Last Updated: 26th October 2026
Next review: 26.10.2027
Policy owner: Kerry Kidd, designated safeguarding lead
Senior safeguarding lead: Kerry Kidd, sole director (RaspiKidd has no deputy)
Safeguarding Policy
1. Purpose and scope
RaspiKidd runs beginner micro:bit coding workshops for children aged 8 to 16 in Perth. This policy sets out how we keep children safe during those workshops, and what to do if we have a concern about a child's welfare or safety.
The purpose of this policy is:
- To protect children who take part in RaspiKidd workshops from harm
- To give everyone involved, including parents, guardians and children, a clear understanding of how we approach safeguarding and child protection
This policy applies to Kerry Kidd, anyone who helps with a session (including any volunteer), and to parents and guardians who attend. It covers the sessions at Perth Creative Exchange, Stormont Street, Perth. Online activities connected to the workshops, photos and videos, and communication with children and families.
2. Definitions
Safeguarding: means the actions we take to promote the welfare of children and protect them from harm. This includes protecting children from abuse and neglect, preventing harm to their health and development, and making sure they have safe and effective care.
Child protection: is part of safeguarding. It focuses on children who are suffering, or are likely to suffer, significant harm, and on the procedures that tell us how to respond to concerns about them.
3. Legal and policy framework
This policy is based on the law and guidance that protects children in Scotland, including:
- The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child
- The Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014
- The Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007
- The Equality Act 2010
- The UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018
- The National Guidance for Child Protection in Scotland 2021
4. Our beliefs
We believe that:
- Children should never experience abuse of any kind
- The Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014
- We have a responsibility to promote the welfare of all children, to keep them safe, and to work in a way that protects them
- The welfare of the child is always the most important consideration
- All children, regardless of age, disability, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or family circumstances, have an equal right to protection
- Some children are additionally vulnerable, for example because of previous experiences, their level of dependency, or communication or additional support needs, and they may need extra safeguards
5. How we keep children safe
We will:
- Value, listen to and respect every child.
- Make sure every child is supported in a way that suits their needs, including children with disabilities or additional support needs.
- Take a register at every session, including who arrives and who collects each child.
- Attendance is agreed when the place is booked, and the questionnaire is collected before or at the first session.
- Keep health, allergy and emergency information secure, and share it only with people who need it to keep a child safe.
- Make sure parents and children know where to go for help if they have a concern.
- Share concerns with the agencies who need to know, and involve parents and children appropriately.
- Review this policy at least once a year, and after any incident or significant change.
6. Supervision and ratios
- Kerry Kidd supervises every session.
- The ratio is one adult to up to eight children. Parents who stay are not counted as supervisors, but they help keep the group safe.
- If numbers increase beyond eight, a second adult must be approved and present before the session continues. If Kerry is unable to supervise a session, the session will not run, and parents will be told as soon as possible under our cancellation policy.
- If Kerry needs to leave the room, the session is paused, or a parent who has agreed to stay remains with the group. A child is never left alone with no adult present.
- Parents may stay. They are asked to sit in the seating area set aside for them, and to follow the terms of booking. Kerry Kidd is the only adult on site during sessions. A named person outside the building knows the session times and is contacted at the start and end of each session. If Kerry Kidd needs to leave the building during a session, the session stops, and the children are collected by their parents or named adults.
- The workshop laptops are used for the workshop activities only, and screens are kept visible to the supervisor.
7. Collection and leaving the session
- Children aged 8 to 11 are collected by a parent, guardian or named adult.
- Young people aged 12 to 16 can leave alone at the end of a session only if the welcome questionnaire confirms this.
- If numbers increase beyond eight, a second adult must be approved and present before the session continues. If Kerry is unable to supervise a session, the session will not run, and parents will be told as soon as possible under our cancellation policy.
- If a child has not been collected 15 minutes after the session ends, we will contact the emergency contact on the questionnaire, and then the parent or guardian.
- We do not give children lifts, meet them outside the workshops, or take them anywhere alone. Building access is arranged so that parents can enter at the start and end of each session, and external doors are kept closed once everyone is inside.
8. Adults' conduct and one-to-one contact
Adults involved in the workshops will:
- Treat every child with respect, and be fair and patient.
- Never use physical punishment, threats, humiliation or bullying.
- Avoid being alone with a child, and make sure any one-to-one conversation can be seen or heard by another adult where possible.
- If a child has not been collected 15 minutes after the session ends, we will contact the emergency contact on the questionnaire, and then the parent or guardian.
- Not message children directly, share personal contact details with them, or connect with them on social media.
- Not give children gifts or favours that could be seen as special treatment.
- Not make inappropriate or unnecessary physical contact, or use language or make suggestions that are inappropriate or sexually provocative.
- Not spend time alone with a child, including online, take a child in a car, or visit a child at home.
- Not promise a child absolute confidentiality, as we have a duty to report concerns.
- Not take photos or videos of children unless the photo permission conditions are met.
- Report any concern about the conduct of an adult, including themselves, to the designated safeguarding lead. If the concern is about the designated lead, follow section 12.
9. Recognising a concern
A concern may be something a child says or does, something a parent tells us, or something we notice ourselves. Signs can include:
- A child saying something that worries them, or hinting at harm.
- Unexplained injuries, or a child who is unusually anxious, withdrawn, or fearful.
