Northern Ballet Safeguarding Policy: Adults at Risk

Updated (2026) Policy

Adults at Risk Safeguarding Policy (PDF)

Adults at Risk Safeguarding Policy (Word)

Introduction

Northern Ballet is committed to creating and maintaining the safest and most supportive possible environment for all adults at risk that engage with our work. We believe the welfare and happiness of our participants is paramount, regardless of age, culture, disability, gender, ethnicity, religious beliefs and/or sexual identity and we aim to provide safe training, participatory and creative opportunities for everyone we work with.

Safeguarding Adults at Risk is the process of protecting adults who may have support or care needs, from abuse or neglect. Safeguarding is defined as:

‘Protecting an adult’s right to live in safety, free from abuse and neglect.’

Care and support statutory guidance, chapter 14

The Northern Ballet Safeguarding Committee includes a member of The Board of Directors, a Company Director, Designated Safeguarding Leads and Officers and Safeguarding Champions. The committee works together to ensure;

all safeguarding procedures are regularly reviewed
staff receive up to date training
safety checks are completed
staff adhere to the Northern Ballet’s Safeguarding Codes of Conduct.

For the purpose of this document ‘staff’ refers to all employees whether on permanent, temporary or freelance contracts. The term ‘staff’ also refers to volunteers and anyone in paid or unpaid work on behalf of Northern Ballet.

Northern Ballet uses the term ‘adult/s at risk’ to refer to anyone aged 18 years or over; who may need community care services by reason of mental or other disability, age, or illness; and who is, or may be unable to take care of themselves, or unable to protect themselves against significant harm or exploitation.

For the purpose of this document, ‘carer’ refers to anybody who holds caring responsibilities for an adult at risk. This could include, but is not limited to, parents, guardians, and social workers.
Northern Ballet works with adults at risk in a variety of ways:

Through the various open classes, programmes of training and vocational classes led by the Academy of Northern Ballet.
Through the programmes and projects delivered by the Learning Department both at Northern Ballet and in educational and community settings.
Through work placements across the organisation.
Through audiences at Northern Ballet’s studio theatre and at the large-scale venues where the company perform.
Through community performers who perform in the company productions.

This Safeguarding policy outlines our Safeguarding Procedures, how to report allegations, and how to respond to, and document, disclosures. It refers to and should be read alongside all appendices listed on the contents page.

Failure to adhere to this policy by any member of staff will result in disciplinary action.

Policy Objectives

We have safeguarding objectives to ensure adults at risk feel confident when in the care of Northern Ballet. Our objectives are:

Safe organisational ethos
Safe environment
Safe processes for working with adults at risk
Safe staff
Safe collection and use of information, and ways of communicating.

Policy Principles

There are six key principles for safeguarding adults at risk:

Empowerment – People being supported and encouraged to make their decisions using informed consent.
Prevention – It is better to take action before harm occurs.
Proportionality – The least intrusive response, appropriate to the risk presented.
Protection – Support and representation for those in greatest need.
Partnerships – Local solutions through services working with their communities. Communities have a part to play in preventing, detecting, and reporting neglect and abuse.
Accountability – Accountability and transparency in delivering safeguarding.

In support of these objectives, we are committed to the following principles.

To achieve a safe organisational ethos, we will:

Expect all staff to work within the staff code of conduct and address any staffing concerns that occur.
Provide effective management for all staff through supervision, support, and training in safeguarding where appropriate.
Ensure staff are supported with their use of the Whistle Blowing Policy.
Treat everyone fairly in being able to access Northern Ballet activities and services which meet their needs, regardless of gender, age, ethnicity, disability, sexuality or beliefs.
Share information about safeguarding and good practice with adults at risk, carers, and staff which includes the names of the Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSL) and Officers (DSO) who can be contacted regarding any issues.
Have a safeguarding committee who meet three times per year.
Review our policy and practices annually or when legislation changes.

To achieve a safe environment, we will:

Ensure the welfare and safety of adults at risk is paramount in all our activities.
Listen to adults at risk and take account of what they tell us in making decisions about them.
Take all reasonable steps to protect adults at risk from harm, discrimination, and degrading treatment.
Practice with respect for adults at risk’s rights, wishes and feelings.
Regularly assess and review safety risks which arise from premises, activities, equipment and travel arrangements.
Expect organisations and individuals who wish to hire Northern Ballet studios to comply with Northern Ballet’s Safeguarding Policy.

To achieve safe processes, we will:

Take all suspicions and allegations of abuse, from inside or outside the organisation, seriously, and respond to them promptly and appropriately.
Be clear about everyone’s roles and responsibilities.
Implement safeguarding procedures that are compliant with the expectations of the Leeds Safeguarding Adults Board.
Follow government guidance as set out in the document ‘Care and support statutory guidance’ and amending company procedures where appropriate.
Have in place clear arrangements for how we would respond to concerns about how we implement safeguarding in practice within the organisation.

To achieve safe staff, we will:

Recruit staff with regard to their suitability for work with adults at risk, including use of enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check where necessary.
Provide staff with guidance and training in their safeguarding role, and ensure they have access to our policies and procedures.
Make sure everyone has access to advice on safeguarding in the course of their work.
Be clear with everyone what their individual role and responsibility is in safeguarding.
Support staff to carry out their role with appropriate supervision.

To achieve safe information, we will:

Be clear with adults at risk and carers, how the things they tell us will be used.
Communicate promptly and clearly within Northern Ballet and with external agencies, following the requirements of information and sharing protocols with the Leeds Safeguarding Adults Board.
Keep good records of our work with adults at risk and of our management of staff’s work.
Hold adults at risk’s information in alignment with GDPR guidelines.

What is Abuse?

Abuse can take many different forms and generally involves elements of a power imbalance. Abuse can be a single incident or a series of ongoing events that cause harm, or distress, or fail to protect someone from harm.

Recognising abuse is not easy, however Northern Ballet does not consider it the staffs’ responsibility to decide whether abuse has taken place. If staff have any anxieties or concerns with regards to a suspected case of abuse, it is essential that they report this using Northern Ballet’s Procedures [see Appendix A], and then let the appropriate bodies investigate. This applies regardless of whether the concern relates to the behaviour of another staff member, or the possibility that the abuse might be taking place at home or elsewhere.

There are 10 forms of abuse.

1. Physical

Including assault, hitting, slapping, pushing, misuse of medication, restraint, inappropriate physical sanctions.