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01-OYIS Safeguarding Policy and Procedures 05/2023 (public)
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Osaka YMCA International School Safeguarding Policy and Procedures  

Reviewed: May 10, 2023

Child Protection Policy

1.1 Values Statement

1.2 Definitions of Child Abuse

1.3 Indicators of abuse

1.4 Code of conduct and staff guidelines

Communication with Students

General Communication

Social Media

Guardianship

Day-to-Day Interactions

Field Trips

Use of Alcohol, Tobacco and/or Drugs

1.5 Staff Training

1.6 Annual Review

Child protection Procedures

2.1 Recruitment Procedure

2.2 Reporting Procedures

2.3 Principles and Guidelines for Disclosure

2.3.1 What to do if a Child Discloses Abuse

Visitors/Volunteers Code of Conduct

Please read, sign and abide by all policies including those related to identifying, documenting, and reporting child abuse. By signing you agree to follow all mandatory reporting requirements.

Osaka YMCA International School (OYIS) cooperates fully with the authorities to investigate all cases of alleged abuse. All staff members or volunteers shall fully cooperate in any external investigation by outside authorities or internal investigation conducted by OYIS or persons given investigative authority by OYIS.

Child Protection Policy

1.1 Values Statement

Child abuse and neglect are violations of a child’s human rights and are obstacles to the child’s education as well as to their physical, emotional, and spiritual development. Osaka YMCA International School; managed by the YMCA Osaka Education Group in partnership with the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sport, Science and Technology Japan (MEXT), endorses the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, of which Japan is a signatory.

The Osaka YMCA has been working with local communities in Osaka to develop the health and well-being of young people since 1882. Osaka YMCA’s philosophy is aligned with the United Nations Convention of the Rights of the Child's (UNCRC) responsibilities with the goal of developing youth's appreciation and respect for life, their community and the natural environment. 

The YMCA Osaka’s philosophy encourages people to work together to find fair and peaceful solutions to environmental issues, human rights and poverty issues. The YMCA realizes this by actualizing its calling by helping to create a world where everyone can co-exist in a peaceful democratic society.  This philosophy reflects the Universal Declaration of Human Rights' belief that every child is entitled to special care, assistance and an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding.

As indicated in the Declaration on the Rights of the Child: "the child, by reason of his or her physical and mental immaturity, needs special safeguards and care, including appropriate legal protection, before as well as after birth". Additionally, Osaka YMCA values the importance of international cooperation for improving the living conditions of children in every country. Osaka YMCA International School Is therefore committed to upholding the declarations of the UN and the spirit and values of Osaka YMCA in safeguarding students.  

Osaka YMCA International School is committed to ensuring that it:

Osaka YMCA International School aims to be a safe haven free of abuse or neglect, for students to learn, play and grow as individuals. Osaka YMCA International School will distribute this policy annually to all parents and applicants, will communicate this policy annually to students, will provide training for all staff, will make every effort to implement hiring practices to insure the safety of children, and will review the policy annually for compliance and effectiveness.

In the case of a staff member reported as an alleged offender, Osaka YMCA International School will conduct a full investigation following a carefully designed course of due process, keeping the safety of the child as the highest priority. 

1.2 Definitions of Child Abuse

Emotional or psychological abuse

Emotional or psychological abuse occurs when a child or young person does not receive the love, affection or attention they need for healthy emotional, psychological and social development. Such abuse may involve repeated rejection or threats to a child or a young person. Constant criticism, teasing, ignoring, threatening, yelling, scapegoating, ridicule and rejection or continual coldness are all examples of emotional abuse. These behaviors continue to an extent that results in significant damage to the child or young person’s physical, intellectual or emotional wellbeing and development.

Physical abuse

Physical abuse occurs when a person subjects a child or young person to non-accidental physically aggressive acts. The abuser may inflict an injury intentionally, or inadvertently as a result of physical punishment or the aggressive treatment of a child. Physically abusive behavior includes (but is not limited to) shoving, hitting, slapping, shaking, throwing, punching, biting, burning and kicking. It also includes giving children or young people harmful substances such as drugs, alcohol or poison. Certain types of punishment, whilst not causing injury can also be considered physical abuse if they place a child or young person at risk of being hurt.

