The Vineyard Christian Community Based Organization (“Vineyard,” “we,” “us”) exists to serve vulnerable children and families in Mathare, Nairobi. The welfare and best interests of every child come first in all of our programmes, communications, and partnerships. This page summarises our public safeguarding commitments. It is not a substitute for staff training, internal procedures, or legal advice.
1. Our commitment
We are committed to:
- Protecting children from abuse, neglect, exploitation, and harm — physical, emotional, sexual, or online
- Acting in the best interests of the child in every decision that affects them
- Creating safe environments in education support, feeding, mentorship, medical camps, and community activities
- Responding promptly and appropriately when concerns are raised
- Working with parents, guardians, partners, and authorities where required to keep children safe
Vineyard has a zero-tolerance approach to child abuse and to covering up or ignoring safeguarding concerns.
2. Who this applies to
These expectations apply to everyone connected with our work, including:
- Staff, directors, and volunteers
- Contractors, consultants, and temporary helpers
- Partners, sponsors, visitors, and guests who interact with our programmes
- Anyone using Vineyard SMS or representing Vineyard in the community
3. What we mean by a child
For safeguarding purposes, a child is anyone under 18 years of age. We also take extra care with young people and vulnerable adults connected to our programmes where power imbalance or dependency creates risk.
4. Code of conduct (summary)
Anyone representing Vineyard must:
- Treat every child with dignity, respect, and fairness — without discrimination
- Maintain appropriate professional boundaries at all times
- Never hit, shout abusively at, shame, or humiliate a child
- Never engage in sexual activity, sexual comments, or sexually suggestive behaviour with a child
- Never be alone with a child in a private or unsupervised setting where avoidable
- Never use positions of trust for personal gain, favouritism, or exploitation
- Never share a child’s personal details, photos, or stories publicly without proper authorisation and guardian consent
- Report concerns immediately — do not investigate alone or promise absolute secrecy where a child may be at risk
Breaches may result in removal from programmes, reporting to authorities, and other action as appropriate.
5. Images, stories, and online presence
We do not publish identifiable individual child profiles for public sponsorship browsing on this website. Photos, names, and personal stories are handled carefully and must not put a child at risk of stigma, targeting, or exploitation. See our sponsorship overview and Privacy Policy.
Visitors and supporters must not:
- Photograph or film children in our programmes without Vineyard authorisation
- Post identifying details of programme children on social media without our written approval
- Pressure children or families for stories, contacts, or private communication
6. Reporting a concern
If you believe a child involved with Vineyard is at risk of harm — or that someone connected to our work has behaved inappropriately — please tell us as soon as possible.
- Email: info@vineyardcbo.org (subject: “Safeguarding concern”)
- Phone: +254 718 329 628
- Contact form: Contact us
In an emergency, or if a child is in immediate danger, contact local emergency services or the relevant child protection authorities first. You may also report concerns to Kenya’s child helpline and statutory protection services where appropriate.
We take all reports seriously. Good-faith reports will not result in retaliation. Deliberately false accusations made in bad faith may be addressed separately.
7. How we respond
When a concern is raised, we aim to:
- Prioritise the child’s safety and wellbeing
- Record and escalate the concern through appropriate internal channels
- Involve parents or guardians when safe and appropriate to do so
- Refer to police, children’s officers, medical, or partner agencies when required
- Support the child and family within our capacity while processes continue
We do not promise outcomes we cannot control (for example, court or police decisions), but we will act responsibly within our role.
8. Staff, volunteers, and partners
We expect people working with children through Vineyard to:
- Understand and follow this safeguarding commitment
- Complete any screening, orientation, or training required for their role
- Use Vineyard SMS and programme data only for legitimate, authorised purposes
- Keep children’s information confidential except when sharing is necessary to protect a child
Partnership with sponsors and external organisations does not override these standards. Partners must respect our child-protection and privacy practices.
9. Related policies
- Privacy Policy — public notice for website visitors
- Data Protection Policy — organisational data governance
- Photography & Media Consent Policy — images, video, and stories
- Terms & Conditions — rules for using this website
- Child Sponsorship — privacy-first sponsorship approach
10. Review
We review this public summary periodically and may update it as our programmes and procedures develop. The “Last updated” date above shows the latest revision of this page.
11. Contact
Safeguarding questions or reports: info@vineyardcbo.org · +254 718 329 628 · Mathare, Nairobi, Kenya