We’d like to say a big hello to Children Change Colombia, and welcome them to our KCS members’ network. We are really looking forward to working with them on their child safeguarding measures.
Children Change Colombia support, empower and protect children and young people that are survivors or are at risk of the most neglected issues in Colombia, by strengthening local grassroots to positively impact their communities and defend their rights in the long term.
As always, we like to post a news story about new members, and promote the organisation amongst the KCS network and online following.
By Angela Carreno, Executive Director:
What made you decide to join the KCS members’ network?
At Children Change Colombia, we work to protect Colombia’s most at-risk children from a range of threats, including sexual abuse, labour exploitation, and recruitment into illegal armed groups. These children come from low-income families, in rural or marginalised areas. Alongside our local partners, we owe a great responsibility to the children we work with to keep them safe and protected. The nature of our work means that it is imperative that we uphold the highest possible standards for child safeguarding. Joining the Keeping Children Safe International Network will grant us access to the latest resources and advice on how to implement rigorous child safeguarding measures, and allow us to connect with organisations across the world to share experiences and learn from each other’s challenges.
What is your key driver to implementing child safeguarding?
At Children Change Colombia, one of our primary goals is to defend children’s rights by keeping them safe from immediate harm and protecting them in the long term. We work with a range of groups, including local partner organisations, parents, teachers, community leaders and policymakers to achieve this goal. It is imperative that safeguarding forms a bedrock of all the work we do, and that everyone who works for and with Children Change Colombia has a firm understanding of how to handle and report concerns of harm, abuse and neglect.
Where do you think your organisation will be regarding child safeguarding in a year?
In a year we will have enhanced our safeguarding practices and governance processes, through updated policies, reporting mechanisms and due diligence processes. In Colombia safeguarding is a relatively new topic, and there are far fewer resources available for organisations on the ground to take advantage of. Through our partnership with KCS, we hope that by next year we will have improved our safeguarding implementation so that our partner organisations have the support they need to implement rigorous safeguarding measures, as well as a clear understanding of how to report concerns in a manner that prioritises the safety and privacy of the child. We hope to have established a safeguarding network with our partners, which enables us to swiftly and effectively tackle any threats to children’s safety that may arise.
What message do you want to tell your staff, donors and the wider world?
Ensuring that Children Change Colombia is up upholding and implementing rigorous safeguarding measures is at the top of our agenda, and we aim to be as transparent about this process as possible. If you have any questions about our policies or would like to raise a concern with our dedicated Safeguarding Team, please contact sf@childrenchangecolombia.org.