Sexual abuse

Sexual abuse occurs when an adult involves a child or young person in any sexual activity. Sexual abuse also occurs when a child or young person involves another child or young person in any sexual activity. Perpetrators of sexual abuse take advantage of their power, authority or position over the child or young person for their own benefit. It can include making sexual comments to a child or young person, engaging children or young people to participate in sexual conversations over the internet or on social media, kissing, touching a child or young person’s genitals or breasts, oral sex or intercourse. Encouraging a child or young person to view pornographic magazines, websites and videos is also sexual abuse.

Neglect

Neglect is the persistent failure or deliberate denial to provide the child or young person with the basic necessities of life. Such neglect includes the failure to provide adequate food, clothing, shelter, adequate supervision, clean water, medical attention or supervision to the extent that the child or young person’s health and development is, or is likely to be, significantly harmed. Categories of neglect include physical neglect, medical neglect, abandonment or desertion, emotional neglect and educational neglect. The issue of neglect must be considered within the context of resources reasonably available to the family.

Witnessing Family Violence 

Witnessing family violence is a specific form of emotional and psychological abuse. Witnessing family violence occurs when children or young people are forced to live with violence between adults in their home. It is harmful to children and young people. It can include witnessing violence or the consequences of violence. Family violence is defined as violence between members of a family or extended family or those fulfilling the role of family in a child or young person’s life. Exposure to family violence places children and young people at increased risk of physical injury and harm and has a significant impact on their wellbeing and development.

Sexual exploitation 

Sexual exploitation occurs when children or young people are forced into sexual activities that are then recorded in some way and/or used to produce pornography. Such pornography can be in the form of actual photos or videos or published on the internet. Exploitation can also involve children or young people who are forced into prostitution.

Grooming

Grooming is a term used to describe what happens when a perpetrator of abuse builds a relationship with a child or young person with a view to abusing them at some stage. There is no set pattern in relation to the grooming of children. For some perpetrators, there will be a lengthy period of time before the abuse begins. Other perpetrators may draw a child in and abuse them relatively quickly. Some abusers do not groom children but abuse them without forming a relationship at all. Grooming can take place in any setting where a relationship is formed, such as leisure, music, sports and religious activities, or in internet chat rooms, in social media or by SMS.

Harm

Harm, to a child or young person, is any detrimental effect of a significant nature on the child or young person’s physical, psychological or emotional wellbeing. It is immaterial how the harm is caused. Harm can be caused by:

• physical, psychological or emotional abuse or neglect; or

• sexual abuse or exploitation;

• a single act, omission or circumstance; or

• a series or combination of acts, omissions or circumstances.

Bullying

Bullying involves the inappropriate use of power by one or more persons over another less powerful person or group and is generally an act that is repeated over time. Bullying has been described by researchers as taking many forms which are often interrelated and include:

• Verbal (name calling, put downs, threats)

• Physical (hitting, punching, kicking, scratching, tripping, spitting)

• Social (ignoring, excluding, ostracizing, alienating)

• Psychological (spreading rumors, stalking, dirty looks, hiding or damaging possessions).

Student on Student Abuse

Student on Student abuse refers to any form of abuse, and is not limited to - physical, emotional, verbal, online, social and psychological between students in the school community.

Online/Cyber Bullying

Online/Cyber Bullying refers to any form of bullying or abuse with a digital element such as recording and posting of photos, chats, videos of students or staff on social media or digital platforms.

Contexts of Abuse

1.3 Indicators of abuse

Signs of physical abuse

Signs of emotional abuse

Signs of sexual abuse

Some indicators of neglect

Long term impact of unmitigated child abuse

The impact of child abuse can persist for a lifetime after the abuse has been committed. Some victims of abuse are resilient and thus manage to function and survive. Much research has established the relationship between long-­term child abuse and life­time health and well­being, especially if the children do not get appropriate support to help them cope with the trauma. The most important point to consider is that children often are exposed to multiple forms of abuse and suffer a myriad of symptoms. Furthermore, all forms of abuse have the potential for long-­term impact on the victims, and can affect the victim's ability to function as a human being. Abuse challenges the self-­value, self-­esteem and sense of worth of its victims, rendering them hopeless, helpless and unable to live a complete life.

Long term impact of child abuse

In addition to knowing the signs of victimization, below are some early warning signs to look out for in potential offenders.

