1. Why we have visits, and why they have rules
1.1 Meeting the children you support is Saath Foundation's strongest act of transparency. You see with your own eyes where your money goes, and children see that people stand with them.
1.2 Research on sponsorship and on documented abuse cases is clear: the harm comes from unsupervised, repeated or private access to children by trusted adults. These rules keep visits safe, dignified and good for the child. They protect you, too.
1.3 This policy applies with the Visitor Code of Conduct, the Child Protection Policy and the Donor Terms. The numbered defaults below were approved by the founder on 23 September 2026. Each is a best-practice design choice, not a legal requirement, unless marked.
2. Two kinds of visit
| Saath Milan (the default) | Individual visit (by request) | |
|---|---|---|
| What | A group day of shared activities (games, art, reading) with several children, families and Saathis | One visitor party meets one child |
| Where | A venue Saath Foundation hires for that event | A venue Saath Foundation hires for that visit |
| Who can come | Any screened Saathi with a confirmed contribution to any program, and approved CSR representatives (3.1.3) | A Saathi of that child who meets the eligibility rule |
| Length | Up to 3 hours | Up to 2 hours |
| Notice | Register at least 3 weeks before | Request at least 8 weeks before |
| Alternative | — | A staff-hosted video call |
3. The rules (approved defaults)
3.1 Eligibility (Default 1)
3.1.1 A first-time Saathi with a confirmed contribution to any Saath Foundation program may attend a Saath Milan after passing screening (3.5).
3.1.2 An individual visit needs 12 months of continuous support of that child and at least one Saath Milan attended without incident. In the first 12 months, Saath Milan only.
3.1.3 CSR or group representatives may attend a Saath Milan when approved by the Safeguarding Officer and screened like any visitor.
3.2 Frequency (Default 2)
Each child has at most 3 contact events with contributors a year: up to 2 Saath Milan days and 1 individual visit, at least 8 weeks apart. The platform counts these per child, across all their Saathis, so a child with many Saathis is not visited more often.
3.3 Length and timing (Default 3)
Individual visits last no more than 2 hours and Saath Milan days no more than 3 hours. Visits happen only during Saath Foundation's working hours, and never during school hours on a school day.
3.4 Notice (Default 4)
Register for a Saath Milan at least 3 weeks ahead. Request an individual visit at least 8 weeks ahead. This gives time for police verification, consent conversations with the family and staff rostering.
3.5 Screening (Default 5)
Every adult who attends (18 or over):
- (a) shows original photo ID at every visit, gives a copy that Saath Foundation keeps, and signs the visitors register;
- (b) provides a state police character or verification certificate issued within the last 12 months. NRIs and foreign nationals provide a police clearance from their country of residence (for example a DBS or equivalent check);
- (c) signs a self-declaration that they have never been convicted of, and are not named as an accused in any FIR, charge sheet or pending case for, any offence against a child or a vulnerable adult, or any sexual offence, in India or elsewhere, and have never been dismissed or asked to leave a role with children over a safeguarding concern;
- (d) gives two references from people who are not relatives (the same standard as volunteers, CPP §7.3(c));
- (e) completes the orientation and quiz (Visitor Code of Conduct, section B);
- (f) signs the Visitor Code of Conduct.
Screening is renewed every 12 months. A visitor who refuses to give their details is not admitted.
3.6 Household members (Defaults 6 and 21)
3.6.1 Visitors declare, when booking, every adult in their household who will attend. Adults living with the visitor may not attend unless they are screened too.
3.6.2 Accompanying children (under 18) may attend Saath Milan only. They sign a child-friendly version of the code and stay with their own parent the whole time.
3.6.3 Foreign visitors provide a check from their home country.
3.7 Gifts (Default 7)
3.7.1 One gift per child per visit, worth no more than ₹500 retail, new, and shareable within the family (for example books, art supplies, a board game).
3.7.2 Hand the gift to Saath Foundation staff at least 3 days before the visit for checking. Staff give it to the child at the visit.
3.7.3 Not allowed: cash, gift cards, phones, SIM cards, tablets, smartwatches, jewellery, clothes that need fitting, cosmetics, food outside the program, and anything bearing your contact details.
3.7.4 At Saath Milan, gifts are the same for every child, or go to a common pool.
3.8 Money (Default 8)
No cash, loans or transfers (including UPI) to the child or family, ever. If you want to help more, give to Saath Foundation. Your gift is used under the Donor Terms and is never linked to a visit.
3.9 Contact details (Default 9)
3.9.1 No exchange of phone numbers, email, social-media handles, home addresses or UPI IDs, in either direction.
3.9.2 Staff never tell visitors a child's surname, address or the guardian's phone number, and never give the visitor's details to the family.
3.9.3 You will not see the child's school. Saath Foundation never shows a school's name to a Saathi who has met the child, or for a child who lives in a partner home. You must never approach or contact the school, the partner home, the child or the family outside Saath Foundation.
3.9.4 Any attempt at later contact is reported to the Safeguarding Officer and leads to suspension.
3.10 Photos (Default 10)
3.10.1 Saath Foundation staff take photos, with the guardian's consent and the child's agreement for each use. Saath Foundation shares them with you through your donor panel. Photos of a child who lives in a partner home are shared with you only if the home's written permission covers sharing with visitors. Metadata and location data are stripped.
3.10.2 No personal photos, video or audio by visitors at individual visits.
3.10.3 At a Saath Milan, Saath Foundation staff take one group photo, at a set moment. It shows only children whose permission covers it, or is taken from behind.
3.10.4 Photos never show school names, uniforms, homes or neighbourhood signs.
3.11 Social media (Default 11)
Visitors may post no photo, name, age or location of any child, and may not tag or post about a Saath Foundation event in real time. A breach means removal from Meet Your Saathi.
