ENGINEERING IN MOTION WORKING WITH CHILDREN POLICY

Policy Statement

At Engineering In Motion, we value the contribution that children can make to our events. We are committed to protecting the welfare of the children who participate in our events and to ensuring that they have an exciting, informative and above all else safe experience.

This Working with Children Policy has been developed to support any aspect of our work that involves children. It sets out the standards that must be met, together with the procedural steps and policies that must be followed, to ensure that all of our activities involving children are safe and that each participating child’s welfare is protected.

We are all responsible for ensuring that our events involving children meet these standards and are managed in line with the principles and procedures set out in this document.

Scope

The Working with Children Policy applies to every officer and employee (including temporary members of staff and secondees) when interacting with children up to 18 years of age in any capacity on behalf of Engineering In Motion. We also expect those who perform services for or on behalf of Engineering In Motion (such as consultants, agents, introducers, contractors, suppliers) to apply or adopt internal policies that are consistent with this Policy.

Definition of a Child

A child is defined by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child as any person under the age of 18 years and this definition has been adopted by UK. It varies in other countries, where under applicable laws a child may reach majority earlier - however, as we are a UK company, we must treat anyone below the age of 18 as a child.

Working with Children Principles

We must all apply the following principles when interacting with children in any capacity on behalf of Engineering In Motion:

• Always prioritise the safety and well-being of the child. Remember: they are a child first, participant second;

• Always behave with integrity and use appropriate language at all times;

• Always act within professional boundaries - ensure all contact with children is essential to the activity you are working on;

• Ensure the child is accompanied by a parent/legal guardian/teacher, who is responsible for the child at all times;

• Do not assume sole responsibility for a child and only take on practical caring responsibilities (such as taking a child to the toilet) in an emergency. If a child needs care, alert the parent/guardian/teacher as soon as possible;

• Never use your personal phone or camera when interacting with children (Engineering In Motion media equipment only should be used, where consent of the child and parent/guardian has been given);

• Never give out your personal contact details, do not 'friend' or 'follow' children you are working with on social networking sites;

• Listen to and respect children at all times, don't patronise them and avoid favouritism; and

• Treat children fairly and without prejudice or discrimination.

If you are concerned about the welfare of a child or feel someone is behaving inappropriately around children, you have a duty to report this (see Incidents Management and Contacts). Engineering in Motion, Armytage Road, Brighouse, West Yorkshire HD6 1QF T: 01484728000 W: www.engineeringinmotion.com

Risk Assessment

A risk assessment identifies risks and potential challenges that can be faced when working on a project involving children. It is an important step in safeguarding children and must be conducted at the outset of any proposal in which children may be involved.

It is important to remember that children are generally:

• Less able to recognise danger;

• Inquisitive, which can mean they are more likely to take risks;

• Likely to be in an environment which is unfamiliar to them; and

• Likely to be more prone to tiredness and anxiety or behave unpredictably in response to pressure and long hours.
  

STEM Ambassador Training

Any Engineering In Motion employee (including temporary members of staff) who will interact directly with children or who come into contact with children on an ad hoc basis, is required to attend STEM Ambassador training through STEM Learning, to obtain a full DBS certificate. STEM Ambassador training includes guidance on working with children in and outside school environments and contributes towards employee’s awareness of the issues faced when working with children.

Consents

Before any child participates at an event, we must ensure that the child’s teacher or responsible adult has provided its informed consent and that the child has also given its own informed consent to:

• Participate in the event;

• Be filmed/photographed; and

• The collection and processing of its personal data.

It is the responsibility of the teacher or responsible adult to explain the event in detail to the parent/guardian and confirm (via the School Consent Form) that the child understands the event and freely consents. The consent form must provide details of the relevant project or event, so that the parent/guardian and child know exactly what is involved. This information should enable them to decide whether or not they wish to give their consents. Consent must be obtained well in advance of the relevant event.

The person leading the project is responsible for ensuring that all necessary informed consents have been obtained in advance of the event, and for retaining confirmation of those consents after the event.

Chaperones

We are committed to ensuring that children who participate in any of our events have an exciting and memorable experience that is first and foremost, safe.

We therefore require that in all circumstances, children are accompanied by one parent or legal guardian. We also appoint to every project or event where children are involved, one or more responsible permanent employees to act as chaperones. In certain circumstances, As a guide, one chaperone is generally appointed for every six children.

Engineering In Motion employees who are appointed as chaperones must fulfil the following criteria:

• They have been employed at Engineering In Motion for a minimum of 6 months, having passed their probationary period with no issues;

• They have obtained a basic criminal record check;

• Their line manager must approve their participation;

• They must attend the mandatory STEM Ambassador Training; and

• They must be able to dedicate themselves to the role of chaperone at the event without being distracted by their usual Engineering In Motion role.
  

