Safeguarding at The Youth Cafe: Our policies and how to report a concern

The Youth Cafe is committed to preventing and responding to any form of sexual harassment, exploitation, and abuse (as well as child abuse and abuse of adults at-risk), whether carried out by staff/representatives or resulting from our work.

Our Safeguarding Policy outlines our commitment to protecting anyone who comes into contact with The Youth Cafe from sexual harassment, exploitation, and abuse in all its forms. The Youth Cafe recognizes that these harms are gross human rights violations rooted in an imbalance of power, particularly gendered and sexualized abuses of power. This Policy is supported by the Child Safeguarding Policy, Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) Policy, and Sexual Harassment, Exploitation, and Abuse (SHEA) at Work Policy.

The Youth Cafe is committed to:

• Creating an organizational culture that upholds the rights and dignity of all;

• Building a survivor-centered approach that prioritizes the voice and rights of survivors;

• Promoting an intersectional positive youth development approach that recognizes the impact of sexual violence on people of different ethnicities, religions, races, classes, and abilities;

• Responding to all allegations of sexual harassment, exploitation, and abuse;

• Embedding our SHEA and Safeguarding approach into every aspect of our work.

We all have a responsibility to:

• Uphold the rights and dignity of everyone we come into contact with through our work;

• Build a work culture that ensures that people who come into contact with The Youth Cafe are not simply safe from harm but safe to realize their rights and be active agents of change;

• Report if we believe someone has experienced or is at risk of experiencing harm. In line with our survivor-centered approach, staff do not have to report something they have experienced themselves and can decide if, when, and how they report it;

• Embed these policies by ensuring our work incorporates safer recruitment, programming, risk assessments, and other recommended practices.

If you have any questions about these policies or want to report a Safeguarding concern, please contact the regional Safeguarding Team at safeguarding@theyouthcafe.com.