Safeguarding

Child Protection and Safeguarding

Every school must have a Child Protection Policy - often referred to as the school's Safeguarding Policy. The aim of the policy is to ensure that our school has effective measures in place to safeguard your children from the potential risk of harm and that the safety and well-being of the children are of the highest priority in all aspects of our school's work. Having the policy in place ensures that all members of the school community:

Are aware of their responsibilities in relation to safeguarding and child protection
Know the procedures that should be followed if they have a cause for concern
Know where to go to find additional information regarding safeguarding
Are aware of the key indicators relating to child abuse
Fully support the school's commitment to safeguarding and child protection.

Safeguarding is not just about protecting children from deliberate harm. It presents schools with a wide range of issues that they need to be prepared for.

Designated Safeguarding Leaders

If you have a concern about a child, particularly if you think s/he may be suffering or at risk of suffering harm, it is your responsibility to share the information promptly with the Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL): Mrs Hayward, Headteacher, or the Deputies: Mrs Darch, Assistant Headteacher or Mrs Goldsack, Pastoral Leader.

You can also call the number below:

Name: Children's First Response Hub

Call 01202 123334 from 8.30am to 5.15pm, Monday to Thursday and 8.30am to 4.45pm on a Friday

Out Of Hours – The Children’s Social Care Out of Hour’s service is the emergency response service for any child who is in crisis, needs urgent help or is at serious risk of significant harm. Hours of operation are 5pm to 9am from Monday to Friday, all day Saturdays and Sundays and all bank holidays, including Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.

Out of Hours Service on 01202 738256

In an emergency, or if you believe a child is at immediate risk of harm call the police on 999.

Adults in School

All adults who work in school have a responsibility to read and understand all safeguarding policies (see links at the bottom of this webpage). All adults are also expected to read the DfE guidance: Keeping children safe in education.

Operation Encompass

Operation Encompass directly connects the police with schools to ensure support for children living with domestic abuse in their homes when there has been a police attended incident of domestic abuse.

The purpose of the information sharing is to ensure schools have more information to support safeguarding of children. By knowing that the child has had this experience, the school is in a better position to understand and be supportive of the child's needs and possible behaviours.

Operation Encompass will complement existing safeguarding procedures.

Prevent Strategy

What is the Prevent strategy?

Prevent is a government strategy designed to stop people becoming terrorists or supporting terrorist or extremist causes.

The Prevent strategy covers all types of terrorism and extremism, including the extreme right wing, violent Islamist groups and other causes.

Educate Against Hate – https://educateagainsthate.com/

This is an important government website that provides advice and information about protecting children from extremism and radicalisation.

How does the Prevent strategy apply to schools?

From July 2015 all schools have a duty to safeguard children from radicalisation and extremism. This means we have a responsibility to protect children from extreme and violent views the same way we protect them from drugs or gang violence. The strategy is not just about discussing extremism itself, which may not be appropriate for younger children. However, it is about teaching children values such as tolerance and mutual respect. We also provide a safe place for pupils to discuss any issues so they better understand how to protect themselves.