CHILD PROTECTION POLICY – DIL SE

Section A:
Introduction:

Child sexual abuse is not only a violation of a child’s body, but of the trust implicit in a care
giving relationship. This violation can have a significant impact on how the child as a victim, and
later on as an adult survivor sees and experiences the world. The effects of childhood sexual
abuse can be damaging but need not be permanent.

The major findings of the Study on Child Abuse by the Ministry of Women and Child
Development in 20071 were:

 Out of the total of 12,447 children across 13 states, 53.22% children faced at least one
form of sexual abuse or the other.
 21.90% of child respondents reported facing severe forms of sexual abuse, and 50.76%
other forms of sexual abuse.
 Both boys and girls faced sexual abuse.
 The prevalence of sexual abuse in upper and middle class was found to be
proportionately higher than in lower or in lower middle class.
 Sexual abuse was found to be prevalent in both joint and nuclear families.
 The majority of abusers were people known to the child and strangers were a minority.
 Sexual abuse of children was very often a pre-planned insidious abuse of a relationship
by an abuser over the child.
 Most children did not report the matter to anyone.

These statistics are alarming. It would mean that a little over 50% of the 479.39 million children
in Kerala2 have been or are being sexually abused, in one form or other.

Data available from the official website of the Kerala Police 3 shows a steady increase in the
number of cases of child sexual abuse being reported to the police after the Protection of
Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO Act), came into force in November of 2012.

A total of 77 cases were reported to the police in the months of November and December of
2012. In 2013 the total number of cases reported was 1,016. 3,179 cases were reported in first
2018 and 1,156 cases from January to April in 2019. However these figures are only the tip of
the iceberg.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 150 million girls and 73 million boys under
18 have experienced forced sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual violence involving
physical contact, though this is certainly an underestimate. Much of this sexual violence is
inflicted by family members or other people residing in or visiting a child's family home - people
normally trusted by children and often responsible for their care.

1
In many places, adults were outspoken about the risk of sexual violence their children faced at
school or at play in the community, but rarely did adults speak of children's risk of sexual abuse
within the home and family context. The shame, secrecy and denial associated with familial
sexual violence against children foster a pervasive culture of silence, where children cannot
speak about sexual violence in the home, and where adults do not know what to do or say if
they suspect someone they know is sexually abusing a child.

Dil Se

Dil Se means “from the heart” in Hindi. A non-profit organization based in Cochin, Kerala, Dil Se
was originally founded in Switzerland in 2000 by two Swiss ladies.

In 2009 Dil Se became a registered Indian trust addressing a variety of social and economic
problems faced by children in India. Dil Se currently works exclusively in the area of Child
Sexual Abuse.

A world without Child Sexual Abuse is the vision of Dil Se and its mission is Prevention and
Healing of Child Sexual Abuse.
The core values of Dil Se are:
 Respect
 Compassion
 Empathy
 Being non judgmental
 Hard work, and
 Passion

Dil Se has two projects – the Child Advocacy Centre, and Tejus Home.

Overview of Child Advocacy Centre:

Based in Cochin, Kerala, the Child Advocacy Centre is a project of Dil Se working on the issue of
child sexual abuse since the year 2016.

The mission of the Child Advocacy Centre is prevention and healing of Child Sexual Abuse.
The Centre provides a neutral, child-friendly space that facilitates a multidisciplinary approach
to preventing and healing child sexual abuse.

The Centre’s activities include:

 Preventive services for children and adults

 Psychotherapeutic services for children and adult survivors of sexual abuse

2
  Training and Capacity Building of relevant stakeholders

 Legal aid

 Research and Development

Overview of Tejus Home:

Tejus Home is a partnership between two NGOs – Dil Se and Birth for Change. Working with
children, Dil Se came across abused, pregnant teenagers. These girls not only faced stigma and
rejection by family and the community; they had no place they could go to which would take
care of them adequately and appropriately.
Dil Se felt called into action – and Tejus Home opened in November 2012. This home, with its
caring environment, provides the girls a safe and nurturing place to live in during one of the
most difficult times of their lives.
Thanks to Birth for Change, the home offers the possibility of a healthy pregnancy, a natural
delivery and the time to repair their bodies and mind following an often traumatic situation of
abuse.
Counselling support and Arts-Based Therapy enables the girls to deal with the abuse, and not
just survive, but thrive.
 
As far as we know, Tejus Home is the only home in India, which is specifically for pregnant
teens.

The mission of Tejus Home is to protect, nurture and empower abused, pregnant teenagers.
Tejus Home’s objectives are to:
 Provide a safe and non-judgemental shelter for abused, pregnant teenagers.
 Provide respectful maternal health care to ensure a safe and healthy pregnancy and
delivery.
 Support abused pregnant teenagers with legal and psychological issues.

