Our commitment tochange in safeguarding

Our approach to tackling sexual exploitation,
abuse and sexual harassment in the aid sector

2Introduction / contents

Introducing
our approach toputting people first
The mission of civil society
organisations undertaking
international development andhumanitarian work is to build afairer world, free from poverty,
inequality and injustice. Thisdefines who we are and makes
our sector unique.
Central to that mission is respect for the safety,
wellbeing and rights of the communities
we seek to serve – wherever they are in theworld and whatever the humanitarian ordevelopment challenges. Respect means that
we will not tolerate sexual exploitation, abuseor harassment in any form, and that we arecommitted to putting the voices, rights andsupport of victims and survivors at the heart ofour approach.
Sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment are
fundamentally about gender inequality andpower imbalance, and a profound effort will beneeded if we are to ensure systemic and lasting
cultural change. This change will be rooted
in respecting and upholding the rights of thepeople we aim to serve, our partners, our staff,
volunteers and trustees.
In doing so, civil society organisations will
ensure that they implement the highest
standards on safeguarding, built around asurvivor-centred approach and an organisational
culture that aims to prevent abuse in thefirst place, but which responds quickly andthoroughly when it does happen. The additionalrisks associated with humanitarian interventions
in conflict-afflicted, fragile states need particular
recognition and distinctive approaches.

Many organisations have well-developed
safeguarding approaches in place and ourwork over the last few months builds on that
established good practice. However, driving
up the consistency and quality of our practiceacross the board requires collective action
and sector-wide solutions. This is what thecommitments and related actions set out below
aim to achieve.
We welcome the leadership the UK government
has shown on this issue and hope to see
continued support as the civil society sector
drives this agenda forwards. We are committed
to working with colleagues in the domestic
charity sectors, governments, donors,
academics, multilaterals, the private sector andcommunities to combat sexual exploitation,
abuse and sexual harassment in all its forms.
Every link in the chain of international
development and humanitarian assistancemust be strong and consistent when it comesto safeguarding and we will play an integral
part in ensuring that happens. This can only
be achieved in collaboration with our local
partners, whose knowledge and expertise isvital to understanding the different contexts
and norms in the countries where we work, andto developing relevant safeguarding responses
which protect individuals from harm.

Contents
Introduction / contents 2
Four key areas of safeguarding 3
Our commitments to change 4
Our approach to change 6
Further details of actions 11

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We are driving change
in four key areasof safeguarding*:

Survivor support andenhanced accountability

Minimum
standards

We will support survivors, victims andwhistleblowers, enhance accountability
and transparency, strengthen reporting
and tackle impunity.

We will agree minimum standards
and ensure we and our partners
meet them.

CulturalchangeOrganisational
capacity and capability

We will incentivise culturalchange through strong leadership,organisational accountability andbetter human resource processes.

We will strengthen organisational
capacity and capability, including
building the capability of
implementing partners to meetthe minimum standards.

*Aligned to the Department for International Development’s (DFID) four strategic shifts

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Our commitments
to change
Survivor support andenhanced accountability

1. We protect the

dignity and safety ofthe people our work
serves, respecting
their voice, agency
and choices, while
upholding theuniversal right tobe protected fromharm.

2. We ensure

victims andsurvivors ofsafeguarding
breaches are at
the heart of oursafeguarding
response.

3. We aretransparent about
our activities;
we will monitor
progress andwill publicly
demonstrate ourongoing efforts
to improvesafeguarding
practice.

Culturalchange5. Our boards and senior leaders

drive behaviours and attitudes
throughout our organisations,leading by example to nurture astrong safeguarding culture that
addresses structural inequalities
based on gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, sexuality and age.

6. We collaborate within andbeyond our sector to improve
employment practice, including
background checking, to minimise
opportunities for perpetrators’
access to our sector and to reduce
their ability to move between
organisations.

4. We work

towards consistent,
rigorous reportingand complaints
processes that are
gender-sensitive andsurvivor-centred, sothat the people weserve, our partners,
staff, volunteers
and trustees haveconfidence that wedeal with alleged
incidents swiftly andcomprehensively.

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Minimum
standards

7. We apply establishedgood practices and meet
recognised internationalsafeguarding standards,
working with others toensure they are inclusive andrelevant.

8. We work withgovernment, donors,
businesses, global civilsociety networks, local
partners and UK charities toadvance consistent and highquality safeguarding practiceworldwide.

9. We ensure oursafeguarding policies andpractices address the needs ofvulnerable groups, including
the different approaches
needed to protect thoseat risk by their identity or
circumstances, including
women, children and disabled
people.