3.12 Venue: a hired venue only (Default 12, adapted)
3.12.1 All visits take place at a venue Saath Foundation hires for that event or visit (a vetted public space, never a home or school). Saath Foundation has no permanent centre. The exact venue appears in the donor panel after the visit is confirmed, and is never sent by email, WhatsApp or SMS.
3.12.2 Never at the child's home, the child's school, a partner home, a restaurant, a hotel, a park, a vehicle, or the visitor's home or office. There are no exceptions to this, including at a family's request.
3.12.3 The meeting room has visual openness (a glass panel or an open door), and staff keep line of sight at all times.
3.12.4 Staff never bring the child to the visitor, and visitors never transport the child or family. The child travels to the venue with their guardian or partner-home staff. Saath Foundation arranges and pays for the child's and guardian's travel to the venue, from Indian funds.
3.12.5 For a child who lives in a partner home, the home's written permission is obtained before the child leaves the home for the visit, and a partner-home staff member or caseworker accompanies the child.
3.13 Supervision (Default 13)
3.13.1 Individual visit: at least 1 trained Saath Foundation staff member plus the child's guardian (or partner-home caseworker), for one visitor party of at most 3 adults.
3.13.2 Saath Milan: at least 1 trained staff member for every 3 visitor parties, plus 1 designated safeguarding lead on site, plus 1 "free floater" who watches for anyone alone with a child and handles toilet trips.
3.13.3 A visit does not start, or stops, if the ratio is not met.
3.14 Toilets and breaks (Default 14)
Visitors never take children to the toilet. Staff or guardians do.
3.15 The child's agreement (Default 15)
3.15.1 Staff ask the child privately, away from the visitor, 24–48 hours before the visit, and again on the day, whether they want to go ahead.
3.15.2 A "no", or visible reluctance, cancels or ends the visit. The visitor is told only that "the child isn't available". The child is never told the visitor is disappointed.
3.15.3 A child's support is never linked to their decision, and the family is told this in writing.
3.16 Support never depends on visits (Default 16)
Saath Foundation tells guardians in writing that funding never depends on visits, gifts or the child's behaviour, and that the family may refuse any visit without giving a reason.
3.17 When a sponsorship ends (Default 17)
If a Saathi stops supporting a child, staff explain it to the child. A last visit is never framed as the visitor's personal goodbye.
3.18 After every visit (Default 18)
3.18.1 The staff member files a visit report within 48 hours: who attended, the child's agreement, gifts handed over, photos taken (by ID), any boundary breach, anything the child said that matters, and their sign-off.
3.18.2 The Safeguarding Officer reviews every report.
3.18.3 Staff follow up with the child and guardian within 7 days ("How did you feel about the visit?").
3.18.4 The visitor receives a feedback form.
3.19 Sanctions (Default 19)
| Breach | Consequence |
|---|---|
| Minor lapse (for example a photo taken without permission, deleted on request) | Written warning |
| Attempted contact, cash or transfer, being alone with a child, posting online, approaching the school, home, child or family | Immediate suspension from Meet Your Saathi and, for contact breaches, from the Rupee Trail |
| Confirmed serious breach | Permanent removal |
| Possible offence, or where the law requires | Report to police, SJPU or CWC |
The Safeguarding Officer decides. The visitor may ask for a review under the Grievance Redressal Policy, but a suspension stays in place during the review.
3.20 Independent review (Default 20)
Meet Your Saathi is reviewed every year by an external safeguarding reviewer, with a self-audit. Children and guardians can give feedback through a channel that does not go through the staff who run visits: after every visit and Saath Milan, the guardian gets a feedback card and a stamped envelope addressed to the safeguarding trustee, Anil Kumar Agrawal, at our registered office, and a sealed feedback box stands at every Saath Milan. Only the safeguarding trustee opens them. A child can also call Childline on 1098, or 112 in an emergency, at any time.
3.21 Registry and home-country checks (Default 21)
See 3.6. Foreign visitors provide a check from their home country.
3.22 No performances (Default 22)
Children never perform for visitors, give thank-you speeches, or are "presented". Activities are shared and optional.
3.23 Video calls instead (Default 23)
A Saathi may choose a staff-hosted video call instead of an individual visit: a Saath Foundation staff member and the guardian are present with the child, on a Saath Foundation device, on a Saath Foundation account. The visitor may not record or screenshot the call. The same eligibility, frequency, agreement and conduct rules apply.
3.24 Legal review (Default 24)
Our lawyer reviewed this policy against the JJ Act and its rules, the POCSO reporting duties and the DPDP Act before we published it. We review it again whenever those laws or the way Saath Foundation works change.
4. How to book
1. Account → Meet Your Saathi → Request. The platform checks eligibility, frequency and notice automatically. 2. Complete or renew screening (3.5). 3. Complete the orientation (about 45–60 minutes before your first visit; a 15-minute refresher before each individual visit). 4. Saath Foundation asks the guardian for consent and the child for their agreement. For a partner-home child, Saath Foundation asks the home for written permission. 5. The Safeguarding Officer approves the booking. 6. You receive a confirmation of the date and time. The venue and the name of the staff lead appear in your donor panel only, never in an email or message. Visit dates are never shared with anyone else.
Saath Foundation may decline or cancel any visit to protect a child, without giving a reason.
5. Records
Saath Foundation deletes ID copies and police certificates 1 year after the check they proved runs out. The visitors register (who met which child, and when), visit reports and consent records are safeguarding records: they are kept for 7 years after the child turns 18, or longer while a concern or case is open. Feedback is kept as the Privacy Policy sets out.