Introduction from Head teacher:
We have included some information on our website to help families understand the schools role and responsibility for Safeguarding and Child Protection.
Our intent is to work with families in a supportive judgement free way. We have a legal duty of care to safeguard and protect children. We recognise that we may have sensitive conversations with families and our intent will always be for the best interests of the child.
We strongly urge families to talk to us if they are finding things difficult or if things have gone wrong. This helps us work together with you, to plan what needs to happen.
In our school we use a ‘signs of safety approach’. This means we look for what is working really well and how we can build on this. It also means that we will be very honest with you about our worries.
We hope this information we have provided is helpful. If it raises any issues you would like to discuss, please come and see one of the staff listed in the information below.
If you have any worries about a child outside of school please contact CADS (Children's Advice and Duty Service) on 0344 800 8020.
What does ‘Safeguarding’ Children mean:
Safeguarding is what we do as a school to keep young people safe when in our care, it is a wide spectrum and within school it includes issues such as:
- School Security
- Preventing Radicalisation
- Health and Safety including First Aid
- Meeting the needs of pupils with medical conditions and/or Special Educational Needs
- Management of visitors and contractors
- Intimate Care
- Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)
- E-safety
- Educational visits
- Domestic violence
- Bullying
- Attendance
Child Protection is about what we do to prevent children being exposed to Child Abuse, and the actions that we will take if we suspect that a child is at risk of harm or has been harmed. We have included categories to help you understand.
What we will do as a school in relation to Child Protection:
We establish and maintain an ethos where children and families feel secure, are encouraged to talk, are listened to and are safe. To help us in this aim we:
- Have an onsite Family Support Worker (Mrs C. Glaister)
- Work closely with charities, services and outside agencies that can support families and actively seek their help.
- Encourage all staff to build strong relationships with children.
- Provide children with time and space to talk, and record these conversations.
- Deliver a curriculum that provided activities to develop children’s skills in identifying risks and staying safe.
- Using a High Five System where children identify 5 key adults to talk to if they feel worried or at risk.
If as a school we have concerns we will record, report and act on these immediately. All staff have a legal obligation to do this.
We have key staff members who take the lead on Safeguarding and they provide induction, training and support to other staff within school, families are also encouraged to talk to these professionals if they have any concerns.
These people are:
Mrs J. Hunter – Designated Safeguarding Lead
Mr Tyler Mayes- Alternative Designated Safeguarding Lead
Mrs G. Gray – Alternative Designated Safeguarding Lead
Miss S. Newton – Safeguarding Governor
Definition of Child Abuse:
“Child abuse is when a parent or caregiver, whether through action or failing to act, causes injury, death, emotional harm or risk of serious harm to a child” (www.childhelp.org/child-abuse)
Almost one in five children today has experienced serious physical abuse, sexual abuse or severe physical or emotional neglect at some point in their lifetime. (www.safenetwork.org)
Categories of Child Abuse:
Physical Abuse:
Causing a child a physical injury, including fabricating illness.
Key Features:
- Bruising
- Injuries in unusual areas
- Inconsistent explanations of injuries
One in 14 children in the UK has been physically abused … [and] on average, every week in the UK, at least one child is killed at the hands of another person.(www.safenetwork.org)
Emotional Abuse:
Persistent emotional maltreatment of a child which has an impact on their development. It can include bullying, making children feel worthless, unloved or inadequate, preventing children expressing themselves, ‘making fun’ of them as well as placing unrealistic age related expectations on children. Social interactions and opportunities to learn and explore may be prevented. It can also include seeing or hearing the ill treatment of others.
Key Features:
- Development delay
- Low self esteem
- Inappropriate emotional responses
Around one in five children in the UK has been exposed to domestic violence. (www.safenetwork.org)
Sexual Abuse:
Forcing or enticing children to engage in sexual activities. It can involve physical contact, as well as non contact activities such as watching sexual activities take place.
Key Features:
- Sexually explicit behaviour
- Self harming
- Inappropriate sexualised conduct
There were a total of 21,493 sexual offences against children recorded by police in the UK in 2011/12 (www.safenetwork.org)
Neglect
A persistent failure to meet a child’s basic physical or physiological needs for example inadequate food, clothing or shelter. It also includes failing to protect a child from physical or emotional harm.
Key Features:
- Frequent school absence
- Poor health including dental hygiene or inadequate dietary needs being met.
- Emotional needs beyond what may be expected
- Inadequate clothing for childs age, size, time of year etc.
- Lack of parental engagement with outside agencies and professionals.
One in 10 children in the UK has been neglected. (www.safenetwork.org)
Extremism & radicalisation - The Prevent Strategy
Extremism is the vocal or active opposition to fundamental British values, including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs. We also include in our definition of extremism, calls for the death of members of our armed forces.
Radicalisation refers to the process by which a person comes to support terrorism and extremist ideologies associated with terrorist groups.
Vulnerable Groups Advice Sheet
Our Safeguarding Policy can be found below
WHOLE SCHOOL POLICY FOR SAFEGUARDING Sept 2023
(This document now includes all of the relevant Appendices)
Places for Support:
- www.norfolklscb.org – Norfolk Safeguarding Children Board
- www.safenetwork.org.uk – National Safeguarding Unit
- www.norfolk.police.uk – Norfolk Police
- www.nspcc.org.uk – National Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Children
- www.actionforchildren.org.uk – Action for Children
- www.leewaysupport.org – Leeway, Domestic violence and Abuse Service
- www.victimsupport.org.uk – Victim Support
- www.magdalenegroup.org/rose-project/ – ROSE Project Reaching Out on Sexual Exploitation
- www.paceuk.info – PACE Parents Against Child Exploitation
- www.napac.org.uk – NAPAC National Association for People
Abused in Childhood - www.nspcc.org.uk/ – NSPCC Helpline
- www.norfolk.gov.uk/mash – Multi-agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH)
- www.theharbourcentre.co.uk/ – The Harbour Centre Sexual Abuse Referral Centre
- www.ceop.police.uk/contact-us/ – CEOP Child Exploitation Online Protection
- www.barnardos.org.uk – Barnardo’s
- https://www.disrespectnobody.co.uk/ - Home office advice on healthy relationships
Domestic Violence – Operation Encompass:
We are working in partnership with Norfolk Constabulary and Norfolk Children’s Services to identify and provide appropriate support to pupils who have experienced domestic violence in their household; this scheme is called Operation Encompass.
In order to achieve this, Norfolk Multi-agency Safeguarding Hub will share police information of all domestic incidents where one of our pupils has been present with the Designated Safeguarding Lead(s). On receipt of any information, the Designated Safeguarding Lead will decide on the appropriate support the child requires, this could be silent or overt. All information sharing and resulting actions will be undertaken in accordance with the ‘Norfolk Joint Agency Protocol for Domestic Abuse – Notifications to Schools’.
