SAFEGUARDING AND CHILD PROTECTION POLICY
Reviewed policy agreed by GB on: Summer 2016Reviewed policy shared with staff on: Summer 2016
Policy to be reviewed again on: Summer 2017
Frequency of review: Annually
Committee responsible for review: Policy Committee
(This update Autumn 2016 to reflect changes to ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’ Sept 2016)
Designated Senior Person for Child Protection:
Co-Headteachers : Carolyn Vagg and Rachel Harrison
Deputy Headteachers : Jude McPartlan, Claire Barnes and Claire Bayfield
Head of Early Years: Joanna Reay
Named Governor for Child Protection:
Kafayat Eletu
Child Protection Statement
We recognise our moral and statutory responsibility to safeguard and promote the welfare of all pupils. We endeavour to provide a safe and welcoming environment where children are respected, valued and their voice heard. We are alert to the signs of abuse and follow our procedures to ensure that children receive effective support, protection and justice.
Introduction
The procedures contained in this policy apply to all staff and governors and are consistent with those of the Greenwich Safeguarding Children’s Board (GSCB) and locally agreed procedures. These procedures will also be a focus in the Induction programme for all new staff
They will be shared, as a matter of course, with students on placement and Agency Staff .
Willow Dene takes seriously its responsibility to protect and safeguard the children in its care and follows the guidance of “Working Together to Safeguard Children March 2015” and “Keeping Children Safe in Education” September 2016, and Section 175 of the Education Act, 2002 which requires ;
“governing bodies of maintained schools and FE colleges to make arrangements to ensure that their functions are carried out with a view to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children.”
CONTENTS
· Purpose and Aims
· Statutory Framework
· Safeguarding Training
· The Head Teacher’s Roles & Responsibilities re Safeguarding
· Designated Senior Person for Child Protection’s Roles & Responsibilities
· The Governing Body’s Roles and Responsibilities re Safeguarding
· The Roles & Responsibilities of all Staff within School
· Greenwich Early Help Guidance
· When to be concerned (including the types of abuse covered the signs of abuse)
· Dealing with a Disclosure (including protocol for staff when there are allegations or incidents of abuse; includes a requirement for all verbal notifications to the designated person for safeguarding to be confirmed by dated written communication)
· Confidentiality
· Communication with Parents
· Record Keeping
· Dealing with Allegations against School Staff / Volunteers
· Monitoring and Evaluation
· Appendices:
Appendix 1: Types and Indicators of Abuse
Appendix 2: Record Keeping and Referral Guidance
Appendix 3: Body Map
Appendix 4: Keeping Children Safe in Education
Appendix 5: Initial Concern - safeguarding Form
Appendix 6: Designated Safeguarding Officer (Schools)
flow chart
1 Purpose and Aims
1.1 Willow Dene School fully recognises its responsibilities for safeguarding children including those in need of protection.
1.2 Our policy applies to all staff, governors, students on placement and volunteers working in the school.
1.3 There are five main elements to our policy:
· Ensuring we practise safe recruitment in line with national legislation by using at least one suitably trained recruiter on all interview panels and by checking the suitability of staff and volunteers to work with children and ensuring any unsuitable behaviour is reported and managed using the Allegations Management procedures
· Raising awareness of child protection issues and enabling/equipping children with the skills needed to keep them safe
· Developing and then implementing procedures for identifying and reporting cases, or suspected cases, of abuse
· Supporting pupils who have been abused, or at risk of abuse, in accordance with his/her agreed child protection plan
· Establishing a safe environment in which children can learn and develop.
1.4 We recognise that, because of our close day-to-day contact with children and the unique nature of our relationships with children and their families/carers, school staff are well-placed to observe the outward signs of abuse. The school will therefore:
· Establish and maintain an environment where children feel secure, are supported to communicate, and are listened to
· Ensure children know that, at Willow Dene, pupil voice is respected, heard and responded to and that any adult in the school can be approached if they are worried
· Include opportunities across the curriculum for children to develop the skills they need to recognise and stay safe from abuse.
2 Statutory Framework
2.1 In order to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, the school will act in accordance with the following legislation and guidance:
· The Children Act 1989 2004
· The Education Act 2002 (section 175)
· The Education (Pupil Information) (England) Regulations 2005
· Keeping Children Safe in Education (DfE 2016)
· Dealing with Allegations of Abuse Against Teachers and Other Staff
· Working Together to Safeguard Children (DfE, 2015)
· Procedures set out by the Greenwich Safeguarding Children Board.