3
Section B: Working Definitions

1. Who is a child?
According to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (Article 1) a child is every
human being below the age of 18 years.

2. What is child protection?

Child protection is a broad term to describe philosophies, policies, systems, and
procedures to protect children from both intentional and unintentional harm.

3. What is child abuse?4

Child abuse or maltreatment constitutes all forms of physical and/or emotional ill
treatment, sexual abuse, neglect or negligent treatment or commercial or other
exploitation, resulting in actual or potential harm to the child’s health, survival,
development or dignity in the context of a relationship of responsibility, trust or power.

Types of child abuse:

Physical abuse
Physical abuse of a child is that which results in actual or potential physical harm from
an interaction or lack of an interaction, which is reasonably within the control of a
parent or person in a position of responsibility, power or trust. There may be single or
repeated incidents.

Emotional abuse
Emotional abuse includes the failure to provide a developmentally appropriate,
supportive environment, including the availability of a primary attachment figure, so
that the child can develop a stable and full range of emotional and social competencies
commensurate with her or his personal potentials and in the context of the society in
which the child dwells. There may also be acts towards the child that cause or have a
high probability of causing harm to the child’s health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral
or social development. These acts must be reasonably within the control of the parent
or person in a relationship of responsibility, trust or power. Acts include restriction of
movement, patterns of belittling, denigrating, scapegoating, threatening, scaring,
discriminating, ridiculing or other non-physical forms of hostile or rejecting treatment.

Neglect and negligent treatment

Neglect is the failure to provide for the development of the child in all spheres: health,
education, emotional development, nutrition, shelter, and safe living conditions, in the
context of resources reasonably available to the family or caretakers and causes or has a
high probability of causing harm to the child’s health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral
or social development. This includes the failure to properly supervise and protect
children from harm as much as is feasible.

4
Sexual abuse
Child sexual abuse is the involvement of a child in sexual activity that he or she does not
fully comprehend, is unable to give informed consent to, or for which the child is not
developmentally prepared and cannot give consent, or that violate the laws or social
taboos of society. Child sexual abuse is evidenced by this activity between a child and an
adult or another child who by age or development is in a relationship of responsibility,
trust or power, the activity being intended to gratify or satisfy the needs of the other
person. This may include but is not limited to:
 The inducement or coercion of a child to engage in any unlawful sexual activity.
 The exploitative use of child in prostitution or other unlawful sexual practices.
 The exploitative use of children in pornographic performances and materials.

Exploitation
Commercial or other exploitation of a child refers to use of the child in work or other
activities for the benefit of others. This includes, but is not limited to, child labor and
child prostitution. These activities are to the detriment of the child’s physical or mental
health, education, or spiritual, moral or social-emotional development.

5
Section C: Our Values and Commitment to Child Protection:

According to Dil Se, protection of children is the duty of all adults and right of a child. Sexual
abuse of children is unacceptable under any circumstances.

Dil Se is committed to upholding the law on child rights and welfare. This includes the UN
Convention on the Rights of the Child, with special reference to the following articles:

Article 2: The Convention applies to everyone whatever their race, religion, abilities, whatever
they think or say and whatever type of family they come from.

Article 19: Governments should ensure that children are properly cared for, and protect them
from violence, abuse and neglect by their parents or anyone else who looks after them.

Article 34: The Government should protect children from sexual abuse.

Article 36: Children should be protected from any activities that could harm their development.

Based on the above mentioned understanding and approach, Dil Se has developed its child
protection policy to provide for a ready reckoner for all its internal and external stakeholders
(namely: employees, consultants, donors, partners, visitors, volunteers) and any others dealing
directly with Dil Se for its programmes to conduct oneself, respond and work in a child friendly
manner ensuring the protection of children whom they interact with.

___________________________________________________________________________

Stakeholders refer to all internal and external individuals, agencies, institutions etc who are
directly associated with Dil Se and impact the services and social change of Dil Se as an
organization. For e.g. internal stakeholders are trustees, and employees and external
stakeholders are partner organizations, donors, and visitors.

6
Section D: Code of Conduct:

Dil Se is committed to conducting its affairs in a manner that provides a secure environment to
all the children that it works with. This Code of Conduct establishes policies and procedures
that aim to guide behavior, communication and work with children for the internal and external
stakeholders in the performance of their duties and responsibilities. This Code of Conduct forms
an integral part of The Child Protection Policy of Dil Se. It also acts as a guiding document to the
Board of Trustees, senior management and staff members in the event of a breach of any code
of conduct at Dil Se. The policy thereby ensures the protection of all children who directly or
indirectly come in touch with the organization and its services.

