Safeguarding and complaints

We want our educational activities to be welcoming and safe. If you have a safeguarding concern or wish to make a complaint about the charity, contact us using the details below. If someone is in immediate danger, call 999.

Last reviewed: [10/20/2026]. Approved by the trustees: [date, only if the trustees confirm adoption].

Safeguarding

Our approach

[Trustees to supply their approved statement. Suggested wording for their review: “GFY Shelters CIO is committed to the safety and wellbeing of everyone who takes part in our educational activities. Our trustees are responsible for safeguarding.”]

How to raise a safeguarding concern

Contact [role or title of approved contact, e.g. “our safeguarding contact”] by:

If your concern is about the contact person above

Contact [name and role of alternative trustee, approved by the board] by:

  • Email: [address]
  • Telephone: [number]

How a concern is handled

[Trustees to supply their approved procedure. It should cover who receives the concern, how it is recorded, how it is assessed, when it is referred to the local authority, police or other relevant bodies, and how confidentiality is handled.]

In an emergency

If someone is in immediate danger, call 999. Concerns about a child or adult at risk may also be reported to your local council’s safeguarding team.

Complaints

How to make a complaint

If you are unhappy with the charity, its trustees or any of our activities, please tell us. Contact [role or title of approved complaints contact] by:

If your complaint is about the contact person above, write to [alternative trustee name and role, approved by the board].

How complaints are reviewed

[Trustees to supply their approved process. It should cover acknowledgement, who reviews the complaint, whether an escalation step exists, and how the outcome is communicated. Do not state response deadlines unless the trustees have formally approved them.]

Other routes

If you are not satisfied with how we have handled a complaint, you can contact the Charity Commission for England and Wales. It does not usually investigate individual complaints about a charity’s service, but it can consider concerns about how a charity is run. [Trustees to confirm wording.]

Urgent help

GFY Shelters does not offer emergency accommodation or an emergency-relief service. For urgent housing assistance, contact your local council. Call 999 if there is immediate danger.