Safeguarding Coordinator- National- Damascus

CHILD SAFEGUARDING:

Level 3:  the post holder will have contact with children and/or young people either frequently (e.g. once a week or more) or intensively (e.g. four days in one month or more or overnight) because they work country programs; or are visiting country programs; or because they are responsible for implementing the police checking/vetting process staff.

ROLE PURPOSE: 

Save the Children International is committed to strengthening our safeguarding work in humanitarian settings with robust mechanisms for prevention, disruption, and response, offering support to survivors, promoting a child safe environment, and holding those responsible for abuses to account. 

The Safeguarding Coordinator will proactively  lead the Safeguarding function embedded within our team, focusing on supporting and strengthening safeguarding at every stage within our operations, from ensuring safe programming to strengthening our partners’ capacities.

SCOPE OF ROLE: 

Reports to: Head of Safeguarding

Direct Report: N/A

Budget responsibility: N/A unless CSG budget available

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:

Policies and internal control mechanisms

• Ensure all staff has access to relevant safeguarding policies (CSG, PSEA, Anti-harassment etc.) and updated versions and provide interpretations as necessary
• In collaboration with HR Coordinator, ensure all  staff have signed copies of safeguarding policies in their employee folders
• Lead efforts to improve awareness and engagement on safeguarding issues among staff and partner staff through developing communications products and strategies
• Ensure SCI premises and offices have safeguarding visibility displayed
• Support sector leads and managers on cascading safeguarding requirements to their area of work
• Work collaboratively with sector leads and key partner staff to improve safeguarding risk management
• Ensure safeguarding committee meetings are taking place regularly, minutes of meetings are archived and shared with required parties
• Prepare and distribute safeguarding related reports 
• Prioritize the capacity building of partner focal points, provide them with related trainings and tools
• Identify potential tools and systems to develop a more effective way of working for safeguarding within our operation  

Safeguarding related capacity strengthening and inductions

• Ensure all staff receives necessary safeguarding inductions/trainings as per established guidelines and they are provided with regular refreshers accordingly 
• Keep track of mandatory trainings tracker and suggest conducting of safeguarding trainings when there are new staff or staff with refresher training needs
• Coordinate organizing of safeguarding trainings, keep attendance reports and share with HR for their archiving
• Ensure specific training needs e in regard to making sure that safeguarding risks and concerns are responded in a timely manner (e.g. trainings to service providers, suppliers, etc.)
• Keep safeguarding training materials relevant, up to date and interactive
• Support other offices or countries in the region with their safeguarding training needs as necessary
• Actively identify safeguarding related capacity strengthening needs of staff and partners and address them accordingly
• In close collaboration with sector leads, develop sector specific safe programming materials and trainings
• Support ‘lessons learnt’ process for humanitarian safeguarding

Safeguarding related capacity strengthening of partners

• Participate in partnership assessment process and provide input to Partnership Assessment Tools (PAT) of any new or existing partners
• In close collaboration with partnerships, ensure timely implementation of capacity building actions related to safeguarding indicated in PATs
• In close collaboration with partnerships, ensure compliance to global Safeguarding in Partnerships Core Standards
• In close collaboration with partnerships, ensure all partners have safeguarding focal points appointed
• Provide partner safeguarding focal points with necessary inductions, main materials related to safeguarding and one to one coaching as necessary
• Design and deliver safeguarding capacity building initiatives (trainings etc.) as per specific partner needs
• Link relevant and eligible partner staff with safeguarding capacity building initiatives that are happening at SCI end
• In close collaboration with sector leads, identify sector specific safeguarding development needs for partner programme staff and design together ways to address these needs

External capacity building and coordination

• Be an active member of working groups related to safeguarding and represent SCI safeguarding team as required
• Design and deliver safeguarding capacity building initiatives (trainings etc.) as per specific external party needs
• In close collaboration with cluster coordinators and relevant programme staff, actively promote safeguarding in relevant fora
• Support regional office and other country offices with their safeguarding related gaps/needs as requested

Reporting and safeguarding investigations

• Ensure relevant reporting channels (such as DATIX, whistleblowing etc.) are known, functional and accessible for all staff
• Actively promote reporting responsibility and the importance of reporting amongst SCI and partner staff
• Act as a focal point for receiving safeguarding related suspicions, concerns or complaints
• Ensure partner organizations are well informed about reporting and investigation procedures of SCI, provide support and guidance as necessary
• Ensure timely registration of incidents reported by partners on DATIX, acquire further details and register them in DATIX for use of relevant parties accordingly
• Lead assigned safeguarding investigations from beginning to end
• Provide guidance and support to partner safeguarding focal points when they are dealing with investigations; with taking investigation decisions, planning of investigations, methodologies and tools to use, proper recommendations and their strict implementation.
• Ensure timely preparation of initial member reports and provision of initial case related information DATIX 
• Ensure proper recording of investigation details to DATIX for assigned investigations
• Ensure investigation recommendations and follow-up actions are being implemented by assigned departments/individuals
• Respond to any inquiries related to closed cases from management, donors, members or charity commission as necessary and requested by management

Other

• Identify data protection related safeguarding risks to our programming/ways of working and ensure there are mitigation measures are in place
• Lead on any projects as delegated by the Area Director 
• Any other reasonable safeguarding related duties as delegated by or at absence of MO Safeguarding Advisor and or RO

SKILLS AND BEHAVIOURS (our Values in Practice)

Accountability:

• Holds self-accountable for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Save the Children values

Ambition:

• Sets ambitious and challenging goals for themselves and their team, takes responsibility for their own personal development and encourages their team to do the same
• widely shares their personal vision for Save the Children, engages and motivates others
• future orientated, thinks strategically and on a global scale

Collaboration:

• Approachable, good listener, easy to talk to; 
• builds and maintains effective relationships with colleagues, Members and external partners and supporters
• Values diversity and different people’s perspectives, able to work cross-culturally.

Creativity:

• Develops and encourages new and innovative solutions

Integrity:

• Honest, encourages openness and transparency, builds trust and confidence

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE AND ATTRIBUTES

Essential:

• 3-5 years of working experience in child safeguarding, child protection, gender, PSEA or SGBV with non-profit organizations
• Bachelor degree in humanities, social work,or similar disciplines
• Proven writing and numerical skills and experience in writing/editing briefing documents 
• Proven attention for detail and ability to effectively manage a high volume of data and information
• Experience in designing and delivering training or workshops
• Good Computer skills working with MS Office Packages especially Word, Excel and PowerPoint and Outlook
• Strong communication (written and spoken), and interpersonal skills in English and Arabic, with experience in working with multicultural teams and experience of internal comms and/or behaviour change campaigns
• Ability to manage stress, be flexible and accommodating in difficult and frustrating working circumstance;
• Commitment to and understanding of child rights, as well as of Save the Children’s aims, values and principles. 
• Ability to take a proactive approach to problem solving, to recommend and implement continuous improvement initiatives.
• Willingness and ability to travel 

Desirable 

• Knowledge of Save the Children’s key sectors 
• Strong communication (written and spoken), and interpersonal skills,with experience in working with multicultural teams. 
• Experience with complaint handling mechanisms
• Knowledge and experience of handling sensitive investigations
• Knowledge of international humanitarian systems, institutions and donors.