Reporting Your Concerns or Disclosures
Read here about how to respond to your concerns, or to disclosures, including, information on who to contact in these situations.
Responding to concerns, complaints, allegations and disclosures
If you need to make an allegation or disclosure of abuse, or have serious concerns about the safety of a child, young person or vulnerable adult, you should immediately contact the police or the relevant children's services department.
If you have a concern that is not serious and does not require immediate action, your first point of contact would be the club's/organisation’s child protection officer/welfare officer. Alternatively, you may wish to speak to the activity organiser, relevant children's services department or one of the national contacts listed for advice and support.
If you have a concern related to poor practice, please speak to the relevant activity organiser.
PLEASE NOTE that if your concern is regarding something that takes place/took place within a facility e.g. a leisure centre, you should inform the facility in the first instance so that they can follow their own child protection policies and procedures. Many of the facilities in Tyne & Wear follow The Derwent Initiative's Leisure Watch procedures.
Further Infomation
For further information please visit the 'Useful Contacts' section of our website, which contains the relevant contact details you can use if you need help or guidance e.g. Children's Services, national contacts.
The 'NSPCC' website in particular provides alot of support and advice. You may wish to look at the NSPCC's 'Worried about a child? How you can protect children from abuse' leaflet, which gives some useful tips on what to do if you're concerned about the safety of a child. Please click here to download it.
Additional Advice
Kidscape
Provides information for parents on bullying and keeping children safe (send a large stamped self-addressed envelope). They also operate a bullying helpline for parents, Monday to Friday, 10.00 a.m. – 4.00 p.m.
2 Grosvenor Gardens,
London
SW1W 0DH
Tel: 020 7730 3300
Parents Centre
Provides a range of information and resources for parents including information, support and advice in dealing with major issues affecting parents and their children.
Email: parentscentre@dfes.gsi.gov.uk
Parentline Plus
Parentline is the free confidential helpline run by Parentline Plus for anyone in a parenting role, including step-parents and those experiencing family change.
Unit 520 Highgate Studios,
53-79 Highgate Rd,
Kentish Town,
London
NW5 1TL
Helpline: 0808 800 2222
NSPCC
The NSPCC offers a wide range of leaflets and booklets for parents and carers. For a parenting pack, please send an A4 SAE (5 x 1st class stamps) to NSPCC Publications, Weston House, 42 Curtain Rd, London EC2A 3NH. You can also view these publications on the website.
Weston House,
42 Curtain Road,
London
EC2A 3NH
Tel: 020 7825 2500 (please note that this is not the helpline number)
Bullying Online
Provides information for parents on a variety of bullying issues.
E-Mail: help@bullying.co.uk
BBC Parenting
Provides information about bringing up children and generally keeping them out of harm's way.
Child Alert
Provides information on parenting topics and concerns, as well as access to child safety products and services.
Thinkuknow Website
The internet is integral to the lives of children of all ages. 'Thinkuknow' provides information for parents, guardians and carers to help them to understand more about what their child is doing online, exploring some of the specific dangers that children could face, and providing practical advice and guidance that should make the online experience safer for all.
Most importantly, there's also a place which anyone can use to report if they feel uncomfortable or worried about someone they are chatting to online.
