Flame International is a Christian charity committed to the highest standards of integrity, ethics and legal compliance in all of its UK and overseas operations.
Our central mission is to release God’s healing, forgiveness and reconciliation to individuals and their land, especially those suffering from the pain and trauma of war, terror or oppression. The very nature of our work means that we commonly operate in environments where people, organisations and often their governments do not share our values and ethics, including in respect to the value of human life and dignity, as well as legal compliance.
In response, as a charity, we take all necessary precautions and exercise all reasonable due diligence appropriate to particular contexts we are operating in to ensure that we neither promote or facilitate the commission of unlawful or otherwise wrongful acts or omissions, and that none of our activities cause harm to the people and communities that we are engaged with. It is our intention to always be a force for good, potentially in preventing the commission of violations through our teaching and training activities which seek to change culture and behaviour, as well as to bring healing to those who have been deeply wounded and violated.
More specifically, we have put a number of policies in place to assist us.
Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking
Modern slavery is a heinous crime and a morally reprehensible act that deprives a person’s liberty and dignity for another person’s gain. It is a real problem for millions of people around the world, including many in developed countries, who are being kept and exploited in various forms of slavery. Every organisation is at risk of being involved in this crime. In response, Flame International has a zero-tolerance approach to modern slavery and is fully committed to preventing slavery and human trafficking, as well as all forms of serious human rights violations, in our operations and throughout our supply chain.
The reality of the types of places that Flame International travels to is that these are often contexts in which significant human rights violations occur, including modern slavery and human trafficking. As a team, we may even be exposed to information about this including from victims or even perpetrators. That does not stop us from working in such environments; indeed, it is a key driver for us to operate in such contexts as a force for good, including seeking to prevent such future crimes and violations through bringing about positive change in culture, attitudes, behaviour and so forth.
That said, as a Christian organisation committed to the highest standard of integrity and ethics, we will not engage in any activity that risks compromising our core values, identity or reputation. In particular, we will never condone or facilitate the commission of these or other serious human rights violations and crimes.
To this end, we will only work with trusted suppliers and partners who share our values. We exercise appropriate levels of due diligence in relation to our supplier and partner selection and on-boarding procedure, such as in relation to their reputation, respect for the law, compliance with health, safety and environmental standards, references, as well as any other information considered relevant or appropriate. We have not been made aware of any allegations of human trafficking/slavery activities against any of our suppliers or partners, but if we were, then we would act immediately against the supplier and report it to the relevant authorities.
We also undertake a number of other measures. These include the undertaking of risk assessments of where and with whom we operate, the training of our staff, our whistle-blowing and reporting procedures, as well as our awareness raising activities.
Safeguarding (UK and overseas)
We take our safeguarding responsibilities very seriously to protect and not cause harm to anyone whether operating in the UK or overseas, notably from physical, sexual and emotional abuse. This includes in relation to children, youth and more vulnerable adults, such as those with care and support needs (UK) or suffering from war-related trauma (overseas).
In the UK, we comply with all of our legal and ethical safeguarding requirements, consistent with statutory guidance. This means that we ensure that the necessary policies and procedures are in place, have staff dedicated to this role, and undertake regular training.
As a Charity, we often travel overseas to work with people who are by the very nature of their circumstances more vulnerable, such as those living in difficult post-conflict environments including refugees. Commonly, these people live in cultures where human life, dignity and respect are not valued or protected in the way that many of us are familiar with and would wish for. By operating in such contexts, we seek to be an agent of change, including preventing abuse through changed attitudes and behaviour, as well as assisting victims of abuse and trauma.
We take our overseas safeguarding responsibilities very seriously and are guided by the Common Humanitarian Standard as a voluntary, globally agreed standard applicable to non-governmental organisations engaged in broadly defined ‘humanitarian and development’ sector activities overseas. We have put in place a policy based on this standard which seeks to protect people – particularly children, at risk adults and beneficiaries of assistance – from any harm that may be caused due to their coming into contact with us. This includes harm arising from the conduct of Flame staff or personnel associated with us; and the design and implementation of our programmes and activities.
We seek to prevent any incidents from arising, including through our protocols, team recruitment process, training and reporting mechanisms. Additionally, where appropriate, we report potential concerns to local authorities, such as our in-country hosts, to alert them.
Anti-Bribery, Corruption and Money Laundering
We take a zero-tolerance approach to bribery, corruption and money laundering, respecting both UK legislation and local laws governing these issues. We are committed to acting professionally, fairly, honestly and with integrity in all our charitable business dealings and relationships wherever we operate. This includes the implementation and enforcement of effective systems to counter bribery, corruption and money laundering. We believe that it is the responsibility of everyone engaged with us – ranging from employees, contractors, volunteers, agents, sponsors to partners – to be proactive in ensuring that our policy is respected at all times.
In addition to undertaking all reasonable due diligence measures and safeguards – such as checks in relation to any potential partnerships or money transfers – in order not to facilitate any potential criminal act we undertake training with our staff on red flag indicators to be alert to. These include facilitation payments, kickbacks, gifts, hospitality and expenses, as well as donations we receive or give. We have record-keeping, internal controls and reporting procedures in place also. No member of staff is penalised for notifying us of potential risks or activities contrary to our policy and legal obligations, including through our whistle-blowing system.
