SWB’s Child Protection Policy

Sailors Without Borders’ Child Protection Policy

Sailors Without Borders recognize that child protection is possible thanks to the engagement of all our staff members. Children’s well-being is paramount for us and we believe that all children have the right to be protected from all forms of abuse.

Child Protection is everyone’s responsibility. We recognize that we have a fundamental duty of care towards all children we engage with including a duty to protect them from abuse. We aim to achieve this through compliance with child protection laws in each country we work in.

In Poland, child protection is regulated by national and international acts including: the Constitution of the Republic of Poland, the Code of Criminal Procedure, and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). These laws define child abuse as the violation of the rights of a child. In Poland, child abuse is a serious crime and can be punishable by imprisonment.

A child is defined by the British Council as anyone who has not reached their 18th birthday (UNCRC, 1989) irrespective of the age of maturity in the country where the child is, or their home country.

Our global Child Protection policy is mandatory for all Sailors Without Borders staff and any partners, contractors or suppliers who work with Sailors Without Borders.

Our Child Protection Policy means we protect children by:

• Adopting rigorous child protection systems and procedures for staff.
• Providing effective management of staff through supervision, support and training.
• Recruiting staff safely by ensuring all necessary checks are in place.
• Valuing children, listening to them, and respecting them.
• Having a zero tolerance policy for bullying.
• Sharing information about child protection and good practice with staff, children, and parents or guardians.
• Sharing information about concerns or any reports of a child protection incident with child protection agencies/schools/the police.
• Working with children or parents/guardians to address concerns and to provide advice and support.

All field staff and volunteers attend mandatory annual trainings on our Child Protection Policy and agency-specific child protection protocols. All new employees and volunteers are also trained and commit to following the policy and protocols.

Every project and group is required to have its own child protection protocols based on SWB’s overarching Child Protection Policy and Guiding Principles. These protocols include local laws on child abuse, procedures that are required by local law, a list of local authorities to whom child abuse cases are reported, as well as a list of partner organizations to contact that can provide the appropriate support services for victims.

Sailors Without Borders’ Child Protection Focal Point, Poland

Our Child Protection Focal Point is Małgorzata Belniak. Małgorzata is responsible for implementing our Sailors Without Borders’ Child Protection Policy in Poland. She speaks Polish and English and can be contacted via email: contact@sailorswithoutborders.org (please put Child Protection Policy or CPP in the message title) regarding any aspect of our Sailors Without Borders’ Child Protection Policy.

Poland

Two key organisations for support regarding Child Protection or reporting concerns about child abuse in Poland are:

• www.niebieskalinia.pl, tel. 22 668 70 00, pogotowie@niebieskalinia.pl
• Fundacja Dajemy Dzieciom Siłę, Hotline for children and teenagers 116 111, www.116111.pl