Child Protection Policy

This revised Policy was adopted after the ECFA Council meeting held on 10 January 2008

Statement

The Association was founded for the promotion of the arts of Speech, Music and Dance in the City of Edinburgh and its neighbouring counties in 1920 and is a member of the British and International Federation of Festivals. It is an amateur Festival organised and staffed by volunteers. The Council has from time to time employed assistance in a clerical or administrative capacity. All events are held in public and occasionally members of the Press and Photographers may be present. In order to comply with legislation in Scotland the Council undertakes to bring the Protection of Children to the notice of all participants, their teachers, parents and guardians in a manner appropriate to its own environment and custom in three ways.

Policy

1. The following text will be included in the Annual Syllabus and Programme, displayed at the entrance of venues and printed on slips sent out with all performer tickets and included in the folders prepared for Stewards at all classes:

"It is important that teachers and parents entering children in the Festival understand that the Festival Staff and other personnel are charged with the smooth running of events and will not act in loco parentis. Responsibility for the care and supervision of children - defined for this purpose as persons under 18 years of age - lies with their parents or with other adults to whom their parents have entrusted them, both while they are performing and at all other times during the Festival."

2. Care will be taken to ensure that Festival staff can be readily identified so that advice on any child care issue arising may be sought.

All Festival staff will be required to wear name badges while on duty at Festival events. A named badge will be issued to all Staff, to be returned to the Festival office by the end of the Festival. Unnamed badges will be kept in the office for emergency use, and only labelled and released to known staff in case of an emergency. A daily register of Festival staff present will be kept. In case of a problem, anyone wearing a badge may be approached and will be able to direct children or adults to someone who will be able to help: if the children are without their parents or designated adult supervisors, at least two members of staff should be present and they will endeavour to contact the parents or designated persons, failing which they will contact the police or medical support as appropriate. All such incidents will be recorded along with action taken. A reminder of this part of the policy will be in the Stewards' folders for each session.

3. The recruitment of Festival Staff will be by personal introduction by an existing member of Council. In the case of the recruitment of Stewards and other helpers this will be personal introduction via the member of Council designated to organise Stewarding or Catering.

In this way named volunteers known to members of the Association and Council may be introduced but anonymous replacements will not. At their annual pre-Festival training session Stewards will be supplied with a copy of this Policy. It will be mailed to those unable to attend and the importance of the Policy and its consistent implementation will be stressed.

4. The Festival's Policy will be regularly reviewed. All comment will be welcomed and considered by the Council.