Our central mission is to release God’s healing, forgiveness and reconciliation to individuals and their land, especially those suffering from the pain and trauma of war, terror or oppression. The very nature of our work means that we commonly operate in environments where people, organisations and often their governments do not share our values and ethics, including in respect to the value of human life and dignity, as well as legal compliance.
In response, as a charity, we take all necessary precautions and exercise all reasonable due diligence appropriate to particular contexts we are operating in to ensure that we neither promote or facilitate the commission of unlawful or otherwise wrongful acts or omissions, and that none of our activities cause harm to the people and communities that we are engaged with. It is our intention to always be a force for good, potentially in preventing the commission of violations through our teaching and training activities which seek to change culture and behaviour, as well as to bring healing to those who have been deeply wounded and violated.
More specifically, we have put a number of policies in place to assist us.
Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking
Modern slavery is a heinous crime and a morally reprehensible act that deprives a person’s liberty and dignity for another person’s gain. It is a real problem for millions of people around the world, including many in developed countries, who are being kept and exploited in various forms of slavery. Every organisation is at risk of being involved in this crime. In response, Flame International has a zero-tolerance approach to modern slavery and is fully committed to preventing slavery and human trafficking, as well as all forms of serious human rights violations, in our operations and throughout our supply chain.
The reality of the types of places that Flame International travels to is that these are often contexts in which significant human rights violations occur, including modern slavery and human trafficking. As a team, we may even be exposed to information about this including from victims or even perpetrators. That does not stop us from working in such environments; indeed, it is a key driver for us to operate in such contexts as a force for good, including seeking to prevent such future crimes and violations through bringing about positive change in culture, attitudes, behaviour and so forth.
That said, as a Christian organisation committed to the highest standard of integrity and ethics, we will not engage in any activity that risks compromising our core values, identity or reputation. In particular, we will never condone or facilitate the commission of these or other serious human rights violations and crimes.
To this end, we will only work with trusted suppliers and partners who share our values. We exercise appropriate levels of due diligence in relation to our supplier and partner selection and on-boarding procedure, such as in relation to their reputation, respect for the law, compliance with health, safety and environmental standards, references, as well as any other information considered relevant or appropriate. We have not been made aware of any allegations of human trafficking/slavery activities against any of our suppliers or partners, but if we were, then we would act immediately against the supplier and report it to the relevant authorities.
We also undertake a number of other measures. These include the undertaking of risk assessments of where and with whom we operate, the training of our staff, our whistle-blowing and reporting procedures, as well as our awareness raising activities.
Safeguarding (UK and overseas)
We take our safeguarding responsibilities very seriously to protect and not cause harm to anyone whether operating in the UK or overseas, notably from physical, sexual and emotional abuse. This includes in relation to children, youth and more vulnerable adults, such as those with care and support needs (UK) or suffering from war-related trauma (overseas).
In the UK, we comply with all of our legal and ethical safeguarding requirements, consistent with statutory guidance. This means that we ensure that the necessary policies and procedures are in place, have staff dedicated to this role, and undertake regular training.
As a Charity, we often travel overseas to work with people who are by the very nature of their circumstances more vulnerable, such as those living in difficult post-conflict environments including refugees. Commonly, these people live in cultures where human life, dignity and respect are not valued or protected in the way that many of us are familiar with and would wish for. By operating in such contexts, we seek to be an agent of change, including preventing abuse through changed attitudes and behaviour, as well as assisting victims of abuse and trauma.
We take our overseas safeguarding responsibilities very seriously and are guided by the Common Humanitarian Standard as a voluntary, globally agreed standard applicable to non-governmental organisations engaged in broadly defined ‘humanitarian and development’ sector activities overseas. We have put in place a policy based on this standard which seeks to protect people – particularly children, at risk adults and beneficiaries of assistance – from any harm that may be caused due to their coming into contact with us. This includes harm arising from the conduct of Flame staff or personnel associated with us; and the design and implementation of our programmes and activities.
We seek to prevent any incidents from arising, including through our protocols, team recruitment process, training and reporting mechanisms. Additionally, where appropriate, we report potential concerns to local authorities, such as our in-country hosts, to alert them.
Anti-Bribery, Corruption and Money Laundering
We take a zero-tolerance approach to bribery, corruption and money laundering, respecting both UK legislation and local laws governing these issues. We are committed to acting professionally, fairly, honestly and with integrity in all our charitable business dealings and relationships wherever we operate. This includes the implementation and enforcement of effective systems to counter bribery, corruption and money laundering. We believe that it is the responsibility of everyone engaged with us – ranging from employees, contractors, volunteers, agents, sponsors to partners – to be proactive in ensuring that our policy is respected at all times.
In addition to undertaking all reasonable due diligence measures and safeguards – such as checks in relation to any potential partnerships or money transfers – in order not to facilitate any potential criminal act we undertake training with our staff on red flag indicators to be alert to. These include facilitation payments, kickbacks, gifts, hospitality and expenses, as well as donations we receive or give. We have record-keeping, internal controls and reporting procedures in place also. No member of staff is penalised for notifying us of potential risks or activities contrary to our policy and legal obligations, including through our whistle-blowing system.