Organisational
capacity and capability

10. We improvesafeguarding capabilities bybuilding the awareness andskills of our staff, volunteers
and trustees, while sharing
solutions and expertise so thewhole sector can do better.

11. We strive towards moreequal relationships between
organisations deliveringand receiving aid, where thelocal expertise of in-country
partners is respected, and weshare responsibility for highquality programme delivery
and keeping people safe.

12. We will test andscale innovative technology
solutions as a sector tostrengthen safeguarding
practice.

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Our approach
to change
To meet these commitments,
we as organisations will work
individually and collectively
through sector-wide solutions todeliver systemic change.
Our collective approach has been coordinatedby Bond, the UK network for more than 420
international development and humanitarianorganisations. Bond’s members work in morethan 200 countries worldwide towards the goalof eliminating poverty, inequality and injustice.
Civil society organisations have been reviewing
their approach to safeguarding and improving
their policies, procedures and practices. This
individual action is essential to preventing
sexual exploitation, abuse, harassment andbullying. Each organisation must ensure thatincidents are dealt with promptly and robustly
as they arise.
The actions below set out our approaches toimprove the quality and consistency of ourcollective safeguarding practices. Some of theexamples below demonstrate practical short or
medium-term actions already underway. Others
are about transforming our ways of working
and organisational culture over the long term
and will take time. Some actions apply to thewhole sector, while others provide examples ofwork by individual organisations.
Implementation of these commitments will
differ within organisations, depending oncontext, scope and remit. The proposedsolutions need to be adaptable to thediverse global contexts in which we work,
including rapid response emergencies, and toacknowledge the realities of local resource
and capacity constraints.

Comprehensively implementing andsustaining these approaches is a long-term
task that requires continuous effort and also
resources, which we look to donors to provide.
We will share the good practice that has longexisted in many charities, acknowledging that
this needs to be embedded more consistently
across the sector.
We note that increasing our efforts to protect
people from harm and ensure people feelable to raise concerns is likely to lead to anincrease in reporting in the short term. This isa sign that the system is being strengthened
and we expect to see fewer incidents as aresult in the longer term.
The 34 actions that follow each fall under our
12 commitments to change. Further details ofeach action can be found in the next sectionof this document. These commitments will
become part of the Bond Charter, which forms
the common vision, purpose, values andprinciples of the Bond network.

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1. Protecting the dignity andsafety of the people our work
serves•••Build contextually and culturally relevant
feedback mechanisms into programme
design and delivery, using the set ofprinciples on designing and runningaccountable feedback.1
Share findings from a pilot on how
community feedback can be used at
different stages of decision-making.2
Continue to explore developing aparticipation hub with DFID and other donors
to ensure workable feedback mechanisms
are used widely and effectively.3

3. Being transparent andsharing progress•••

Disclose all safeguarding concerns andincidents to the appropriate regulatory
bodies.6
Track and report on changes to our policies
and practices over time within organisations
and explore a means of monitoring sector
progress as a whole.7
Carry out an annual survey with Bondmembers to analyse the investment andresources that Bond members put into
safeguarding, and share findings.8

4. Rigorous and inclusive
2. Ensuring victims andsurvivors are central to oursafeguarding response••

Explore options for joint support services incountry for survivors of sexual exploitation
and abuse, including recognising the valueof survivor advocates in organisations.4
Collate and share resources on survivor
support approaches and use learningfrom survivor experiences to continuously
improve safeguarding support.5

reporting and complaints
processes••

Develop and use a toolkit on good practicein reporting and complaints mechanisms,
based on the safety, protection and supportof survivors and whistle-blowers.9
Standardise sector practice on reporting
safeguarding results to the Charity
Commission and the public by implementing
revised guidance on annual reports. Callfor an increase in the capacity of theCommission to monitor incidents andsupport improvement.10

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5. Driving cultural change
and addressing structuralinequalities from the top
•

•

•

•

•

Commit our leaders and organisations
to a shared and understood standardof behaviour, which challenges cultures
conducive to abuses, and hold them toaccount against this standard.11
Identify areas where further research on thedrivers for sexual exploitation and abusein different cultural contexts would be
beneficial, and work with DFID and acrossthe sector to commission and learn fromthis research.
Develop diagnostic and benchmarking
tools that support organisations to assessorganisational culture against indicators ofan effective safeguarding culture.12
Share resources, toolkits and frameworks
on working towards equitable, gender-justorganisations, and implement good practice
to change organisational culture and theinappropriate exercise of power.13
Develop and act in accordance with goodpractice guidance on governance to improveand standardise practice across the sector.14

