Date Approved by the Board of Governors: 17 October 2016
Date to be reviewed by: Annually
Child Protection Policy
Child Protection Policy
The aim of this policy in Carnalridge Primary School is to promote the welfare of all the pupils who attend the school. This duty rests with all members of staff, teaching and non-teaching and implicit in it, is the assumption that the conduct of the school staff (Appendix 1) towards their pupils is above reproach.
The designated teacher, whose responsibility it is to oversee the implementation of this policy is Mrs Murray and the deputy-designated teacher is Mrs Harris.
Current documents underpinning this policy are;
· All relevant and current legislation in relation to child protection
(Pastoral Care in school-CHILD PROTECTION 1999/10)
· The Children (Northern Ireland) Order, Promoting Positive Teaching
· Child Protection video
· The inter-agency Child Protection procedures, (Co-operating to safeguard Children, Human Right Awareness for School managers-Children’s Law Centre)
· Human Rights Act 1998, Safe Handling, Welfare and Protection of Pupils part 4 of the Education Order 2003/13
· ACPC Regional Policy and Procedures 2005
· UNCRC Articles 3, 12, and 19
· Sexual Offences Act (2003 Sexual Offences Act and 2008 Sexual Offences (NI) Act)
We in Carnalridge Primary have taken many steps to safeguard the children in our care e.g.
o appointment of all staff including volunteers is subject to recruitment procedures, which include a police check
o the advice of the NEELB on all matters of health and safety is adhered to
o the school invites parents to provide detailed information about their child
including health problems, emergency contact numbers, the family GP etc. (Appendix 2)
o information regarding the welfare of each pupil is shared amongst teachers when appropriate
o numerous first aid boxes are in school
o staff undertake training for children who have epipen and diabetes
o we keep parents informed through our reporting procedures
o we seek parental consent on a number of issues
o if a child has an accident or is sick in school we pass this information on to the parents, via the Accident/Sickness report sheet, (Appendix 3)
o a security system also ensures that access to the classrooms is closely monitored
o we have regular fire drills
o we have an anti-bullying policy
We take the safety of the children in our care to be of the upmost importance and as a staff take pride in our Pastoral Care arrangements.
As a staff we have a positive approach to those in our care and we are alert to the risk of emotional abuse such as persistent sarcasm, verbal bullying or severe and persistent negative comments or actions. We are constantly encouraged to reflect on every aspect of our contact with our children that might give rise to perceptions or allegations of this form of abuse. We, as a staff have therefore decided not to be in a 1-to-1 situation with a child unless in view of a window or open door.
It is unrealistic to suggest that teachers should touch children only in an emergency. Particularly with the younger children, touching them is inevitable and can give welcome reassurance to the child. However we are aware that our unions suggest a “no touching policy” and that even perfectly innocent actions can sometimes be misconstrued. There may be times when touching a child may be necessary;
- Educationally-to give assistance with a task, especially with younger children
- Emotionally e.g. when a reassuring pat on the back is required
- Physically-in response to a child’s needs. Depending on the age and special needs of a child we may from time to time have a child who has particular short term requirements and parents would be informed through our accident/sickness form, or we have a child who has longer term requirements and we would seek an Intimate Care Permission Slip (Appendix 4) signed by the parent/guardian who has responsibility for the child. Incidents would also be noted on the Intimate Care Form (Appendix 5) and retained in school. When such situations arise it requires 2 adults, one to help the child (if they need help) whilst the other adult is on the other side of the door
- Safe Handling to prevent a child causing damage to himself, others or property.
The principal and the staff of Carnalridge Primary School, will take all reasonable steps to provide a safe environment for the pupils, either on the school premises or when in charge of pupils on an educational outing or visit.
What is child abuse?
Definition of child abuse
“Child abuse occurs when a child is neglected, harmed or not provided with proper care. Children may be abused in many settings, by those known to them, or more rarely, by a stranger. There are different types of abuse and a child may suffer more than one of them…”
ACPC Regional Policy and Procedures 2005 Ch 2
Categories of abuse
Children may be abused by a parent, a sibling or other relative, a carer (i.e. a person who has actual custody of a child such as a foster parent or staff member in a residential home), an acquaintance or a stranger, who may be an adult or a young person. The abuse may be the result of a deliberate act or of a failure on the part of a parent or carer to act or to provide proper care or both. The abuse may take a number of forms including;
Neglect:
· Neglect is the persistent failure to meet a child’s physical, emotional and/or psychological needs, likely to cause significant harm
· It may involve a parent or carer failing to provide adequate food, shelter and clothing, failing to protect a child from physical harm or danger, failing to ensure access to medical care or treatment, lack of stimulation or lack of supervision
· It may also include non-organic failure to thrive.