D.1. Code of Conduct for board of trustees, advisors, staff, consultants, volunteers and
Interns:
All the existing and potential board of trustees, advisors, employees, consultants, volunteers
and interns (referred to as person/s) shall conduct all activities required to be undertaken
within the purview of this Code of Conduct. This Code shall apply while working on our
premises, at offsite locations where our projects are being implemented, at Dil Se’s social and
advocacy events, or at any other place where the above person(s) are a representative of Dil Se:

The following elucidates the code to be followed by each person as listed above.
Each person:

D.1.1 Shall undergo a reference check to find out any child abuse related record (irrespective of
whether it has been reported to the Police/ law enforcement agencies). Towards this purpose,
the person shall provide two references which should include (where possible) an employer/
supervisor who can comment on the applicant’s work with children before appointment to the
post.

D.1.2. Will undergo an in depth interview/interaction to assess their aptitude, interest and
sensitivity towards working with children and their previous work with children. For e.g. the job
interview should include specific questions at the first stage on child protection issues to probe
the applicant’s attitude, experience and approach to working with children relevant to the post
applied for.

D.1.3. Will be observed during the induction process for their attitude and behavior towards
children and a feedback will be provided to the Director before final appointment to the
respective post.

D.1.4. Will read and abide by the Child Protection Policy with complete commitment at the
beginning of their engagement with Dil Se.

D.1.5. Will undergo internal and external training programs and counseling services (if required)
in order to enhance their capacities and provide them with adequate intellectual and mental
resources for understanding the issues related to child protection and to deal with burnout.

7
D.1.6. Will exercise behavior protocols consistent with the Mission Statement and Core Values
of Dil Se in their relationship with children, in the context of their language, actions, dress, and
behavior.

D.1.7. Will establish an atmosphere conducive for the development of children through their
words, attitudes and actions. This includes listening to children and showing respect to them
and their opinions.

D.1.8. Will respect the local cultural and religious context and behave in an appropriate manner
with children in communities.

D.1.9. Will not promise and/or give children and their families/ caretakers verbally/ non
verbally any monetary or non-monetary favors without the knowledge and permission of Dil Se
management.

D.1.10. Will not allow children (beneficiaries of Dil Se) to visit or stay in their homes under any
pretext without the prior knowledge and agreement of the Dil Se management

D.1.11. Will not spend time alone with a child or children without any professional reason to do
e.g. (i) where personnel are employed as professionally recognized trained counselors, (ii) in
case of lesson plans and individual sessions done by trainers during Personal Safety Education
Programme, etc.

D.1.13. Will be responsible for the interaction between an adult and a child even when it is
perceived that a child is acting in a challenging manner. (e.g. not listening to the facilitator,
creating disturbance in the class or session etc.)

D.1.14. Will not touch, see or talk about private body parts and any other sexual content to
children or show them any material of sexual nature except in cases of the health/ hygiene,
Personal Safety Education Project and individual/ counseling sessions and any other platform
for involving children in the designing/ evaluation of Dil Se’s services which is being done for
protection purposes.

D.1.15. Will take permission from children, their parents/ guardians and schools and/ from the
participants of a workshop and training session before taking and using any photos and videos
involving these beneficiaries.

8
D.2. Code of Conduct for donors and visitors:
All existing and new donors and visitors of Dil Se:

D.2.1. Will inform in advance about their visits and any organizational/ partner visits will be
conducted only once consent from appropriate authorities like family/institutional authorities/
community of the beneficiaries has been taken. Dil Se staff member(s) will accompany the
donors/ visitors for the visit.

D.2.2. Will take appropriate consent from the family members and or caretakers/ institutional
authorities to interact with the child/ children and family members/ caretakers/ institutional
authorities or member and the interaction would be arranged either at the child’s location or
then at the Dil Se office. No other location like a hotel room, visitor’s office, donor’s office will
be allowed.

D.2.3. Will have to exercise behavior protocols consistent with the Mission Statement and Core
Values of Dil Se in their relationship with children, in the context of their language, actions,
dress, and behavior.

D.2.4. Will have to establish an atmosphere conducive for the development of children through
their words, attitudes and actions. This includes listening to children and showing respect to
them and their opinions.

D.2.5. Will respect the local cultural and/ religious context and behave in an appropriate
manner with children in communities.

D.2.6. Will not promise and/ give children and their families/ caretakers verbally/ non verbally
for any monetary or non-monetary favors without the knowledge and permission of Dil Se
management.

D.2.7. Will not take and use any data/ photographs/ videos, testimonials of children, family
members, caretakers, institutional staff etc. in their internal and external communication
material and in the media without the knowledge and consent of Dil Se management and the
other respective authorities.

D.2.8. Will not use any images and/ content available on the Dil Se website without informing
the Dil Se management and taking adequate permissions for the utility of the same in their
internal and external communication.