6. Collaborating to improve
employment practice•••Develop a consistent approach toreferencing across the sector, providing
guidance on what recruiting organisations
should ask for and what referees should
disclose, including guidance and legal
opinion on how to handle the range ofjurisdictions and legal frameworks within
which we work.15
Review the scope and definitions ofregulated activity under UK legislationand develop proposals to government on
a wider definition of regulated activity for
employees working in key humanitarianand development roles, to improve preemployment background checking throughthe Disclosure and Barring Service.16
Collaborate with government and key
agencies to ensure that an appropriate levelof background checking can be carried out
globally.17

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7. Applying internationallyrecognised standards andpractices
•
•

•

•

Adopt and adhere to recognised
safeguarding standards as relevant to ourorganisations.18
Review and update our organisationalsafeguarding policies, including taking arisk management approach in-line withgood practice, to minimise the likelihood ofsafeguarding breaches.19

Through Bond, collaborate with peer civilsociety networks and global platforms to help
strengthen local civil society organisations’safeguarding responses and capabilities.22
Help our partners to meet minimum
standards by sharing policies, training
materials and supporting theirimplementation.

9. Ensuring policies andpractices address vulnerable
groups’ needs

8. Collaborating with othersectors to advance global
safeguarding practice••Engage with and provide feedback to DFID
and other donors, the UN and the private
sector to align approaches and help ensure
due diligence and other harmonisation efforts
are fit for purpose in diverse contexts.20
Continue to collaborate with UK voluntary
sector bodies and the Charity Commission
to ensure alignment where possible with UK
charities and established good safeguarding
practice from health, social care and childprotection.21•

Recognise and implement the different
approaches needed to protect vulnerable
groups such as children and people withdisabilities.23

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10. Improving and sharing

11. Equal relationships••

expertise of staff, volunteers
and trustees

•

•

•
•

Convene four UK NGO working groups on
safeguarding, who have analysed current
challenges and proposed possible solutions
in four thematic areas: accountability to thepeople we work with, organisational culture,
the employment cycle and reporting.24
Build on established good practice(including from the UK charity sector),ensuring resources, templates, policies
and procedures are widely shared acrossorganisations of all sizes, and regularly
update guidance and signposting on Bondwebsite.25
Enable access to training on goodsafeguarding practice that responds
sensitively to the specific power dynamics
and legal frameworks of the places we areworking in.26
Develop a consortium of partners andsecure resources for a universal, accredited,
self-guided online course on safeguarding.27
Come together as a sector at events andworkshops to share learning and expertise,and establish an online community ofpractice to enable the ongoing exchange ofideas, case studies, experiences (positive
and negative) and good practice.28

between organisationsdelivering and receiving aid•

Support improved local understanding of the
dynamics surrounding gender, diversity andunequal power relations to reduce the riskof potential exploitation and abuse.29
Support partner-led initiatives to strengthen
their safeguarding practice.30

12. Testing and scaling
innovative technology
solutions••

Explore how passporting or aid worker
registers could be developed to enhancevetting and rapid mobilisation of aid
workers for humanitarian interventions,using blockchain or other innovativetechnologies.31
Collaborate with innovators and technology
providers to test and potentially scale
applications which could enhance theefficiency, reliability or effectiveness of
safeguarding in our sector.32

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Further
details ofactions
Below are further details and timescales for the actions outlined in our approach tochange. These were updated in October 2020 to reflect progress since the commitments
were first made.
1. Eight principles for building trust through feedback
published by Bond Feedback and Accountability
Learning Group in September 2018.

11. Leadership tool has been finalised and is being
developed into a digital resource for publication in late2020.

2. DEC pilot in Bangladesh has been completed andthe report on Feedback utilization in the Rohingya
response has been published.

12. Culture indicators have been finalised and arebeing developed into a digital resource for publicationin late 2020.

3. Without dedicated funding to create a participationhub, this working group has engaged with the new
Safeguarding Resource and Support hub to increase
participation. Oxfam has published research on“Factors Influencing Misconduct Reporting” in three
countries (Ghana, Iraq, Myanmar) as well as a metaanalysis across all countries, to understand barriers
and preferences related to reporting.

13. Bond collates and shares resources on its website,and signposts equitable, gender-just organisations on
an ongoing basis.