2.2 More specifically, we will:
· Appoint a minimum of two Designated Senior Persons (DSP) for child protection (currently we have 6) who have received appropriate training and support for their roles
· Ensure we have a nominated governor responsible for child protection (currently Kafayat Eletu (Chair)
· Ensure every member of staff (including temporary and supply staff and volunteers) and governing body knows the name and role of the Designated Senior Persons for safeguarding/child protection
· Ensure all staff and volunteers understand their responsibilities in being alert to the signs of abuse and responsibility for referring any concerns to the Designated Senior Person for safeguarding
· Ensure that there is always a contactable DSP by implementing a cascade system in the unlikely event that all DSPs are off-site when a safeguarding concern is raised which needs immediate attention
The PAO will contact members of the DSP team in turn starting with the Co-Headteachers – Rachel Harrison and Carolyn Vagg, then Deputy Headteachers – Jude McPartlan, Claire Barnes, Claire Bayfield and finally EYFS Leader – Joanna Reay-Edwards. As soon as the PAO has made contact the DSP will return to school immediately
· Ensure that parents have an understanding of the responsibility placed on the school and staff for child protection by setting out its obligations in the school prospectus/website
· Notify Social Care immediately (on the first day of absence) if there is an unexplained absence of a child on a Child Protection Plan
· Contact the child’s social worker directly if there is an unexplained absence of a child who is Looked After. This may then trigger actions identified in the “Joint Police and Social Care Protocol for Dealing with Children Missing from Care”
· Develop effective links with relevant agencies and co-operate as required with their enquiries regarding child protection matters including attendance at case conferences
· Keep detailed, accurate, secure written records of concerns about children, even where there is no need to refer the matter immediately
· Ensure all safeguarding and child protection records are kept securely, separate from the main pupil file, and in locked locations
· Follow the procedures set out in section 14 of this document, if an allegation is made against a member of staff or volunteer
· Ensure safe recruitment practices are always followed and that training is regularly updated
3 Safeguarding Training
3.1 The Co-Head Teachers will undertake training on child protection at least once every year in accordance with statutory requirements). Because the Co-Head Teachers are also DSPs then they both will meet the training requirements set out in 3.2 below
3.2 The Designated Senior Persons (DSP) will initially attend the GSCB Level 2 „’Working Together to Safeguard Children‟ training, and then undertake refresher safeguarding training at least every two years (statutory requirement)
3.3 There are currently 6 DSPs which eliminates the need to
appoint Deputy DSPs. As Willow Dene is a school on two sites
there will always be a DSP who is contactable if not present
3.4 Any newly appointed DSP will attend the GSCB Level 2 ‘Working Together to Safeguard Children‟ training and the local DSP training before taking lead responsibility for safeguarding
3.5 The designated Governor for Safeguarding and Child Protection will undertake governor safeguarding training at least once every two years. In addition all governors will be encouraged to do so
3.6 All members of staff will receive training on child protection annually (statutory requirement)
All existing staff members who were employees prior to 2016 and who received safeguarding updates 3-yearly will now have their training refreshed on a rolling programme, starting with INSET in February 2017 and through allocated time on the QA schedule in Spring and Summer terms 2017 until new requirements are met. Every INSET day will have designated time allocated to safeguarding refreshers including FGM, Prevent and e-safety
3.7 All new members of staff will receive safeguarding/child protection training as part of their induction programme
3.8 Briefings and updates on child protection and safeguarding procedures will be provided on a regular basis, at least annually, but more frequently when necessary, to ensure that all members of staff are familiar with any changes to the school policy as they occur
3.9 At least one member of every appointments panel will have gained accreditation through Safer Recruitment training in accordance with statutory requirements. The school will ensure that there are always sufficient numbers of suitably trained staff or governors in post.
Training Record as listed below :
Training / Staff name / Date / NotesDesignated Safeguarding
Persons / John Camp
Carolyn Vagg
Rachel Harrison / January 2017
January 2017
May 2015
DSP / Jude McPartlan / January 2015
DSP / Claire Barnes / May 2015
DSP / Claire Bayfield / May 2016
DSP / Joanna Reay / January 2017
Teacher (Summer Playscheme) / Charlie Walsh / July 2016
DSP Looked After Children / Jude McPartlan / April 2016
Safer Recruitment / Carolyn Vagg
Jude McPartlan
Claire Barnes
Rachel Harrison
Claire Bayfield / June 2015
June 2014
June 2015
February 2017
February 2017
Safeguarding Covering General Information (Inset) / INSET
Staff Refresher / Sept 2015
June 2016
September 16 / All new starters attend safeguarding induction with Carolyn Vagg prior to attending Safeguarding with Ken Palmer.
