Safeguarding Lead

Kent Fire and Rescue Service (KFRS) has an exciting opportunity available for a Safeguarding Lead to join our team in Maidstone. You will join us on a part-time, permanent basis, and in return, you will receive a competitive salary of £38,598 - £44,083 per annum pro rata.

Being a part of Kent Fire and Rescue Service

Everyone is unique. Everyone has value. Everyone helps to make Kent Fire and Rescue Service a great place to work. We are one team. Together with our customers, we are creating a safer future for Kent and Medway.

About the role:

As a Safeguarding Lead, you will be the designated person with primary responsibility for putting in place procedures to safeguard children and adults on behalf of KFRS. This is an important role in which you’ll need to be strategically minded, customer focused, with strong communication, negotiating and influencing skills. You will be working closely with colleagues internally and externally.

You will have experience of dealing with child and adult safeguarding concerns and a good working knowledge of good practice regarding services to those at risk of harm.

You will need to demonstrate the ability to make informed judgements, as well as acting with sensitivity and confidentiality.

As our Safeguarding Lead, you will be responsible for:

• Overseeing safeguarding responsibilities, decisions and procedures for the service – ensuring that processes are regularly reviewed and updated in order to reflect statutory requirements.
• Reporting and carrying out both internal/external audits, you will use findings to inform national best practice and share with senior leaders to shape service direction with regard to safeguarding.
• Providing detailed guidance on all aspects of safeguarding across the service including writing safeguarding policies and guidance, supporting colleagues across the service in the prevention, early identification and effective intervention for children and adults identified as at risk.

What we’re looking for in our Safeguarding Lead:

• Level 3 & 4 Safeguarding qualified
• An in-depth knowledge of safeguarding legislation and guidance and understand the roles of statutory agencies in safeguarding children and adults at risk
• Ability to take the lead and chair meetings internally and externally as a key decision maker
• Ability to organise resources to deliver strategic objectives, taking note of requirements, within recognised timescales. For example, the creation of robust training and guidance materials to support service wide safeguarding practices and protocols

Closing date: Friday 10th March 2023

Interviews will take place on 22nd, 24th or 27th March 2023

If you feel have the skills and experience to become our Safeguarding Lead please click ‘apply’ today, we’d love to hear from you!

Inclusion is at the heart of everything we do. We know that great minds don’t think alike, so we rely on diverse thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and backgrounds to create the best working environment that we can possibly offer.

Kent Fire and Rescue Service, its employees, and volunteers are committed to safeguarding, protecting, and supporting children, young people, and adults at risk. As part of our safer recruitment process, we will undertake pre-employment checks to verify your suitability for the role. These checks will include your references and a standard or enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check. Enhanced DBS check with barred lists are carried out for roles with direct and unsupervised access to children, young people, and adults at risk. Risk assessments will be undertaken on any disclosures identified as part of the pre-employment checks.

As a Public Sector organisation with added responsibilities under the Equality Act, 2010 the candidate must demonstrate an understanding of what is meant by Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion and how this fits in with their everyday work.