  Local Laws and Requirements

  In some countries in which we operate, there may be local laws, regulations, licences, permits or codes that are required for, or relevant to, the safeguarding of children and their participation at events. The Compliance Team should be consulted early in the project and will advise on next steps.
  

  Criminal Records Check

  In a working environment that involves children, criminal records checks are required in respect of defined roles, individuals who provide personal care to a child and those who have regular contact with the same child. Even in situations where these criteria do not apply and criminal records checks are not required, we may choose to obtain a basic (or, if appropriate, enhanced) criminal record check.
  

  Incident Management

  If you have any concern in relation to a child participating in a Engineering In Motion event, you must contact the Compliance Team as soon as possible so that an Incident Report Form can be completed. If your concern relates to a child onsite at an event, you must inform the onsite Health and Safety or HR representative as soon as possible so any immediate issues can be managed and ensure that the Compliance Team is notified.
  

  Health, Safety and Well-being

  The health, safety and well-being of children who participate in our events is of paramount importance. The risk assessment described above will identify potential health, safety and well-being risks in advance of the event and the designated chaperones will be required to be vigilant, as will other Engineering In Motion personnel who have contact with children.

  When planning to work with children, all aspects of their safety must be considered, including the following non-exhaustive list:

• Children must have access to water and food;

• Children must have easy access to a WC;

• Children must not be kept in the heat or sun for long periods;

• Children must be not asked to stand for long periods or walk long distances;

• Children must not be in the vicinity of an Engineering In Motion vehicle that has its engine on;

• Children must not be free to enter a pit lane or garage unaccompanied;

• The noise of the event may be too loud and if so, ear protectors will be required;

• The fumes at an event could affect a child’s health (in particular, asthma needs to be considered); and

• Children must be made aware of designated “meeting points” in case they become separated from their parent/guardian or the designated chaperone.

  In respect of a child’s overall well-being, it must be remembered that children may be susceptible to the following (again, this not an exhaustive list):

• Tire easily (particularly young children);

• Be easily distracted, inquisitive and unpredictable;

• Not follow or understand instructions;

• Wander and become lost;

• Talk to strangers; and

• Be easily scared.
  

  Photography and Film

  When children are involved in our events, we must ensure we use photography and film appropriately and apply the following principles:

• All children must be appropriately dressed;

• Where possible, the image or footage should focus on the activity taking place and not a specific child;

• Where appropriate, images and footage should represent the broad range of people participating safely in the event;

• No image of a child/children featured in any broadcast or publication (including Social Media – see below for details) is accompanied by personal details such as his/her full name, school or home address; and

• If you have any concerns regarding images or footage taken at the event, you must report this using the Incident Report Form (see Incident Management).

  Prior to the event we must:

• Obtain consent from the child and its parent/legal guardian to allow us to film and photograph the child (see Consents);

• Keep the number of photographers and camera operators appointed to the relevant event to a minimum;

• Appoint the photographers and/or camera operators who will document the event in advance, and consider whether they attend the Working with Children Training; and

• Ensure that all employees working with the images and footage after the event (such as post-production editing and social media content) attend the Working with Children Training.

  Social Media and Data Privacy

  Social media plays an important role in our business and when children are involved in an Engineering In Motion event, we must ensure that our use of images and footage on social media is appropriate and in line with this policy. We also need to ensure that we adhere to the following rules and safeguards:

  Minimum Age

• For most social media platforms, the minimum age for an account is 13 years. We must therefore ensure that we do not target our social media content at children below this age and that we do not encourage children below this age to participate in our social media profiles.

  We must be careful how images of children are used:

• Photographs and videos of children on sporting websites can be used to identify children and make them vulnerable to people who wish to groom them. A child must not be identifiable on social media and this means that an image or footage of a child should never be accompanied by any other information which would identify them such as their name, address and school;

• Any images or footage that are used on social media must not focus on one child. The group and overall activity should be the focus of any images or footage used;

• If a child is named, avoid using their image. If an image is used, avoid naming the child; and

• Children’s and parents’ written consent must be obtained before we can use photographs or footage on websites.
  
  Data Privacy

• Extra attention and care must be given to the personal data of children. Children under the age of 13 cannot give their consent for their personal data to be collected or processed and so consent must be sought from the parents or legal guardians (data privacy is included in the School Consent Form – see Consents).

• Personal information is any information that is identifiable to a person and can include a person’s name, identification number, location data and online identifiers. This means that images and footage of children are personal data. We need ensure that both children and parents or legal guardians are informed of the way children’s information will be used.

  
  Contacts

  If you are concerned that a child's safety or wellbeing is at risk, contact the Engineering In Motion DSO immediately. If you have a concern during an event, contact the Event Designated Safeguarding Officer (EDSO):

• Aimee Dawson – adawson@stemracing.com

• Tom Milner – tmilner@stemracing.com
  
  Additional Forms (available on request)

• School Consent form

• Volunteer’s confirmation form

• Child protection information

• Cause for concern form

  Please email info@stemracing.com for a copy of these forms.