Safeguarding
Everyone who takes part in LDC Radio, on air, at the studio or at our events, should be safe. This is our policy and how to raise a concern.
Our commitment
LDC Radio believes that everyone who takes part in the station, and everyone who listens, has the right to be protected from harm, abuse and exploitation, whatever their age, disability, gender, race, religion or sexuality. We take every concern seriously and we will always put the safety of the person at risk first.
Who this policy covers
This policy applies to our directors, presenters and volunteers, and to the guests they bring to the studio. It covers children and young people under 18 and adults at risk who come into contact with LDC Radio, including LDC Introducing guests, people who text, message or enter competitions, and people at our events and outside broadcasts.
Our safeguarding contact
One of our directors is responsible for safeguarding. Email hello@ldcradio.co.uk with ‘Safeguarding’ in the subject line and a director will deal with it. Please do not report a concern through the studio WhatsApp or studio email: those are only for texts and shout-outs to the studio.
Young people taking part
- You must be 16 or over to present a show, sign a presenter agreement or book a guest slot on LDC Introducing. Our presenter joining form checks your date of birth.
- If you are 16 or 17, a parent or guardian must agree before we confirm an LDC Introducing slot or you sign a presenter agreement, and we will ask for their contact details. For an LDC Introducing slot, your parent or guardian must stay with you at the studio for the whole slot; presenters aged 16 or 17 are welcome to bring a parent or guardian with them.
- We only use a young person’s contact details to arrange their appearance on the station.
How we expect people to behave
- Every presenter and volunteer agrees to our volunteer agreement. It forbids threatening, bullying, intimidating or harassing anyone, verbally, sexually, physically or by other means, and forbids using station equipment for anything that could amount to grooming children or other crimes against minors. Breaking these rules is gross misconduct and leads to immediate suspension while the directors review what happened.
- Everyone at the studio signs in and out, and presenters are responsible for their guests while they are there.
- On air, presenters must follow the Ofcom Broadcasting Code, including Section One: Protecting the under-eighteens.
- Presenters and volunteers should not ask a listener under 18 for personal contact details, or contact them privately, outside the station’s own channels.
What happens when you raise a concern
A director will listen, keep a confidential record of what was reported and what was done, and share information only with people who need it to keep someone safe. Where a child or adult may be at risk of harm we will refer the concern to Leeds City Council or the police, and we may suspend a presenter or volunteer while it is looked into. If you raise a concern in good faith, you will not be treated unfairly for doing so.
Getting help straight away
- If someone is in immediate danger, call 999.
- To report a crime that is not an emergency, call the police on 101.
- Worried about a child in Leeds: call Children’s Social Work Services on 0113 222 4403 (Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm, Wednesdays from 10am). If it cannot wait until the next working day, call the Children’s Emergency Duty Team on 0113 535 0600. See Leeds City Council’s advice.
- Worried about an adult in Leeds: see Leeds City Council: worried about someone.
- If you are a young person and something has upset or scared you, you can talk to Childline free and in confidence on 0800 1111.
Reviewing this policy
Our directors review this policy at least once a year, and sooner if the law, our activities or the way we work change.