Safeguarding

Everyone who takes part in the Band, as a player, volunteer or audience member, should feel safe, welcome and treated fairly. Here is how we look after that.

Our commitment

Dunbartonshire Concert Band believes that no child, young person or vulnerable adult should ever experience abuse of any kind. We take our responsibility to protect their welfare seriously.

We are committed to equality and diversity. Everyone is treated fairly, on the basis of their relevant merits and abilities, and no member or volunteer receives less favourable treatment.

Who this covers

Our safeguarding approach applies to all our members, to anyone who provides a service on behalf of the Band, and to everyone who takes part in our activities.

We take special care of:

children and young people, up to the age of 18, and
adults who may be vulnerable, for example because of a disability, an illness, an addiction, or reduced physical or mental capacity.

How we look after people

Open to all ages. Membership is open to everyone, and we run regular rehearsals and concerts for members and the public.
Planned with care. Any activity or event that involves vulnerable people is planned with the committee, in line with our policy.
Parents and guardians. When a child or vulnerable person wants to take part, we ask parents or guardians for written permission (email is fine), including emergency contact details and who may collect them afterwards.
Balanced supervision. Where vulnerable people of different genders take part in an activity, adults of different genders are there too.
A named contact. The Chair or Secretary is the person to speak to about any safeguarding matter.

Children and young people

We encourage young people and children to join, and the Band benefits from having younger members. We want them, and their parents, to know that the Band is a safe place to be.

If the committee learns that a member has been convicted of any offence involving children, that person will be asked to leave straight away. If there is any suggestion of improper conduct towards a child or young person by a member of the Band, we will not treat it as an internal matter. We will refer it, in consultation with the child’s parents, to the appropriate statutory agency, in the first instance the police.

Dunbartonshire Concert Band adheres to the Scottish Executive’s Children’s Charter.

If you have a concern

If you see, suspect or are told about abuse, or if something happens to you, please tell us straight away.

Speak to the Chair or Secretary.
If they are not available, or are involved, speak to the Conductor or Associate Conductor.
If you want to report something that has happened to you, you can tell the Chair or Secretary, or someone you trust.
If someone is in immediate danger or needs urgent medical help, call 999.

We take every concern seriously. We record it, the committee decides how to deal with it (leaving out anyone involved), and where it is needed we involve the police or the local authority. We keep the people concerned informed, and we handle personal information as set out in our privacy notice.

You can also email Enquiries@dunbartonshireconcertband.co.uk.