A child's safety comes before any story.

If a child is in danger right now

Contact local emergency services first.

waladi is a newsroom and a classroom, not a rescue service. We cannot respond to emergencies, and messages may not be read straight away. Once the child is safe, you can tell us what happened.

Who this page applies to

This page applies to everyone who works with waladi in any way: our senior leadership, permanent members and volunteers, who are all under 21, and our partners and associate brands, who can be any age.

On this page, a "child" means anyone under 18.

What we mean by harm

Harm includes:

• physical, emotional or sexual abuse;
• neglect;
• exploitation, including for work, money or crime;
• bullying and harassment, in person or online;
• being put at risk by what is published about them, including by us.

Our principles

• A child's safety and best interests always come before a story.
• We do no harm. If there is any doubt about whether something could hurt a child, we do not do it.
• We ask for consent and respect a child's right to say no.
• We act on every concern, however small it seems.

We have zero tolerance for abuse of any kind.

Who is responsible

Our Chief Legal and Ethics Officer, Mntalla Alwahabi, is responsible for safeguarding at waladi. She is the first person to contact with any worry about a child, about anyone working with us, or about how we handled a story.

How we ask for consent

Before we publish anything about a child, we ask for consent.

• Where we can, we ask the child's parent or guardian.
• Some children, for example in a war zone, have no parent or guardian we can reach. Then we ask the child themselves.

When we ask a child, we explain in words they understand what we would publish and where, that they can say no, and that they can change their mind at any time. We take extra care to keep out anything that could identify them.

Even with consent, we only publish a story if we believe it is in the child's best interests and cannot put them at risk.

A story can be withdrawn at any time, including after it is published.

What we publish

• A first name at most, and sometimes no name at all.
• The country or region only. Never a street, a camp, a camp section or a school.
• No photograph of a child without consent, and never one that could help someone who means harm to find them.
• No graphic images of injury or death.

How we handle children's information and images

• Only the people working on a story can see a child's details or photos.
• No one may keep them on a personal phone or computer, or forward them to anyone outside waladi.
• We delete them as soon as they are no longer needed.

How we protect children we teach

Our teaching happens online, through [platform]. Where possible, lessons are held in groups. Everyone who teaches for waladi must:

• contact children only through waladi's own channels;
• never ask a child for a phone number, social media account, address or photo;
• never arrange to meet a child in person;
• never share a child's information or image outside waladi;
• tell Mntalla Alwahabi straight away about anything that worries them.

If a child contacts us themselves

We reply gently and simply, encourage them to talk to an adult they trust, and never ask for anything that could show where they are. We only publish their story with consent, as explained above.

If a child tells us they may be harmed, or may harm themselves, we encourage them to contact local emergency services or a trusted adult straight away, and we may contact the authorities who can help.

Rules for everyone who works with us

Everyone who works with us must:

• never be alone with a child in a private online conversation outside waladi's channels;
• never swap personal contact details or social media accounts with a child;
• never give a child gifts or money;
• never take, keep or share images of a child except for approved work;
• never behave or speak towards a child in a way that is inappropriate, aggressive or sexual;
• report any concern to Mntalla Alwahabi straight away.

Anyone who breaks these rules is removed from all work with children while Mntalla Alwahabi looks into what happened.

Checks before anyone works with children

Before anyone works with children, we confirm who they are, ask for a reference, and require them to [complete safeguarding training] and agree in writing to the rules on this page. Partners and associate brands must follow these rules, or their own policy if it is at least as strong.

How to raise a concern

You can raise a concern about a child's safety, about anyone working with us, or about how we handled a story.

Email [safeguarding email], or contact Mntalla Alwahabi directly. You do not need proof. Tell us what you know, when it happened, and how to reach you if you are happy for us to. You can also write without giving your name.

If your concern is about our Chief Legal and Ethics Officer

If your concern is about Mntalla Alwahabi herself, do not write to her. Write to [second contact name] at [second contact email] instead. It will be handled without her involvement.

What happens next

• We aim to confirm we have received your message within [48 hours].
• Mntalla Alwahabi reads it herself and decides what needs to happen.
• Only the people who need to know are told.
• If a child is at risk, we may pass what you told us to the authorities who can protect them.
• Where we can, we tell you what we have done.

If a concern is about someone who works with us

They are removed from all work with children straight away while Mntalla Alwahabi looks into what happened.

If harm may have happened, we tell the authorities. If the concern is confirmed, that person's involvement with waladi ends permanently.

Protection for anyone who speaks up

No one will be punished or treated badly for raising a concern in good faith, even if it turns out to be mistaken.

Confidentiality and its limits

We keep every concern private, and only the people who need to know are told.

But we cannot promise to keep a secret if a child is at risk. If we need to share what you told us to protect a child, we will tell you first wherever it is safe to do so.

Keeping a record

We do not keep personal information, with one exception. For every safeguarding concern, Mntalla Alwahabi keeps a short private record of what was raised and what we did about it.

This protects children: if a pattern appears later, we can see it and act. The record is seen only by Mntalla Alwahabi, kept for as long as it is needed to protect the child, and then deleted.

Working with the authorities

We follow the child protection laws of the country where a child lives, and we cooperate with the police and child protection services whenever a child may be at risk.

If we get something wrong

If we make a mistake that affects a child, we will say so, put it right as far as we can, and change how we work so it does not happen again.

Reviewing this page

We review this page at least once a year, and straight away if something shows we could do better.