4. Bond has engaged with members on in-country
safeguarding support services and provides an online
space for members to upload and share mappings ofin-country support services.
5. Bond collates and shares resources on website on
survivor support approaches and learning on an
ongoing basis. In April 2020, Bond published a casestudy on “Adopting a survivor led approach”, tofurther share learning.
6. Initial assurances provided to DFID in February/
March 2018. Bond signposts to regulators’
requirements on website and engages with Charity
Commission on updates to guidance.
7. Bond carried out the 3rd annual safeguarding
survey in July and August 2020 to track changes topolicy and practice of organisations. Bond continues
as part of the DFID cross-sector steering group(CSSG) and contributes to explore ways of monitoring
sector progress as a whole.
8. 3rd annual survey carried out in July and August2020.
9. Report-handling resources published in August 2019.
This includes a toolkit, case studies and definitions.
10. Good practice guide for trustees published in April
2019.

14. Good practice guide for trustees published in April
2019.
15. Inter-Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme isoperational. Bond is encouraging and facilitating
members to sign up to the scheme. In 2019, 2,600
checks were conducted, 36 people were not employed
as a result of information shared.
16. NGO working group has supported work on
improved background checking through the disclosure
barring service (DBS), by sharing examples of roles
that are currently not regulated activity. Further
engagement with the Home Office and DBS is requiredfor progressing this.
17. INTERPOL pilot project Soteria was launched in2019 and aims to stop perpetrators of sexual
exploitation, abuse and harassment from working in
the aid sector by establishing a new level ofcooperation between law enforcement agencies andnon-governmental organisations operatinginternationally.

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18. Such as Keeping Children Safe International Child
Safeguarding Standards, the Core HumanitarianStandard on Quality and Accountability and InterAgency Standing Committee Six Core Principles
Relating the Sexual Exploitation and Abuse. Bond is
signposting to relevant standards on website.
19. Individual organisations have reviewed andupdated their policies and practice as shown in Bondmember surveys carried out in July 2018, April 2019
and September 201920. Bond convenes the Funding and Commercial
Contracts working groups to feed back on the newcode of conduct for grants/contracts and due
diligence approaches and is engaging with DFID’s
Better Delivery Department.
21. Bond continues to regularly update DCMS, NCVO
and ACEVO on progress of the international NGO
sector’s work and engages with Charity Commission
on updates to guidance.
22. Bond has run joint webinars with Concord andForus in September 2018. Bond, together with
Forus, has set up a working group of national
sector platforms working on safeguarding to foster
collaboration and share experiences. The working
group organises regular webinars and shares
guidance, tools and resources on a shared online
space.
23. Upholding the Convention on the Rights of the Childand the Convention on the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities. Bond provides engagement opportunities
for members to share knowledge
and learning on needs of vulnerable groups andintersectionality, for example, in a breakout session at
the 2019 Bond Safeguarding for Development
Conference or by organising a cross-Bond groupmeeting on safeguarding, involving the Child Rights
Working Group, the Disability and Development groupand others.

24. Cross-sector working groups were established in
March 2018. Where work is ongoing, Bond members
remain actively engaged in driving forward proposedsolutions.
25. Bond collates and shares resources throughsignposts on website on an ongoing basis.
26. Bond signposts to specialist training providers on
website and provides training on Good Safeguarding
Practice, Managing Investigations and Safeguarding
governance for boards.
Bondhas provided safeguarding training to almost
900 individuals from over 280 organisations.
27. Safeguarding Essentials online course has beenlaunched in November 2019.
28. Bond provides opportunities for members to cometogether and share learning on an ongoing basis andthe Bond Safeguarding Group meets regularly. Recent
events and workshops included a large, sector-wide
Safeguarding for Development Conference inDecember 2019 and regular safeguarding groupwebinars.
29. Bond and NGO members have engaged with FCDO
on challenges around working effectively with partnerorganisations on safeguarding.
30. Partner-led solutions are essential for
improvements in safeguarding to be relevant to theircontext and sustained. Bond and members havedeveloped a change statement on “Safeguarding
in successful partnerships”, conveying how
the sector needs to move away from one-way
relationships and initiate a mindset shift about
working with partners. Bond is also signposting topartner-led initiatives, such as the South2South
Network.
31. Several NGOs are part of a steering group to
develop an Aid Worker Passport that will make itharder for perpetrators to move around the sector
undetected, whilst providing those who conduct
themselves appropriately with evidence of theiridentity and previous good conduct. Legal review andfeedback process has been concluded.
32. Current options being explored include an app toverify DBS checks, and Radius, a safe platform forfacilitated dialogue with vulnerable communities,
developed by On Our Radar.

Bond is the UK network for organisations
working in international development.
We unite and support a diverse network of over
400 civil society organisations to help eradicate
global poverty, inequality and injustice.
Find out more at bond.org.uk

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