9
D.3. Code of Conduct for Partner Organizations:

D.3.1. Dil Se will ensure that written agreements with partner organizations and schools include
a clause referring to child protection during any interaction with clients of Dil Se.
D.3.2. Dil Se will share its Child Protection Policy with the partner organization at the beginning
of the association and will encourage the partner organizations/ school to have its own policy
for protecting their own beneficiaries. Dil Se will extend support to the partner organization in
developing the child protection policy.

D.4. General confidentiality and use of children’s data and photographs for communication
for all stakeholders:
In addition to the above Code of Conduct, the stakeholders(s) are mandated to maintain
confidentiality in relation to use of children’s data and photographs for external communication
as per the following rules:

D.4.1. Dil Se will ensure that all communication and publication material (both print and
electronic) on children in the form of pictures/captions are required to be decent, dignified and
respectful and bear no identification details (in form of face, name, case number, location etc.).
Only group pictures of stakeholders will be used and if individual pictures are necessary they
will be taken from stock images and will be accordingly acknowledged. Children will not be
presented as victims, nor will any communication exaggerate the vulnerability or abuse of the
child.

D.4.2. Dil Se will ensure that no images (printed or scanned), testimonials or videos of the
children shall be taken without adequate permission of the child (if above 12 years) and of
parents/ school authorities/ institutional caretakers/ institutional authorities (in case of children
below 12 years) before using the same on their website, electronic and print material meant for
internal and external stakeholders.

D.4.3. Photos and content available on the Dil Se website cannot be used for any purpose
without acquiring written permission from Dil Se management.

D.4.4. The staff members, consultants, interns, volunteers etc. of Dil Se shall be required to
safeguard all records and documents pertaining to children within their projects and maintain
their confidentiality.

D.4.5. All stakeholders will be required to refrain from using names or other identification
details of children they work with until and unless necessary in case of a supervision
relationship.

D.4.6. The identification details of clients for psychotherapeutic services (including name,
address, contact number, case details) will be kept in a password protected file and will be

10
accessible to only the Dil Se counselors while the case is going on. The data can be accessed
with an accepted reason by the Director and Program Managers whenever need be.
D.4.7. All stakeholders will refrain from using the photos/ data/ videos of clients of Dil Se on
their personal blogs, Facebook page etc. In case the stakeholder(s) requires the photos/ videos
for internal/ external communication material, use may be permitted subject to approval by the
senior management at Dil Se.

Section E: In case of reporting or breach of the policy:

The Child Protection Policy of Dil Se is a guideline to direct the board of trustees, senior
management and staff members to take appropriate action whenever there is a breach of any
code of conduct at Dil Se, thereby ensuring the protection of all children who directly or
indirectly come in touch with the organization and its services.

The primary aspects of reporting and redressal of any breach of policy is as follows:
Whenever there is cause to suspect child abuse or neglect or any other instance which could
compromise the protection of a child at Dil Se, it is the responsibility of all staff members and/
members of the partner organization to report their suspicions to the Response Team (which
includes one Board member of Dil Se, the Director, one of the Program Managers, one of the
Dil Se counselors, one of the staff members and an external expert). The staff member of Dil Se
or partner organization, should inform the Director, as a representative of the Response Team
about the possible case of abuse or neglect by using the Reporting format of Breach of Child
Protection Policy (please refer to Annexure 5). The reporting of any such case should be done
within 48 hours of the case for immediate response.

All decisions on the action to be taken will depend upon the severity of the abuse and/ or
breach, the appropriateness of the action as decided by the response team and the consent of
the child in question and his/ her family members/ guardians/ caretakers.

Any action for the breach of code/ instance of abuse will be taken only following a detailed
investigation by the Response team, wherein both the child and the suspected offender will be
given equal space and time to present their positions. Both the child and the person who
breaches the code of conduct will be treated with respect right from the beginning of the
investigation and no impulsive or ad hoc decisions will be taken in such cases.

Every child is important to Dil Se and any complaint of abuse, neglect of a child will be treated
seriously and no decision or judgments will be made without proper investigation.

11
The steps following post disclosure are as follows:

Child/ parent/ teacher/ caretakers/ school authorities/ staff

members of Dil Se/ partner/ donor organizations disclose the
incident through the reporting format to the Director as the
representative of the Response Team

Response Team will take cognizance of the complaint and

will start their investigation process

Response team will conduct interviews with the child and other key
stakeholders like teachers/ parents/ caretakers etc. depending upon
the location and other details of the offence as well as the suspected
offender.

