Safeguarding
Northern Ireland Fire & Rescue Service (NIFRS) is committed to the fundamental principles of Safeguarding.
What is Safeguarding?
Safeguarding is the term used to describe all of the measures NIFRS takes as an organisation to protect the health, safety and wellbeing of individuals, especially children and adults at risk.
- A child is anyone aged under 18 years of age.
- An adult at risk is anyone aged 18 years or over who could be at risk of harm due to their personal or environmental circumstances.
Our Role in Safeguarding
As an organisation, we recognise our responsibility to safeguard and promote the welfare of the community that we serve by ensuring that our training, policies and procedures, and reporting mechanisms are robust and fully support effective Safeguarding.
We believe that everyone has a fundamental right to be safe. Safeguarding is ‘everyone’s business’ and we should all strive to prevent harm to children and adults at risk from abuse, exploitation, and neglect.
Our Child Protection Policy and Adult Safeguarding Statement outline what abuse is, what our role is in protecting children and adults at risk, and how we report abuse.
As Chief Fire & Rescue Officer, I recognise that the protection and welfare of all members of the community is of paramount importance. As an organisation, we fully comply with all our legal obligations relating to safeguarding as well as the moral imperative of ensuring that in our role, we actively protect children, young people and adults from abuse and neglect. As an organisation, NIFRS is committed to working with partner agencies to effectively safeguard all our community.
Aidan Jennings
Chief Fire & Rescue Officer
NIFRS
Safeguarding Concern
If you have a concern relating to the code of conduct of a member of NIFRS Staff or Volunteer please get in touch using our Contact Us Form.
If you have an allegation of a criminal nature this should be reported to the PSNI using 999 or 101.
Safe Place
NIFRS has partnered with ONUS in supporting the Safe Place initiative which provides information for those affected by domestic abuse.
All of our Fire Service locations are designated Safe Places meaning that there will be information available at each site about what help and support is available.
We have also signed up to the Safe Place campaign pledge:
- Never commit, condone or remain silent about domestic abuse.
- Provide a Safe Place for anyone affected by domestic abuse to confidentially access information.
- Acknowledge domestic abuse is a problem that impacts on all of us as a society, and will be prepared to play our part in supporting victims and state clearly to perpetrators that we will not tolerate abuse in our community.
