Audits and risk assessments

A key job of a governance board is carrying out audits and risk assessments for all areas of an organisation's activity to find out what is working well, what needs improving and where the risks are and how they are being managed.

The designated safeguarding trustee should ensure that appropriate risk assessments are being carried out where necessary, along with doing their own for the charity as a whole.

As well as carrying out regular self-audits an organisation should also ensure that regular reports on its safeguarding approach are given at relevant governance and management meetings, to update on the progress of any actions taken that may have been identified, and to keep safeguarding as a high-priority on the organisation's agenda. 

A key document which should be regularly reviewed is your organisation’s Risk Register. This is a list of all risks that your organisation faces as a whole, and should include safeguarding.

The Risk Register should include your organisation's strategy on how any risks will be managed in the event of one arising. Any risk assessment which is carried out should be fed into this to ensure the impact of any assessment is taken into consideration - as part of a wider focus on risk - and responded to appropriately.