Signs of potential offenders - students

Signs of potential offenders - adults

1.4 Code of conduct and staff guidelines

Purpose

  1. The Code of Conduct provides clear expectations to all employees and volunteers who represent Osaka YMCA and who interact with students (including externally hired coaches and teaching assistants employed by parents for students with special needs) in both a direct and / or unsupervised capacity.
  2. Consequences of failure to comply with the Code of Conduct may result in any or all of the following, depending on the seriousness of compliance failure:
  1. Official reprimand recorded and placed in employee’s file
  2. Suspension with pay until an official investigation has been conducted
  3. Immediate dismissal

Communication with Students

For the purpose of this Code of Conduct electronic communication and social media encompass software, applications (including those running on mobile devices) email and websites, which enable users to interact, create and exchange information online. Examples include but are not limited to sites such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Snapchat. As digital citizens faculty and staff are expected to model the required behavior we expect to see online of our students.

Essential Agreements for Students/Code of Conduct

Students will commit to following essential agreements

General Communication

Maintaining professional boundaries in all forms of communication, technology related or not, is vital to maintaining appropriate professional relationships with students.

  1. Faculty and staff at Osaka YMCA when communicating with students electronically, only communicate with students through school email accounts or school sanctioned platforms, such as SeeSaw, Managebac, email. There is to be no exchange of private texts, private phone calls, personal email addresses or photos of a personal nature with students.
  2. Professional and courteous language is to be used at all times. Professional “sign off” on emails at all times.
  3. Faculty and staff must maintain a professional distance from students by communicating electronically at appropriate times of the day, especially in terms of one on one communication. Unless in an emergency situation faculty and staff must refrain from:
  1. Corresponding with elementary students after 7pm and junior high students after 8pm. Faculty and staff should also not engage in communication with students regarding Google Doc and Managebac notifications after these times.
  2. Corresponding with students on weekends unless in relation to a service event or a school sponsored event on that day.
  3. Corresponding with students during holidays. In case of an emergency situation or a situation of concern, the division principal must be copied on all correspondence.
  1. The principal must be informed of correspondence with parents in regards to concerns raised about the physical and/or emotional well being of the student.

Social Media

  1. Student images should not be taken with a teacher’s or staff’s personal device. Teachers should use the devices provided by the school.
  2. Facebook is not a school sanctioned communication tool for students and teachers or staff. Teachers cannot be ‘friends’ with students on Facebook or any other personal social media.
  3. Former students must have graduated high school before a friend request can be accepted or requested.
  4. Students’ images or work cannot be posted on private accounts and professional blogs of teachers or staff (even if images are from a school event).
  5. Faculty and staff are expected to monitor all content they or others post to their social media accounts and are expected to remove anything that is inappropriate.

Guardianship

  1. Teachers or staff cannot act as legal guardians of students who are other people’s children unless in extenuating circumstances, and only then in prior consultation with, and the approval of, the principal and director of operations.
  2. Teachers or staff cannot visit a student’s home without the parent(s) / caregiver(s) being present.
  3. No sleepovers are allowed at the teacher's home. Teachers cannot attend a sleepover at a student’s home. Camping sleepovers at school must have multiple supervisors, including a student’s parent. 
  4. No private parties with students at teachers’ homes. Students eating at restaurants with staff need approval of the principal.
  5. Professional discretion should be used by faculty parents or faculty members should they be in attendance at private parties, on family group trips, or overnight trips in the company of Osaka YMCA parents and families. Confidentiality regarding school issues should be maintained.

Day-to-Day Interactions

  1. Physical contact with a student can be misconstrued both by the recipient and those observing, and should occur only when completely non-sexual and otherwise appropriate and never in private.
  2. One-on-one meetings with a student must be held in a public area; in a room where the interaction can be (or is being) observed (blinds cannot be drawn); or in a room with the door left open, and another staff member is notified about the meeting.
  3. Students should have adequate supervision throughout the school day. After school students who miss the school bus or have parents who are late collecting them after school must also be supervised.
  4. Teachers must seek permission from their principal to meet with students if outside of school hours of 8:30am ­- 4:30pm Monday through Friday.
  5. Professional language and cultural sensitivity to be displayed at all times.
  6. Students change for PE in safe, supervised areas according to gender.
  7. Health classes dealing with human growth and development take place in the classroom with two adults present for classes.