If the breach is not If the breach is proved,

proved post then as per the severity
investigation, the of the offence,
If the decision in either case is not appropriate action shall
case is closed satisfactory, an option for an be taken
external review will be made
available wherein the Response
committee will be asked to present
their investigation and the action
will reviewed

12
The steps following post disclosure are as follows:

Step I: On disclosure:
The disclosure of the breach of code/ any instance of abuse can be done by a child or his/ her
parents/ teachers/ caretakers/ school authorities/ Dil Se staff members/ members of partner
organizations/ funders etc. The event has to be disclosed to the Director as the representative
of the Response Team. The Response Team includes one Board member of Dil Se, the Director,
one of the Program Managers, one of the Dil Se counselors, one of the staff members (other
than the offending staff member and will change with each case) and an external expert who
could be a child rights professional including a lawyer, social worker, counselor etc. (required
only when it is a severe breach.)
The disclosure has to be through a specific reporting format and the person providing
information would be requested to provide as much detailed information as possible. The
information should be kept confidential by the person reporting until and unless the response
team provides information to the staff. If the offender is the Dil Se Director, then the report
could be given directly to the board member on the Response team and another board
member of Dil Se will taken into the investigation of the case barring the Director from
participating.

Step II: Investigation post disclosure:

Once the breach has been reported, the Response team has to initiate a rigorous investigation
process. The Response team is free to involve the Dil Se staff members (except if the offender is
from the staff), to conduct this investigation. The therapist from the Response team will be
directly responsible for talking to the child as well as the offender to get information required
for the investigation, as well as to provide adequate psychotherapeutic support to the child.
Investigation could involve questioning of various stakeholders like parents, teachers, peers,
siblings, institutional caretakers, school authorities etc. depending upon the location and nature
of the abuse. The Response team will respect the privacy of the child and the suspected
offender throughout the investigation procedure and will refrain from giving any statements
internally or externally till the investigation is completed. In case the breach/ instance of abuse
has been severe and is in media attention, the Response team will select a spokesperson from
within themselves to handle all public and internal communication related to the case.

Step III: Action Post Investigation:

Post investigation, if the complaint cannot be proved, then the case will be closed. If the
complaint and breach are proved, then appropriate action shall be taken, depending on the
severity of the breach.

In case either of the parties within the case is not happy with the final decision of the Response
team, an external expert committee can be set up as per the policy for reviewing the decision.
In such case the external committee will include 2 board members of Dil Se and 1 individual
selected by the suspected offender/victim (referred to as the redressal party), whoever is
unhappy with the decision of the Response team.

13
Information on the member selected by the offender/victim has to be shared with board of
trustees and this individual has to have adequate credibility to be on the external review
committee.
The Response team will be responsible for presenting their investigation and action to the
committee for reviewing.
This option of reviewing the decision of the Response team will be done only if the party
demanding such a review can provide adequate reasons (in writing) to the Dil Se management
and the final decision for setting up such a committee will depend on the Board of trustees of
Dil Se.

References:
1. Study on Child Abuse: India 2007, Ministry of Women and Child Development
2. Population Census of India 2011, Office of the Registrar-General & Census
Commissioner, India, Ministry of Home Affairs
3. Official website of the Kerala Police - http://keralapolice.gov.in
4. Report of the Consultation on Child Abuse Prevention, 29-31 March 1999, WHO, Geneva

14
Annexures

Annexure 1 – Inclusion of Code of Conduct in Letter of Appointment

Code of Conduct

1. Purpose
Dil Se is committed to conducting its affairs in a manner that provides a secure environment to
all the children that it works with. This Code of Conduct establishes policies and procedures
that aim to guide behaviour, communication and work with children for the internal and
external stakeholders in the performance of their duties and responsibilities.
This Code of Conduct forms an integral part of The Child Protection Policy of Dil Se. It also acts
as a guiding document to the Board of Trustees, senior management and staff members in the
event of a breach of any code of conduct at Dil Se. The policy thereby ensures the protection of
all children who directly or indirectly come in touch with the organization and its services.

2. Code of Conduct for Employees

The employees shall conduct all activities required to be undertaken within the purview of this
Code of Conduct. This Code shall apply while working on our premises, at offsite locations
where our projects are being implemented, at Dil Se’s social and advocacy events, or at any
other place where the employees are a representative of Dil Se.

The following elucidates the code to be followed by each employee of Dil Se. Each employee:
 Shall provide two references which should include (where possible) an employer/
supervisor who can comment on the applicant’s work with children (whether as
employees or volunteers) before appointment to post.
 Will be observed during the induction or engagement process for their attitude and
behaviour towards children and a feedback will be accordingly provided to the Director
before final appointment on the respective post.
 Will read and abide by the Child Protection Policy with complete commitment
throughout their engagement with Dil Se.
 Will undergo internal and/ external training programmes and counselling services (if
required) in order to enhance their capacities and provide them with adequate
intellectual and mental resources for understanding the issues related to child
protection and to deal with burnout.
 Will exercise behavior protocols consistent with the Mission Statement and Core Values
of Dil Se in their relationship with children, in the context of their language, actions,
dress, and behavior.
 Will establish an atmosphere conducive for the development of children through their
words, attitudes and actions. This includes listening to children and showing respect to
them and their opinions.
 Will respect the local cultural and/ religious context and behave in an appropriate
manner with children in communities.

