission that would be required by a Press photographer in those circumstances as set out above.
8. The Legislation and Guidance that supports this Policy
The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974; The Children Act 1989; The Police Act 1997; The Data Protection Act 1998; The Human Rights Act 1998; The Protection of Children Act 1999; The Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000; The Children Act 2004; The Vulnerable Groups Act 2006.
9. Policy Review
The Festival Committee will constantly review this Policy, improving and enhancing it as necessary. In doing so they will look to The British & International Federation of Festivals for support and that body in turn will look to other agencies for good practice, most notably the NSPCC and Arts Council of England policy guidelines.
Revised 29/06/2011
Contact: Mrs Jackie MacNay
5 Essex Close, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN2 5RQ.
Tel: 01892 670021