While Misean Cara does not work directly with children or vulnerable adults, at times our staff, volunteers, visitors, consultants and Board members working overseas or here in Ireland come into contact with children and vulnerable adults in the course of their work.

We believe strongly in and are fully committed to the safeguarding and protection of children and vulnerable adults. This policy seeks to ensure that every child or vulnerable adult that Misean Cara comes into contact with, either directly or indirectly through the work of our member organisations that we fund, will be treated with respect and dignity, and will be protected from harm, neglect or abuse.

We invite you to read and/or download our Child and Vulnerable Adult Safeguarding Policy here.

Misean Cara also requires the organisations that we fund to have a safeguarding policy in place that is actively implemented and consistent with the law of the country in which they work and the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church Ireland (NBSCCCI).

Our members are constantly working to enhance their safeguarding measures to ensure that all children and vulnerable adults are treated with respect and dignity at all times and protected from violence and abuse. In Northern Nigeria for example, SELL (Sharing Education & Learning for Life), a peace-building and human development project of the Saint Patrick’s Missionary Society, has been strengthening community systems and resources for reporting and responding to incidents of abuse and violence against children. SELL partners with local government agencies and the police to increase the visibility and public support of safeguarding legislation, and greater public awareness of how and where to report suspected abuse. As a result, child abuse reports in the communities where SELL works are on the rise, making intervention and justice for victims more accessible. SELL is now making the inclusion of vulnerable adults a greater focus of its safeguarding initiatives.