15
  Will not promise and/or give children and their families/ caretakers verbally/ non
verbally any monetary or non-monetary favours without the knowledge and permission
of Dil Se management.
 Will not allow children (beneficiaries of Dil Se) to visit or stay in their homes for any
reason without the prior knowledge and agreement of the Dil Se management
 Will not spend time alone with a child or children without any professional reason to do
so such as (i) where personnel are employed as professionally recognized trained
counselors, (ii) in case of lesson plans and individual sessions done by trainers during
Personal Safety Education Programme, etc.
 Will be responsible for any interaction with a child even when it is perceived that a child
is acting in a challenging (not listening to the facilitator, creating disturbance in the class
or session etc.) manner.
 Will not touch, see or talk about private body parts and any other sexual content to
children or show them any material of sexual nature except in cases of the health/
hygiene, Personal Safety Education Project and individual/ counseling sessions and any
other platform for involving children in the designing/ evaluation of Dil Se services which
is being done for protection purposes.
 Will take permission from children, their parents/ guardians and schools and/ from the
participants of a workshop and/ training session before taking and using any photos and
videos involving these beneficiaries.

3. Confidentiality
In addition to the above Code of Conduct, the employees are mandated to maintain
confidentiality in relation to use of children’s data and photographs for external communication
as per the following rules:
 All communication and publication material (both print and electronic) on children in
the form of pictures/captions are required to be decent, dignified and respectful and
shall bear no identification details (in form of face, name, case number, location etc.).
Only group pictures of stakeholders will be used and if individual pictures are necessary,
they will be taken from stock images and will be accordingly acknowledged. Children will
not be presented as victims, nor will any communication exaggerate the vulnerability or
abuse of the child.
 No images (printed or scanned), testimonials or videos of the children shall be taken
without adequate permission of the child (if above 12 years) and of parents/ school
authorities/ institutional caretakers/ institutional authorities (in case of children below
12 years) before using the same on any web related material, electronic and print
material meant for internal and external stakeholders.
 Photos and content available on the Dil Se website cannot be used for any purpose
without acquiring written permission from Dil Se management.
 Employees shall be required to safeguard all records and documents pertaining to
children within their projects and maintain their confidentiality.

16
  All employees of Dil Se will be required to refrain from using names or other
identification details of children they work with until and unless necessary in case of a
supervision relationship.
 The identification details of clients for psychotherapeutic services (including name,
address, contact number, case details) will be kept in a password protected file and will
be accessible to only the Dil Se counselors while the case is going on. The data can be
accessed with an accepted reason by the Director and Programme Managers whenever
need be.
 Employees are not permitted to use photos/ data/ videos of clients of Dil Se on their
personal blogs, Facebook page etc. In case the staff requires the photos/ videos for
internal/ external communication material, use may be permitted subject to approval by
the senior management at Dil Se.

4. Non-Compliance/Breach
In case of breach of the above mentioned clauses, the same will be addressed as per Section E,
Clause D of Dil Se’s Child Protection Policy.

17
Annexure 2 – Inclusion of Code of Conduct in Terms of Reference with Consultants
Code of Conduct

1. Purpose
Dil Se is committed to conducting its affairs in a manner that provides a secure environment to
all the children that it works with. This Code of Conduct establishes policies and procedures
that aims to guide behaviour, communication and work with children for the internal and
external stakeholders in the performance of their duties and responsibilities.
This Code of Conduct forms an integral part of The Child Protection Policy of Dil Se. It also acts
as a guiding document to the Board of Trustees, senior management and staff members in the
event of a breach of any code of conduct at Dil Se. The policy thereby ensures the protection of
all children who directly or indirectly come in touch with the organization and its services.

2. Code of Conduct for Consultants

The consultant shall conduct all activities required to be undertaken within the purview of this
Code of Conduct. This Code shall apply while working on our premises, at offsite locations
where our projects are being implemented, at Dil Se’s social and advocacy events, or at any
other place where the consultants are a representative of Dil Se.
The following elucidates the code to be followed by each consultant of Dil Se. Each consultant:
 Shall provide two references which should include (where possible) an employer/
supervisor who can comment on the applicant’s work with children (whether as
employees or volunteers) before appointment to post.
 Will be observed during the induction or engagement process for their attitude and
behaviour towards children and a feedback will be accordingly provided to the CEO
before final appointment on the respective post.
 Will read and abide by the Child Protection Policy with complete commitment
throughout their engagement with Dil Se.
 Will exercise behavior protocols consistent with the Mission Statement and Core Values
of Dil Se in their relationship with children, in the context of their language, actions,
dress, and behavior.
 Will establish an atmosphere conducive for the development of children through their
words, attitudes and actions. This includes listening to children and showing respect to
them and their opinions.
 Will respect the local cultural and/ religious context and behave in an appropriate
manner with children in communities.
 Will not promise and/or give children and their families/ caretakers verbally/ non
verbally any monetary or non-monetary favours without the knowledge and permission
of Dil Se management.
 Will not allow children (beneficiaries of Dil Se) to visit or stay in their homes for any
reason without the prior knowledge and agreement of the Dil Se management
 Will not spend time alone with a child or children without any professional reason to do
so – Such as (i) where personnel are consultants as professionally recognized trained