- A child who is reluctant to go home, or who arrives or leaves in a way that concerns us.
- A child who has been sent or shown something online that worries them.
- Concern about the behaviour of an adult towards a child.
The main categories of abuse are physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse and neglect. No single sign proves that a child is being harmed. Any concern should be taken seriously and recorded.
10. Responding to a disclosure
- Stay calm, and listen carefully.
- Don't ask leading questions, and don't investigate.
- Reassure the child that they have done the right thing by telling you, and that you will try to help.
- Don't promise to keep the information secret, and don't ask probing questions.
- Write down what the child said as soon as possible, using their own words where you can. Include who the child is, when it happened, what was said, what you did next, and who you reported it to. Don't assume or add detail to your notes.
11. Reporting a concern
- If a child is in immediate danger, or someone is seriously hurt, call 999.
- For a non-emergency concern about a child, contact Perth and Kinross Council's Children's Social Work team: 01738 476 768 24-hour line.
- For a concern about a crime, or for police advice, contact Police Scotland on 101, or 999 in an emergency.
- As a STEM Ambassador, also inform the STEM Learning Safeguarding team at [email protected] as soon as possible. For advice about a concern, the NSPCC Helpline is 0808 800 5000. Childline is 0800 1111 for children and young people themselves.
Do not wait for proof before reporting a concern. You don't need to be certain, and it is not your job to investigate.
12. Concerns about an adult
If a concern is about Kerry Kidd, or about any adult involved in the workshops:
- Report it straight away to the local children's social work team, or to Police Scotland (999 in an emergency) if a child is at immediate risk. RaspiKidd has no deputy, so there is no internal lead to report to.
- For a non-emergency concern about a child, contact Perth and Kinross Council's Children's Social Work team: 01738 476 768 24-hour line.
- Do not investigate the concern yourself, or discuss it with the person concerned.
- The concern will be handled through the local authority's allegations procedure, and the adult will be asked to step back from the workshops while it is considered.
13. Working with parents
- Where it is safe to do so, and where it will not put the child at risk, we will tell parents or guardians about a concern.
- Some concerns must be passed to the local authority or the police before we speak to parents. Follow the advice of the agency you have contacted.
14. Recording and information sharing
- Keep a written record of every concern, including what was seen or heard, the action taken, and who was informed. Use the concern record form.
- Store records securely, and share them only with people who need to know, or where the law requires it.
- Records are kept until the child is 25, as set out in the privacy notice, and then securely destroyed.
15. Online safety
- Workshop laptops are used for the workshop activities only, and are set up to open the workshop pages.
- Children are told to speak to the supervisor straight away if anything online worries them.
- Accounts are optional and need a parent's agreement. Children are not asked to create accounts. Where a parent wants their child to have a MakeCode account, we will set it up together at the first session, with the parent present and agreeing.
- Accounts are set up by the supervisor, using the parent's or child's own email address, and not a shared workshop login.
- Children can take their project home without an account, by downloading the project file at the end of the session.
- Any account used on a workshop laptop is signed out and removed from the laptop after each session.
- Children are not asked to share personal information, passwords or photos online during the workshops.
16. Photos and videos
- We take and use photos and videos of children only where a parent or guardian has given written permission on the photo permission form.
- We do not take photos on personal devices unless this has been agreed in advance.
- We do not name a child next to a photo without permission.
- Photo storage and use are explained in the privacy notice .
17. Behaviour, anti-bullying and complaints
- Children are expected to listen to instructions, treat equipment and other people with respect, and tell the supervisor if they feel unwell or worried.
- Bullying of any kind is not tolerated. If bullying happens, the supervisor will stop it, support the children involved, and tell the parents or guardians.
- Parents who have a complaint about a session should contact us at [email protected] . We will respond within 48 hours.
18. Health, first aid and emergencies
- We keep health and emergency information secure and share it only with people who need it to keep a child safe.
- Kerry Kidd keeps a first aid kit and an accident log at each session, and knows where the first aid kit and fire exits are. No venue staff are on site, so Kerry Kidd is the only first aider present.
- Any accident or injury is recorded, and parents are told the same day.
19. Venue policy
No venue staff are on site during RaspiKidd sessions, and this policy applies in full. The venue has not provided a safeguarding policy at the time of writing. Because venue staff are not present, the venue cannot act as a contact for safeguarding concerns during sessions.
20. Training and support
- Kerry Kidd holds a PVG membership through the STEM Ambassador programme.
- Kerry Kidd completed the Raspberry Pi Foundation Safeguarding course (Training Hub, one hour, certificate issued on completion) on 29.10.2026. The certificate is kept on file.
- RaspiKidd has no deputy. Any other adult who helps with a session must complete the Raspberry Pi Foundation Safeguarding course, or equivalent safeguarding training, and be approved by Kerry Kidd before the session. RaspiKidd records completion dates.
- This policy is shared with parents through the welcome email, is published on the RaspiKidd website, and is available on request.
21. Contacts
- Designated safeguarding lead: Kerry Kidd, 07848 692 935 / [email protected]
- Deputy safeguarding lead: none (sole director)
- Senior lead for safeguarding and child protection: Kerry Kidd, sole director
- NSPCC Helpline: 0808 800 5000
- Childline: 0800 1111
- Police Scotland: 101 (999 in an emergency)