Safeguarding of any child is our absolute priority
As a tour operator who deals with student and youth groups, the safeguarding of any child under the age of 18 years is our absolute priority. Every child should be and feel safe at all times and in all situations and protected from any form of physical, sexual or psychological abuse. Therefore, we have strict requirements and expectations of all our homestay suppliers regarding the safeguarding of children.
We insist that families fill in a declaration form that confirms they have no criminal offences against children.
By law all host families accepting paid guests must comply with fire, health and safety regulations.
All host families must be regularly checked and inspected, some of which should be un-announced visits.
Group leaders and drivers must not share a family with children from the same group or a different group.
We expect each child in our care to be treated without discrimination. We ask to be made aware of any medical and dietary requests as well as disabilities or mental health problems in order that we can provide appropriate care to that child. We expect a child in our care to be accommodated in a home with adequate natural light, space and heating and a home that is in a good state of repair and cleanliness. Each child must have a full sized single bed to sleep on and not a sofa bed, pull out bed or temporary solution. No child is expected to share a bed with another person whether they are an adult or child. We do not allow students of the opposite sex to share the same host family and our students must have adequate privacy from other members of the host family.
If we feel a child in any of our host families is not receiving appropriate care or they could be at risk, we will remove them immediately and move them to a new home.
All data we receive about a child is stored and used in line with current GDPR regulations. More about this can be found in our Privacy Policy.
Anyone who has any concerns over the welfare of a child being hosted or have worries or concerns over any family or adult who is responsible for a child, must take relevant action to safeguard any child(ren) that are in their care or may be in their care.
