Safeguarding & Child Protection Policy

1. Our commitment

ScholarBridge works with students aged 14–18, and we take our responsibility for their safety seriously. The welfare of the young person is our paramount concern, and safeguarding is the responsibility of everyone connected with ScholarBridge. This policy explains how our programmes are conducted, the standards mentors are held to, and how concerns are recognised, reported, and acted on. It reflects the principle that a young person's safety always comes before any other consideration, including the continuation of a programme or any commercial interest.

This policy is informed by international child-protection standards, including the principles of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the recommendations of the International Task Force on Child Protection, and it reflects a culture of integrity, respect, and ethical stewardship across everyone connected with ScholarBridge.

2. Scope

This policy applies to all ScholarBridge programmes, all mentors and staff, and all students enrolled in or enquiring about our programmes. Because our work is delivered online and internationally, we act on the safeguarding standards described here regardless of where a student is located, and we work with the relevant local authorities and services in the student's own country where action is needed.

3. Designated Safeguarding Lead

ScholarBridge has a Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) with responsibility for handling safeguarding concerns, deciding on next steps, and liaising with external agencies where necessary. The DSL, or a deputy, can be reached at safeguarding@scholarbridge.uk. Any member of the ScholarBridge community, including students and families, can contact the DSL directly.

4. What we mean by safeguarding

Safeguarding means protecting young people from harm and promoting their welfare. Harm can take several forms, and in an online mentorship setting we remain alert in particular to:

• Emotional and psychological harm, including bullying, intimidation, or controlling behaviour.
• Sexual harm, including any inappropriate comment, contact, or the sharing of inappropriate material.
• Online harms, including grooming, exposure to harmful content, sharing of images without consent, and unsafe contact through digital platforms.
• Physical harm and neglect, which a mentor may become aware of even though sessions are conducted remotely.
• Exploitation or radicalisation, including any attempt by a third party to draw a young person into harmful activity.

A concern does not need to fall neatly into one of these categories to be worth raising. If something does not feel right, we would always rather it was reported.

5. Session format and online safety

All ScholarBridge sessions are conducted via video call (Google Meet, Zoom, or a mutually agreed platform). No in-person sessions take place. Sessions are not recorded without the explicit prior agreement of both the student and family. Session times and platforms are agreed with families before the programme begins, and families may request to observe any session by notifying ScholarBridge in advance.

Mentors keep sessions focused on the academic programme, use ScholarBridge-managed channels, and promote safe and responsible use of technology, including the safe use of any AI tools as set out in our Generative AI Policy.

6. Parental involvement and communication

ScholarBridge requires a parent or legal guardian to be named on the application for every student under 18. The named parent or guardian:

• Receives the written programme plan and schedule before the programme begins.
• Is copied on all non-session communications between ScholarBridge and the student.
• Is notified of any session cancellations, rescheduling, or changes to the programme.
• May request a progress update at any point during the programme.
• Is informed in writing if any concern arises during the programme.

For students under 16, ScholarBridge may request that a parent or guardian is present or nearby during the first session. Families should contact us if they have a preference for parental presence at any session.

7. Mentor conduct standards

All communication between mentors and students must go through ScholarBridge's designated channels (email to ScholarBridge, or within the agreed session platform). Mentors are not permitted to:

• Contact students directly on personal phones, messaging apps, or social media.
• Share their personal contact details with students.
• Meet with students in person or in any setting outside the agreed session format.
• Request information from students that is not relevant to the academic programme.

Any breach of these standards is grounds for immediate removal from the ScholarBridge mentor network.

8. Safer recruitment and vetting

Every ScholarBridge mentor is reviewed before joining the network for academic background, communication ability, and suitability for working with younger students. Mentors are briefed on this safeguarding policy and are required to confirm they have read and understood it before beginning any programme.

ScholarBridge does not currently operate in jurisdictions that require formal disclosure and barring checks (DBS, CRB, or equivalent). Families who require disclosure checks should notify us before the interview so we can discuss what is possible.

9. Recognising and responding to a concern

A concern may come to light through something a student says or does, something a mentor observes, or something a parent reports. Anyone who has a concern should raise it promptly. A member of ScholarBridge who receives a concern or a disclosure from a young person will:

• Listen carefully and take what they are told seriously, without judgement.
• Not promise secrecy, explaining gently that they may need to share the information to keep the young person safe.
• Not investigate or ask leading questions, as that is the role of the relevant authorities.
• Record what was said, in the young person's own words where possible, with the date and time.
• Report the concern to the Designated Safeguarding Lead without delay.

10. How we act on a concern

The Designated Safeguarding Lead reviews every concern and decides on the appropriate steps. All concerns are treated seriously and responded to within 2 business days, and sooner where there is urgency. Depending on the nature of the concern, steps may include:

• Informing the student's parent or guardian, unless doing so would place the young person at greater risk.
• Referring the matter to the relevant local authority, children's services, child-protection agency, or the police in the student's own country, consistent with local mandatory-reporting requirements.
• Taking precautionary measures under our Code of Conduct, such as pausing sessions or changing a mentor arrangement, while a concern is looked into.
• Cooperating fully with any external investigation.

Where a young person is in immediate danger, emergency services should be contacted first, without waiting for any internal process.

11. Concerns or allegations about a mentor or member of staff

Any concern that a mentor or member of ScholarBridge staff may have behaved in a way that harms or risks harming a young person is taken extremely seriously. Such a concern should be reported to the Designated Safeguarding Lead at safeguarding@scholarbridge.uk. While a concern is considered, ScholarBridge may suspend the individual from working with students as a precaution, and will refer the matter to the appropriate external authority where required. A precautionary step is not a finding of fault.

12. Information sharing and confidentiality

Safeguarding concerns are handled sensitively and shared only with those who need the information to keep a young person safe. Where sharing information is necessary to protect a young person from harm, that need takes priority over confidentiality. All personal data is handled in line with our Privacy Policy, and information about a young person's health, safety, or wellbeing is treated as sensitive personal data.

13. Images, recordings, and consent

ScholarBridge does not record sessions, or photograph or film students, without the explicit prior consent of the student and their parent or guardian. Students, families, and mentors must not record, capture, share, or publish sessions or images of any person connected with ScholarBridge without consent, as set out in our Code of Conduct.

14. Student data and privacy

ScholarBridge collects only the information necessary to administer the programme: name, age, curriculum, academic interests, contact details, and programme correspondence. Student data is not shared with third parties except where required to deliver the programme (for example, with the assigned mentor) or to keep a young person safe. All data is handled in accordance with our Privacy Policy and applicable data-protection law in the United States and the United Kingdom. For students under 16, data collection requires parental consent, obtained during the application process.

15. Raising a concern

If a student, parent, or mentor has a concern about conduct, safety, or any aspect of the programme:

• Contact ScholarBridge at safeguarding@scholarbridge.uk with the subject line "Safeguarding concern."
• All concerns are treated seriously and responded to within 2 business days.
• The student and family will be kept informed of how the concern is being handled, so far as it is appropriate and safe to do so.
• Where a concern suggests a risk of harm to a student, ScholarBridge will take appropriate steps, which may include contacting the relevant authorities.

No student or family will face any negative consequence for raising a genuine safeguarding concern. Concerns that are not about safety or welfare are handled under our Complaints & Appeals Procedure.

16. Review

This policy is reviewed at least annually, and sooner if practice or circumstances change. It applies to all ScholarBridge programmes, mentors, and students.

Contact

For questions about this policy or to raise a concern, contact us at safeguarding@scholarbridge.uk.

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