A guide for mentors: Safe by Design
The rules that keep a young person and you safe.
What this guide covers
What this guide covers
What this guide covers
Where you meet
Meet only through the program
Book meetings in the platform and meet in public places.
- Meetings booked in the program
- Messages in the program, not private apps
- In person where other people are around
Five rules
Keep these five rules
Say them in your first meeting, so the young person knows them too.
- No private social media or messaging
- No meetings behind closed doors
- No car rides unless the program allows
- No gifts or money
- No photos of them posted online
Secrets
Say early what you cannot keep secret
Most things stay between you, but safety worries go to the program team.
- Will you tell anyone? Only if you or someone else might get hurt.
- Can I trust you? Yes. And I will always tell you first.
If they tell you
If they tell you something serious
Listen, take it seriously, and never promise to keep it secret.
- Listen calmly let them talk
- Take it seriously do not doubt or question them
- No promise of secrecy you may have to tell
- Say what happens next and who you will tell
What to say
Four sentences for that moment
You do not need perfect words; these four are enough.
- Thank you for telling me.
- This is not your fault.
- I need to tell the program team, to keep you safe.
- I will tell you what happens next.
Write it down
Write it down the same day
Note what was said and what you did, before you forget.
- What they said their words, not a summary
- When date and time
- Who you told name and time
Who you tell
Report it, do not investigate
Your job is to pass it on; trained people take it from there.
- Danger right now call your local emergency number
- Otherwise tell the program team the same day
- Your program’s policy laws differ by country, follow it
Signs of distress
Notice distress and point to help
Mental health first aid training helped people spot problems and offer help.
Mentornity in Claude and ChatGPT
Use Mentornity from Claude or ChatGPT
Ask in your own words; your assistant plans meetings, fills in tools and drafts messages.
Connect it once
Add Mentornity in Claude, ChatGPT or another MCP app, then sign in.
Ask in your own words
Plan meetings, fill in a tool or form, find a mentor, reply.
A preview before every change
The assistant shows what will happen; nothing changes until you say yes.
Disconnect any time
It sees only what you see; Settings shows what it did recently.
Connect it once
Add Mentornity in Claude, ChatGPT or another MCP app, then sign in.
Ask in your own words
Plan meetings, fill in a tool or form, find a mentor, reply.
A preview before every change
The assistant shows what will happen; nothing changes until you say yes.
Disconnect any time
It sees only what you see; Settings shows what it did recently.
Your goals and the Academy
Set goals, learn, earn a badge
Track your goals in My development and learn in Mentornity Academy, in your language.
Set your goals
Write what you want to reach and rate it at each check-in.
Badge courses for mentors
Seven skills with short practice, then a 20-question exam.
Guides for mentors and mentees
Research-based guides, a deck for every tool, and decks for your program.
Add your badge to LinkedIn
Pass the exam and share the badge page, valid for two years.
Set your goals
Write what you want to reach and rate it at each check-in.
Badge courses for mentors
Seven skills with short practice, then a 20-question exam.
Guides for mentors and mentees
Research-based guides, a deck for every tool, and decks for your program.
Add your badge to LinkedIn
Pass the exam and share the badge page, valid for two years.
Sources
The research behind this presentation
- HM Government (2015) What to do if you’re worried a child is being abused: Advice for practitioners Department for Education, London
- MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership (2015) Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring, Fourth Edition MENTOR, Boston
- Morgan, A. J., Ross, A. & Reavley, N. J. (2018) Systematic review and meta-analysis of Mental Health First Aid training: Effects on knowledge, stigma, and helping behaviour PLOS ONE, 13(5), e0197102
Read your program’s safety rules today
Find out who you report to and save their contact before your first meeting.