Field Trips

  1. Permission slips must be distributed and accounted for in the case of all field trips including day trips.
  2. Consistent attendance taking must be conducted.
  3. Overnight trips should have daily communication from chaperones to parents and principal and director of operations.
  4. Immediate reporting of disciplinary, and/or health and safety issues that occur on the trip to the principal and the director of operations.
  5. Teachers may not enter the hotel rooms of students unless there is a legitimate health and safety concern or there is reason to believe the essential agreements based around trips are being breached.
  6. No consumption of alcohol or use of tobacco (including e-cigarettes) or drugs by chaperones or students on the trip.
  7. For further details, refer to the MYP/DP Chaperone Agreement for Excursions.

After School Activities Guidelines  

Use of Alcohol, Tobacco and/or Drugs

Faculty and staff at Osaka YMCA are expected to respect the laws of Japan pertaining to the consumption of alcohol, tobacco and drugs. Consumption of alcohol at school sponsored events is restricted to the explicit permission of the principal and director of operations. On-campus staff parties are restricted to designated areas and designated times by the principal and director of operations. The entire Osaka YMCA campus is a non-smoking environment. At no time can an adult employed by Osaka YMCA purchase for, or share / supply a student with any alcohol, tobacco, or drug product.

All staff of Osaka YMCA International School are expected to engage in the following good practices:

All staff of Osaka YMCA International School Are strictly prohibited from the following:

Any type of abuse will not be tolerated and will be grounds for immediate dismissal.

Violating any of these expectations may be cause for immediate dismissal.

1.5 Staff Training

All staff at Osaka YMCA International School are required to undergo child protection training and obtain certification if they have not done it prior to coming to the school. This may be via a live or online workshop and/or an online course. Teachers and administrators will have the knowledge and tools to protect students from all forms of abuse. This training will be reviewed every 2 years. The staff at OYIS is also required to review the school’s child protection policy annually.

Long term volunteers/shadow teachers etc. will also be required to complete safeguarding training from an accredited provider. (online or live).

Substitute/relief teachers will also be required to complete safeguarding training from an accredited provider (online or live).

Caregivers/Staff/Teachers/External providers who will be joining overnight field trips will have been required to complete safeguarding training from an accredited provider (online or live).

1.6 Annual Review

The child protection policy will be subject to review annually and revised accordingly. Any changes to school policy; local or national laws, will be considered when making revisions. This review and revision will be undertaken at the end of the school year. A representative from the administration will work with the child protection committee throughout this process.

Child protection Procedures

2.1 Recruitment Procedure

Osaka YMCA International School reserves the right to conduct background screening of potential, active and inactive employees and volunteers before, during and after employment. Any person found to have provided any misrepresentations, falsifications, or material omissions in the information provided by the applicant / employee, whenever discovered, may result in disqualification from, or termination of employment or volunteer service with the school. Likewise, a person’s information may be shared with recruitment services, potential/future employers and/or authorities, especially in the case of child protection issues.  

2.2 Reporting Procedures

Mandatory Reporting Step One: Making an Initial Report

All staff at OYIS are required to report to the designated child protection officer if there are reasonable grounds for concern that a student may be in danger from abuse from any adult including parents, carers, other staff or community members. The act of making a report does not assume ‘guilt’, rather the report should simply be made in good faith based upon a reasonable presumption that there is a situation which is worthy of investigation.

  1. Any suspected form of abuse that is observed by staff or volunteers, either directly or indirectly, must be immediately reported to the programme principal or child protection officer. The programme principal and child protection officer is contacted via email and the following (Reporting Form). The report should be directed solely to the child safety officer or programme principal. Please refrain from initiating any investigation, as this is the responsibility of the safeguarding team. DO NOT contact the adult(s) who may be subject to an investigative process and maintain confidentiality. Should the incident warrant an immediate response in the case of an emergency, call the child safety officer or principal. If they do not answer, send a direct SLACK message or SMS and contact another administrator until someone responds. The administrator will notify the authorities (police/EMS). The incident will then be recorded, and next steps will be taken.

  1. If the child protection concern is made regarding the child protection officer or programme principal, contact the director of operations directly. Do not submit the reporting form.