18
 counselors, (ii) in case of lesson plans and individual sessions done by trainers during
Personal Safety Education Programme, etc.
 Will be responsible for any interaction with a child even when it is perceived that a child
is acting in a challenging (not listening to the facilitator, creating disturbance in the class
or session etc.) manner.
 Will not touch, see or talk about private body parts and any other sexual content to
children or show them any material of sexual nature except in cases of the health/
hygiene, Personal Safety Education Project and individual/ counseling sessions and any
other platform for involving children in the designing/ evaluation of Dil Se services which
is being done for protection purposes.
 Will take permission from children, their parents/ guardians and schools and from the
participants of a workshop and/ or training session before taking and using any photos
and/ videos involving these beneficiaries.

3. Confidentiality
In addition to the above Code of Conduct, the consultants are mandated to maintain
confidentiality in relation to use of children’s data and photographs for external communication
as per the following rules:
 All communication and publication material (both print and electronic) on children in
the form of pictures/captions are required to be decent, dignified and respectful and
shall bear no identification details. Only group pictures of stakeholders will be used and
if individual pictures are necessary, they will be taken from stock images and will be
accordingly acknowledged. Children will not be presented as victims, nor will any
communication exaggerate the vulnerability or abuse of the child.
 No images (printed or scanned), testimonials or videos of the children shall be taken
without adequate permission of the child (if above 12 years) and of parents/ school
authorities/ institutional caretakers/ institutional authorities (in case of children below
12 years) before using the same on any web related material, electronic and print
material meant for internal and external stakeholders.
 Photos and content available on the Dil Se website cannot be used for any purpose
without acquiring written permission from Dil Se management.
 Consultants shall be required to safeguard all records and documents pertaining to
children within their projects and maintain their confidentiality.
 All consultants of Dil Se will be required to refrain from using names or other
identification details of children they work with until and unless necessary in case of a
supervision relationship.
 Consultants are not permitted to use photos/ data/ videos of clients of Dil Se on their
personal blogs, Facebook page etc. In case the staff requires the photos/ videos for
internal/ external communication material, use may be permitted subject to approval by
the senior management at Dil Se.

19
4. Non-Compliance/Breach

In case of breach of the above mentioned clauses, the same will be addressed as per Section E,
Clause D of Dil Se’s Child Protection Policy.

20
Annexure 3 – Conduct to be given to and signed by volunteers and interns
Code of Conduct

1. Purpose
Dil Se is committed to conducting its affairs in a manner that provides a secure environment to
all the children that it works with. This Code of Conduct establishes policies and procedures
that aims to guide behaviour, communication and work with children for the internal and
external stakeholders in the performance of their duties and responsibilities. This Code of
Conduct forms an integral part of The Child Protection Policy of Dil Se. It also acts as a guiding
document to the Board of Trustees, senior management and staff members in the event of a
breach of any code of conduct at Dil Se. The policy thereby ensures the protection of all
children who directly or indirectly come in touch with the organization and its services.

2. Code of Conduct for volunteers and interns

The volunteers and interns shall conduct all activities required to be undertaken within the
purview of this Code of Conduct. This Code shall apply while working on our premises, at offsite
locations where our projects are being implemented, at Dil Se’s social and advocacy events, or
at any other place where the volunteers and interns are a representative of Dil Se.
The following elucidates the code to be followed by each volunteer and intern of Dil Se. Each
volunteer and intern:
 Shall provide two (2) references which should include (where possible) an employer/
supervisor who can comment on the applicant’s work with children (whether as
employees or volunteers) before appointment to post.
 Will read and abide by the Child Protection Policy with complete commitment
throughout their engagement with Dil Se.
 Will exercise behavior protocols consistent with the Mission Statement and Core Values
of Dil Se in their relationship with children, in the context of their language, actions,
dress, and behavior.
 Will establish an atmosphere conducive for the development of children through their
word, deed and demeanour. This includes listening to children and showing respect to
them and their opinions.
 Will respect the local cultural and/ religious context and behave in an appropriate
manner with children in communities.
 Will not promise and/or give children and their families/ caretakers verbally/ non
verbally any monetary or non-monetary favours without the knowledge and permission
of Dil Se management.
 Will not allow children (beneficiaries of Dil Se) to visit or stay in their homes under any
pretext without the prior knowledge and agreement of the Dil Se management
 Will not spend time alone with a child or children without any professional reason to do
so
 Will be responsible for any interaction with a child even when it is perceived that a child
is acting in a challenging (not listening to the facilitator, creating disturbance in the class
or session etc.) manner.

