Welcome to the Yorkshire North and East District Safeguarding page, a place for all your safeguarding resources. If you are accessing this page because you need some support, advice or guidance about a safeguarding matter then you are in the right place – we are here to help. There is no such thing as a ‘stupid’ question, or a ‘niggle’ too small, and there are people that you can turn to in your local church, circuit, or in the wider district. If you need local contact details of those who can help you, these should be displayed on the church noticeboard.
As an initial port of call, please refer to our Safeguarding FAQs
However, if you are in any doubt, or you do not wish to seek help via your local church, then please do not hesitate to contact the District Safeguarding Officer, Jane Masterman.
Jane can be contacted at: safeguarding@yorkshirenemethodist.org 07596 515021
Our Commitment
Safeguarding is something that everybody within the Methodist Church has in common, because not only is safeguarding everyone’s responsibility, but it is at the core of our faith and the mission of the Methodist Church. This stems from the belief of the Methodist Church, along with the whole Christian community, that every single individual has value and dignity, which comes from the creation of us all in God’s image and likeness. Therefore, we have a duty to protect people from harm.
The Yorkshire North and East District is committed to the work of safeguarding and we are proud of the principles that it represents. It is our hope that safeguarding is undertaken with a smile and that those who need help will feel respected, listened to, and understood. We also hope that, even in the most difficult of times, a place of safety and support can be offered to create safer spaces for all.
The majority of these forms and text are taken directly from the safeguarding section of our national website.
Policies, Guidance and Forms
For changes and updates to our Safeguarding policy, practice, and guidance, please check here: www.methodist.org.uk/safeguarding
Methodist Church of Great Britain Safeguarding Policy
District Safeguarding Policy 2021-22
Code of Practice for working with children and young people
Digital Safeguarding Best Practice Reference Document
Safer Recruitment and DBS guidelines
Safeguarding guidance for LEPs
Example role outlines, job descriptions, person specifications, and safeguarding forms can all be found via this link.
Noticeboard Resources
Methodist Safeguarding poster for LEPs
Church Safeguarding Coordinator joint poster
Church Safeguarding Coordinator poster
Training
Training is a priority for our District, and for the next few months we are working alongside our neighbouring Districts to offer Advanced Safeguarding Training.
In-Person Safeguarding Training
18th April 2023 10:15am – 3:30pm– Haxby and Wiggington Church, York (York Circuit) Please sign up by clicking here
15th June 2023 10:15am – 3:30pm – Northallerton Methodist Church, Northallerton (Thirsk and Northallerton Circuit) Please sign up by clicking here
Online Training
The course is split into 2 sections:
Self-Study/e-learning – You will receive login details for Theology X which will give you access to online material to explore at home. It is expected that it will take around 4-7 hours to go through all the material online, however, you can split this up into smaller chunks of time and complete it over the month before the session. This material does need completing at least two full working days prior to attending the Zoom session with the trainers. Trainers will check if you have completed the online material before the Zoom session, if you have been unable to do so by the date of the Zoom session, you will need to transfer your Zoom session attendance to a later date.
Gathered Session – This is a 2-hour Zoom session for up to 20 people with the District’s Advanced Module Trainers. There will be opportunity to reflect on learning from the online self-study material and engage in further discussion with others.
You will receive access to the self-study on Theology X around a month before. Booking for the dates will close about 3 weeks before. This is to allow everyone enough time to receive and complete the self-study material before attending the Zoom session. The Zoom link will be sent nearer the time of the Gathered Session.
Our current dates planned are:
May 18th – 10am-12pm and 7pm-9pm (Booking closes 30 days before the training)
You can book all Online Safeguarding Training by clicking here
Keep an eye out for announcements here – alternatively you can sign up to our Advanced Safeguarding Training interest form which will mean you will get emails for Safeguarding training updates. Sign up here
Other available training
We are very grateful for the generous offer of our neighbouring districts to give us some support with training dates, and they have offered some spaces on their training to people within our District.
Within both Sheffield and Yorkshire West there are a number of in person and online training dates available
To find out about the available dates in Sheffield click here and for Yorkshire West click here.
Quick Reference Guide
Here is a quick reference guide about how to respond to a safeguarding concern