Safeguarding – FGM, Forced Marriage, CSE etc. / Carolyn Vagg
Teachers & STAs / June 2015
June 2016
September 16 / To be included in all safeguarding induction
PREVENT / Carolyn Vagg
Jude McPartlan / December 2015
December 2015 / To be included in all safeguarding induction
Advanced Safeguarding / Carolyn Vagg / October 2013
E-Safety Training / Whole School / January 2014 / To be included in all safeguarding induction
First Aid At Work / Lisa Mullender
Maggie Fiveash
Cathie Sandford-Smith
Rose Young
Tracey Cottle
Nicky Barber
Jane Herron
Leighann Hickmott
Dinah Stone
Shelley Arnott
John Costi
Colleen Costi
Lorna Boothe
Sophie Downham
Jodie De-Riter
David Risby
Mark Butler / November 2015
May 2016
March 2015
July 2016
March 2014
March 2015
April 2015
April 2015
May 2016
April 2015
November 2015
March 2016
October 2013
November 2015
July 2015
April 2016
June 2016 / Renewal November 2016
Paediatric First Aid
Foundation Stage / Lisa Mullender
Maggie Fiveash
Cathie Sandford-Smith
Colleen Costi
Rose Young
Lorna Boothe
Tracey Cottle
Nicky Barber
Jane Herron
Leighann Hickmott
Dinah Stone
Shelley Arnott
Chantelle Deruelle
Tracey Sandford
Helen Fincham
Debra Norman
Wendy Bailey
Jackie Hogarth
Patience Sackey
Debbie Mack
Laura Evennett
John Costi
Sophie Downham
Jodie De-Riter
Bukky Adebayo
Dusanka Cicic
Debbie Donovan
Lynda Griffiths
Marion Holdsworth
Kellie McSweeney
Faith Yahya
Karen Fleming
Theresa Williams / March 2015
June 2016
March 2015
September 2013
March 2015
November 2013
February 2014
March 2015
March 2015
March 2015
July 2015
July 2015
February 2014
May 2016
May 2016
May 2016
May 2016
May 2016
May 2016
May 2016
February 2014
July 2015
October 2015
October 2015
February 2014
February 2014
February 2014
February 2014
February 2014
February 2014
February 2014
March 2015
February 2016 / Renewal October 2016
Renewal October 2016
4 The Head Teacher’s Roles and Responsibilities re: Safeguarding
4.1 In line with the statutory guidance (DfES, 2015), the Head Teacher will ensure that:
· “the policies and procedures adopted by the governing body are fully implemented, and followed by all staff;
· sufficient resources and time are allocated to enable the designated person and other staff to discharge their responsibilities, including taking part in strategy discussions and other interagency meetings, and contributing to the assessment of children; and
· all staff and volunteers feel able to raise concerns about poor or unsafe practice with regard to children, and such concerns are addressed sensitively and effectively in a timely manner in accordance with agreed whistle blowing policies, where appropriate.”
5 The Designated Senior Person for Child Protection’s Roles & Responsibilities
5.1 Broad areas of responsibility.
The Designated Senior Persons for child protection will …
· have the status and authority within the school management structure to carry out the duties of the post including committing resources and where appropriate directing other staff. At Willow Dene, with reference to the size and complexity of the school, there are six DSPs (Carolyn Vagg and Rachel Harrison, Jude McPartlan, Claire Barnes and Claire Bayfield)
· Recognise how to identify signs of abuse and neglect and know when it is appropriate to make a referral to other agencies.
· Refer cases of suspected abuse or allegations to the relevant statutory agencies (children’s social care (MASH Team) or the police). The DSP will seek initial advice from the DSO (Schools) (020 8921 4438) or the consultation line (020 8921 2267) if there is any doubt
· Act as a source of support, advice and expertise to staff at Willow Dene when deciding whether and when to make a referral to relevant statutory agencies.
· Seek advice from and share information with relevant statutory agencies before seeking consent or informing parents of a referral. Where practicable, concerns will be discussed with the family and agreement sought for a referral to children’s services unless this may, either by delay or the behavioural response it prompts, place the child at risk of significant harm.