21
  Will not touch, see or talk about private body parts and any other sexual content to
children or show them any material of sexual nature except in cases of the health/
hygiene, Personal Safety Education Project and individual/ counseling sessions and any
other platform for involving children in the designing/ evaluation of Dil Se services which
is being done for protection purposes.
 Will take permission from children, their parents/ guardians and schools and/ from the
participants of a workshop and/ training session before taking and using any photos
and/ videos involving these beneficiaries.

3. Confidentiality
In addition to the above Code of Conduct, the volunteers and interns are mandated to maintain
confidentiality in relation to use of children’s data and photographs for external communication
as per the following rules:
 All communication and publication material (both print and electronic) on children in
the form of pictures/captions are required to be decent, dignified and respectful and
shall bear no identification details (in form of face, name, case number, location etc.).
Only group pictures of stakeholders will be used and if individual pictures are necessary,
they will be taken from stock images and will be accordingly acknowledged. Children will
not be presented as victims, nor will any communication exaggerate the vulnerability or
abuse of the child.
 No images (printed or scanned), testimonials or videos of the children shall be taken
without adequate permission of the child (if above 12 years) and of parents/ school
authorities/ institutional caretakers/ institutional authorities (in case of children below
12 years) before using the same on any web related material, electronic and print
material meant for internal and external stakeholders.
 Photos and content available on the Dil Se website cannot be used for any purpose
without acquiring written permission from Dil Se management.
 Volunteers and interns shall be required to safeguard all records and documents
pertaining to children within their projects and maintain their confidentiality.
 All volunteers and interns of Dil Se will be required to refrain from using names or other
identification details of children they work with until and unless necessary in case of a
supervision relationship.
 Volunteers and interns are not permitted to use photos/ data/ videos of clients of Dil Se
on their personal blogs, Facebook page etc. In case the staff requires the photos/ videos
for internal/ external communication material, use may be permitted subject to
approval by the senior management at Dil Se.

4. Non-Compliance/Breach
In case of breach of the above mentioned clauses, the same will be addressed as per clause D of
Dil Se’s Child Protection Policy.

22
I have read and understood the Code of Conduct and I will abide by it.

Name:
Contact no.:
Email id:
Address:
Signature:
Date:

23
Annexure 3 – Code of Conduct to be shared with donors and visitors

Dil Se is committed to conducting its affairs in a manner that provides a secure environment to
all the children that it works with. So that together we can be partners in creating a safe
environment for children, we request you to do the following:
 Any organizational/partner visits will be conducted only once consent from appropriate
authorities like family/institutional authorities/ community of the beneficiaries has been
taken.
 Dil Se staff member(s) will accompany you for the visit. The interaction with the child
would be arranged either at the child’s location or then at the Dil Se office. No other
location like a hotel room, visitor’s office, donor’s office will be allowed.
 Please exercise behavior protocols consistent with the Core Values of Dil Se in your
relationship with children, in the context of their language, actions, dress, and behavior.
 Please establish an atmosphere conducive for the development of children through your
words, attitudes and actions. This includes listening to children and showing respect to
them and their opinions.
 Do not promise and/ or give children and their families/caretakers verbally/ non verbally
for any monetary or non-monetary favours without the knowledge and permission of Dil
Se management.
 Do not take and/ use any data/ photographs/ videos, testimonials of children, family
members, caretakers, institutional staff etc. in your internal and/ external
communication material and in the media without the knowledge and consent of Dil Se
management and the other respective authorities.
 Do not use any images and or content available on the Dil Se website without informing
the Dil Se management and taking adequate permissions for the utility of the same in
your internal and external communication.

Non-Compliance/Breach
In case of breach of the above mentioned clauses, the same will be addressed as per clause D of
Dil Se’s Child Protection Policy.

24
Annexure 4 - Note on Website and Social Media

Dil Se is committed to conducting its affairs in a manner so as to ensure that a secure

environment is provided to all the children that it works with. Dil Se has established a Child
Protection Policy, which acts as a guideline for all behaviour, communication and work with
children for the internal and external stakeholders in the performance of their duties and
responsibilities. The policy ensures the protection of all children who directly or indirectly come
in touch with the organization and its services. Use of photos of children available on Dil Se’s
website is not permitted without the prior permission of Dil Se.

25
Annexure 5 - Reporting format of Breach of Child Protection Policy

Name of person reporting

Name of person who has

breached

How has the person breached

the Child Protection Policy of
Dil Se? Please provide
complete details.

Signature:
Date:

26