Mandatory Reporting Step Two: Initial Investigation:

Upon receiving a report, the Principal should convene a Safeguarding Team meeting including the Vice Principal, Counsellor, and Head of Inclusion. (S)he should then immediately arrange for the conducting of a reasonable small-scale investigation into the case. In the case that the parent/carers are NOT the subject of the investigation, they should be contacted at this time and included fully in the process. However, in the case that the parents/carers ARE the subject of the investigation they should not be involved at this stage.

The purpose of this investigation is to determine whether or not there is a legitimate cause for concern for child safety. Consequently, the investigation may include a combination of the following:

Mandatory Reporting Step Three: Decision for Action

Following this small-scale investigation the Child Protection Team, including at least two other senior staff (drawn from administrators, school counselor, school nurse and head of student services as appropriate) will evaluate the evidence presented and make a decision as to the next steps. There should be clear explanations about what is going to happen and the choice and rationale for courses of action taken.

The decision will be taken as follows:

  1. In the case that there remains reasonable grounds for concern that a student may be in danger from abuse from any adult including parents, carers, other staff or community members:

  1. In the case that there is no longer reasonable grounds for concern that a student may be in danger from abuse from any adult including parents, carers, other staff or community members:

Storing and Sharing of Information

Referral forms and investigative reports will be held confidential and stored in a secure location.

Information given to professionals or teachers/staff at OYIS should not be shared without the person’s permission except in exceptional circumstances.

Such exceptional circumstances will include:

The Child Protection Team (including counselors) will:

Wellbeing of the Reporter and Student

School counselors will follow up with the student to support their wellbeing.  Follow up may include:

The school counselor/s will, as much as is feasible, check in with reporters to ensure their wellbeing is maintained. As stated before, the Child Protection Team/Counselors are limited in their access to information as well.


Child Protection and Safety Protection Officer  (Whole School)

Ms. Eriko Wada,  Business Manager  

eriko-wada@oyis.org

PYP Child Protection and Safety Committee

Mr. Dwayne Primeau, PYP Principal

dwayne-primeau@oyis.org

Cell: 08042359913

Mr. Morris Mandarino, PYP Student Support Coordinator

morris-mandarino@oyis.org

MYP/DP  Child Protection and Safety Committee

Mr. Mark Beales,  MYP/DP Principal

mark-beales@oyis.org

Cell: 070 1212 3797

Ms. Yuki  Ban, MYP/DP Counselor

yuki-ban@oyis.org 

Mr. Kiyokazu Shoji, Director of Operations

kiyokazu-shoji@oyis.org

Ms. Ayako Muramoto, MYP/DP Business Manager  

ayako-muramoto@oyis.org

Mr. Andrew Usher, External Programme Coordinator

andy-usher@oyis.org

All reports of suspected or disclosed abuse and any actions taken by the school are securely archived, regardless of the conclusions reached.

2.3 Principles and Guidelines for Disclosure

The following principles are considered when implementing procedures for disclosure, reporting, and further action:

For example, teachers are not trained investigators or therapists. Therefore, our international school must make use of any local community partnerships, and engage consultants with particular expertise in child safeguarding and protection services, whenever needed.

Please note: teachers are not investigators. Your role is to listen and respond to disclosures in order to determine the next step for students to get the help they need. When appropriate, a request for an investigation must be completed.

2.3.1 What to do if a Child Discloses Abuse

it and handle it immediately by contacting the school’s Child Protection Team. The team should decide on an appropriate plan for the child. DO NOT take the child home with you!

appropriate, to local authorities.

Osaka YMCA International School

Code of conduct : Statement of Acknowledgement

Acknowledgement of Osak\a YMCA’s Child Protection Policy and Code of Conduct:

I, _________________________________________ acknowledge that I have read and that I understand Osaka YMCA’s Child Protection Policy and Code of Conduct. I agree that in the course of my association with Osaka YMCA, I will follow this Code of Conduct. I will never:

I acknowledge that I must comply with the mandatory reporting regulations of Osaka YMCA and report any concerns, suspicions or certainties about possible abuse or maltreatment of a student in accordance with the general procedures of Osaka YMCA’s Child Protection Policy. I acknowledge that I will cooperate fully in any investigation of the abuse of students. I understand that any action inconsistent with Osaka YMCA’s Code of Conduct, or failure to take action mandated by the Code of Conduct, may result in disciplinary action, including termination of contract.

