Safeguarding and Policies

Keeping everyone safe.

Middleton band are serious about safeguarding and take every opportunity to ensure we provide a safe and enjoyable environment for all our members, in particular, our youth members and any vulnerable members and are firmly committed to ensuring safe working practices.

We are delighted to be Brass Bands England's 'Band Safe'  certified. Band safe involved ongoing and safeguarding training to ensure that our policies and procedures are fit for purpose and in place to minimise risks to the members and integrity of the Band. 

We have also been working on Rochdale Borough Safeguarding Children ‘Safe After School’ campaign which is designed to help parents to ask the right questions to enable them to select suitable and safe providers for out of school activities for their children.

In addition to the excellent safeguarding training and certification we have received through Band Safe, our tutors have also received training in a range of areas including First Aid, Health & Safety, Fire Safety, Safeguarding, Child Exploitation to name but a few.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I watch a session my child is attending?

  • Absolutely! Parents are extremely welcome to stay and observe all our band sessions and instrumental lessons taking place – many of our parents regularly stay to watch and will make you feel very welcome at any rehearsal. Parents who also play brass are welcome to sit in and play with our groups too – it really helps the youngsters to have adult role models and banding is truly a family hobby.
  • From September 2020, we are opening up our beginner group to adults too. Parents will be invited to learn to play alongside their children. We feel that both parents and children learning together will really benefit both the children and their parents.
  • If your child is performing in a concert with us, we actively encourage you to bring family and friends to enjoy the performance too!

What safeguarding policy do you have in place?

We have a comprehensive safeguarding policy which also includes:

  •  Anti-bullying, e-safety and whistleblowing.
  • Our comprehensive risk assessment which is designed to minimise potential risks to the health and safety of all our members, but in particular youth and vulnerable members.
  • Our code of conduct for all members, parents, and adults and youth volunteers who work with youth members.

What safe working practices do you have in place?

  • We thoroughly vet the staff and volunteers who regularly work directly with youth members. This includes reference checks, qualification verification and DBS checks through to ongoing professional development including safeguarding training.
  • We complete DBS checks for all adults who regularly play in or assist with any of our 'youth' groups.
  • We have developed a policy for young volunteers to ensure the highest standards of safe working practices.
  • We keep a record of audiovisual consent for all our members to ensure that no images or video footage of children are used for publicity purposes without prior consent. Audiovisual consent is sought as part of the registration process.
  • We keep a register of members at each rehearsal and engagements in case of emergencies.
  • We keep a record of emergency contact information for youth members and a record of any medical information we may need to be aware of to keep members safe. (All the information about members that we hold is in compliance with current GDPR legislation, our full policy on data protection can be found here.)
  • We have several first aiders available at each rehearsal and at concerts as well as a fully stocked first aid kit and accident book.
  • We are fully compliant with Child Performance Licensing, all our upcoming performances are covered by Individual performance licenses or a  Body of Persons Approval (BOPA) license from either Rochdale Council or Brass Bands England.

I would like more information about what to expect when my child joins the band

  • We have a welcome pack for new members and potential new members which explains in further detail how our organization operates.
  • We have a facebook page where you can see many of the exciting projects we are currently involved in. You can direct message us for more information via our page too, or you can email youthband@middletonband.com. To speak to someone about your child joining the youth band, please email, call, or text message our youth band manager, Louise, at Youthband@middletonband.com 07944396136 (please call outside of school hours) who will be delighted to answer any questions you may have and provide any information that you require.

I have questions or would like to raise a concern

  • We are only too happy to discuss any questions or concerns that any of our current members, prospective members or their families have, however big or small. If possible, in the first instance please speak to Louise Crane or any of the tutors directly who will be able to answer any queries or concerns that you have or will direct you to someone who can help. You can also message the youth band department manager Louise directly via email to middbandwebmaster@gmail.com at any time or by phone 07944396136 outside of school hours.
  • If your concern is of a safeguarding nature, please consult our full safeguarding policy or one page safeguarding flow chart to determine the best course of action to take.
  • Our full charitable organization is managed by a committee, to speak to a member of the management committee, in the first instance please contact the band secretary Aaron who will be able to assist you: secretary@middletonband.com or 0161 375 1816
  • If your query or concern is not urgent or you would like to provide general feedback to the band committee, you can complete our online feedback form here. Our data privacy policy for information provided on the online form is here.