An allegation against a member of staff may arise from a number of sources e.g. a report from a child victim, a concern raised by another child or an adult in the organisation, or a complaint by a parent or carer.
The person to whom an allegation or concern is first reported should treat the matter seriously and keep an open mind.
S/he should;
- communicate as appropriate to the child’s age, understanding and preferred language;
- instigate immediate medical care where appropriate and take any immediate action necessary to protect the child;
- offer reassurance that the information will only be shared on a need to know basis;
- make a written record of the information (where possible using the child/adult’s actual words), including time, date and place of incident(s), person’s present and what was said;
- sign and date the written record
- immediately report the matter to the designated senior manager or deputy in his/her absence or where the designated senior manager is the subject of the allegation
S/he should not;
- investigate or ask leading questions;
- interrupt a child when recalling significant events;
- make assumptions or offer alternative explanations;
- promise complete confidentiality.
