Ethical Conduct Policy

• Children first. Every decision is tested against the welfare, rights and lived experience of the young people in our care.
• Honesty and integrity. We say what we mean, do what we say, and own our mistakes.
• Respect and dignity. We treat every young person, family, colleague and partner with kindness, fairness and without discrimination.
• Professional accountability. We work within our regulatory, legal and professional frameworks and welcome external scrutiny.
• Stewardship. We use the public and private funds entrusted to us wisely, and to the direct benefit of the young people we serve.

Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility. We embed trauma-responsive, relational practice into everyday care; we listen to children and act on what they tell us; and we challenge any practice that compromises a young person's safety, dignity or voice. Concerns are raised through our safeguarding and whistleblowing routes without fear of reprisal.

We are committed to creating an environment where children, families and colleagues of every background, identity, faith, ability and culture feel respected and able to thrive. We comply with the Equality Act 2010 and actively work to identify and remove barriers to inclusion.

Personal or financial interests must never influence - or appear to influence - decisions made on behalf of Sapling & Stone Care. All directors and staff are required to declare actual or potential conflicts of interest, including gifts, hospitality, secondary employment and close personal relationships, through our conflicts register.

We have a zero-tolerance approach to bribery and corruption and comply with the Bribery Act 2010. We do not offer, give, solicit or accept any bribe, facilitation payment or inappropriate inducement. Reasonable, proportionate hospitality is permitted, recorded transparently, and never used to influence a regulated decision.

Staff must not accept gifts, money or hospitality from young people, their families, commissioners or suppliers where it could compromise - or appear to compromise - their judgement. Modest, declared tokens (for example a card of thanks from a young person) are permitted in line with our gifts and hospitality procedure.

Information about young people, families and colleagues is handled on a strict need-to-know basis. We use information only for the purpose it was gathered, store it securely, and never share it informally - including through social media or personal devices. See our Privacy Policy for the technical detail.

We choose suppliers and partners whose values align with ours. Procurement decisions consider safeguarding, employment practices, environmental impact and modern slavery risk - not just price. See our Modern Slavery Statement for more.

Anyone with concerns about ethical conduct - whether they work for us, are placed with us, or work alongside us - can raise them confidentially with any member of our leadership team or the Designated Safeguarding Lead. We protect those who speak up in good faith from any form of detriment or reprisal.

This policy is owned by the Board, reviewed annually, and updated in response to regulatory change, learning from practice, and feedback from young people and colleagues. Breaches are taken seriously and may result in disciplinary action, termination of contract, or referral to a regulator or the police.