Name: ____________________________

Signature: _________________________

Date: _____________________________

大阪ＹＭＣＡインターナショナルスクール

行動規範：同意書（日本語版）

「大阪ＹＭＣＡの生徒保護方針と行動規範」

私、                          は大阪YMCAの生徒保護方針と行動規範を読み、理解し、大阪YMCAの行動規範に従うことに同意し、以下を遵守することを誓います。

私は、大阪YMCAの義務的な報告規定を遵守し、大阪YMCAの児童保護方針の一般的手続きに従い、生徒の虐待の可能性についての懸念、疑惑や確信について報告しなければならないことを承知します。 私は、生徒の虐待に関するあらゆる調査に全面的に協力することを承知します。 私は、大阪YMCAの行動規範と矛盾する行動を取る、または行動規範に定められた行動を怠った場合は契約の終了を含む懲戒処分が行われる可能性があることを理解しています。

氏名:                         印

日付:        年   月   日

Community Awareness

3.3 Letter to Parents

Dear parents and caregivers,

I am writing to inform you of a matter that is of sincere personal interest to me and is one that I hope is of utmost importance to all of you. I would like you to know that Osaka YMCA International School has adopted a Child Protection Policy to guide our staff and families in matters related to the health, safety and care of children in attendance at our school. In fact, I am required by this policy to send this letter to parents at the beginning of each school year. Thus with this letter not only am I fulfilling my assigned duties; I also have the opportunity to write to you about this important aspect of our school’s program.

Osaka YMCA International School Child Protection Policy is based on Japanese and international law and on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child of which Japan is a signatory. These two key articles from the U.N Convention on the Rights of the Child are important and we wish to draw your attention to them:

Article 19 - Protection from abuse and neglect

The State shall protect the child from all forms of maltreatment by parents or others responsible for the care of the child and establish appropriate social programs for the prevention of abuse and the treatment of victims.

Article 34 - Sexual exploitation

The State shall protect children from sexual exploitation and abuse, including prostitution and involvement in pornography.

By enrolling your child at Osaka YMCA International School, you agree to work in partnership with the school and abide by the policies adopted by the Osaka YMCA International School administration. All of us at Osaka YMCA International School want you to know that we genuinely value our partnership with you in providing for the safety and care of your children. It is for this reason that Osaka YMCA International School has endorsed a Child Protection Policy that defines the standards by which all students should be treated with respect and dignity at all times.

As part of our overall educational programs and specific to our shared responsibility to educate children and to ensure a safe environment in which all children can learn and grow Osaka YMCA International School will:

  1. Provide age appropriate lessons for all grade levels to help students understand personal safety, needs and rights.
  2. Provide parent materials and information sessions to help you better understand our programs and policy.
  3. Annually train faculty and staff to recognize and report issues of abuse and neglect.

Let’s work together at home and school to ensure that our children are safe and are knowledgeable about their rights and responsibilities to themselves and to each other so they can grow and learn free of fear in a safe and supportive environment. I thank you for your support of our efforts and invite you to contact your school counselor or principal regarding any specific questions you may have in this regard.

Sincerely,

(Name)

Visitors/Volunteers Code of Conduct

Aligned with the recommendations of the International Task Force on Child Protection, we hold ourselves to a high standard of effective recruiting and volunteer practices with careful attention to our community safeguarding.

Due to these safeguarding requirements, this policy and procedures will apply to all persons associated with Osaka YMCA International School (OYIS) including but not limited to all employees, staff, teachers, visitors, volunteers, students, and persons interacting with OYIS students.

Refer to this form for the full version of the Visitors/Volunteers Code of Conduct

Bibliography

Date of next review:

April 2023

OYIS Student Cheat Sheet for Self-Protection and Awareness

1. Know Your Rights:

2. Recognize the Signs of Abuse:

3. Safe Communication:

4. Report Concerns Immediately:

5. Digital Safety:

6. During School Activities:

7. Understand Boundaries:

8. Peer Interaction:

9. Emergency Procedures:

10. Personal Wellbeing:

OYIS Student Cheat Sheet for Self-Protection and Awareness