Physical abuse:
Physical abuse is the deliberate physical injury to a child, or the wilful or neglectful failure to prevent physical injury or suffering.
· This may include hitting, shaking, throwing, poisoning, burning or scalding, drowning, suffocation, confinement to a room or cot, or inappropriate giving drugs to control behaviour.
ACPC Regional Policy and Procedures 2005
Sexual abuse:
Sexual abuse involves forcing or enticing a child to take part in sexual activities. The activities may involve physical contact, including penetrative or non- penetrative acts.
· They may include non contact activities such as involving children in looking at, or in the production of, pornographic material or watching sexual activities, or encouraging children to behave in sexually inappropriate ways.
ACPC Regional Policy and Procedures 2005
Emotional abuse:
· It may involve causing a child to feel frightened or in danger, or the exploitation or corruption of a child
· Some level of emotional abuse is involved in all types of ill treatment of a child, though it may occur alone
· Domestic violence, adult mental health problems and parental substance misuse may expose a child to emotional harm.
ACPC Regional Policy and Procedures 2005
Children in Need:
In certain circumstances social, medical or educational assessment may indicate that a child is in need of additional support and referral can be made with parents consent to Social Services using the UNOCINI form.
The Children (NI) Order 1995 (Article 17) states that a child shall be deemed to be in need if:
• he is unlikely to achieve or maintain, or to have the opportunity of achieving or maintaining, a reasonable standard of health or development without the provision for him of services by an authority under this Part;
• his health or development is likely to be significantly impaired, or further impaired without the provision for him of such services; or
• he is disabled, and ‘family’, in relation to such a child, includes any person who has parental responsibility for the child and any other person with whom he has been living.
These types of abuse apply equally to children with disabilities but the abuse may take slightly different forms, e.g. lack of supervision or the use of physical restraints such as being confined to a wheelchair or bed.
Signs of abuse
Our staff because of their day-to-day contact with the children can readily observe outward symptoms of abnormality or change in appearance, behaviour, learning pattern or development. We understand such symptoms may be due to a variety of other causes e.g. disruption at home, bereavement etc. However they may be due to child abuse.
Physical Injury
Most injuries to children are accidental and can be explained simply. Children receive bumps and bruises as a result of the rough and tumble of normal play. It is important to remain aware however that injuries may not have been accidental. The presence of the following factors should raise concern;
- hand slap/belt mark
- black eyes/black ear
- gripping bruises
- burn or bite marks
- unwillingness to undress in front of others
- failure to reach potential
along with;
- where the explanation is not consistent with the injury or stage of development
- where there are changes of explanation or no explanation
- where there is an unreasonable delay in seeking medical advice
- where there is a history of frequently repeated injury even though the explanation of each individual occurrence appears adequate. This may indicate a lack of supervision or possible medical problems
- where there are bruises of different ages on the child at any one time, other than on the common sites of accidental injury on a child of that age.
Neglect
Neglect results from the persistent failure to meet the basic needs of the child. This may include failure to provide food, warmth, clothing, appropriate stimulation and consistent caretaking, resulting in impairment of the child’s health or development.
The signs of neglect may include;
- low weight for height (medical investigations have excluded reason for problem)
- listlessness
- dirty, cold, hungry
- under achievement at school
- lack of supervision at home
- poor peer group relationships but attention seeking from adults
Other factors to be borne in mind are the state of housing and physical environment.
Emotional abuse
There are elements of emotional harm in all forms of abuse. Signs of emotional abuse may include;
- stunted growth or eating disturbances
- over passivity, lack of curiosity and natural exploratory behaviour
- hyperactivity
- loss of self-esteem and feeling of worthlessness
- chronically dirty, cold or hungry
- fearful or unhappy and have an impaired ability for enjoyment or play.
Sexual abuse
Many of the signs and behaviours associated with sexual abuse can be found in some medical or emotional conditions. A good rule to follow is that when there are worries about a child’s behaviour that cannot be explained satisfactorily, sexual abuse should be borne in mind. A child who alleges sexual abuse should be listened to carefully and the listener should consult with the designated teacher for advice. Sexually abused children are frequently obedient to adults and anxious to please but peer-group relationships are poor. Many children show no sign of sexual abuse, particularly in the younger age group. Other signs may include:-
- sexually explicit behaviour
- loss of self-esteem
- running away from home
- unusual sexual themes in artwork and writing
- self-mutilation.
A sudden change in normal behaviour patterns, or a sexual awareness and knowledge well in advance of what would be expected at the child’s level of development may be indicators of sexual abuse.
Bullying
Bullying also constitutes a form of abuse. It takes many forms but the three main types are physical, verbal and indirect by spreading rumours or excluding the child from a group.
We feel it is vital that we should act and be seen to act promptly and firmly to combat any form of bullying. It is each teacher’s duty to ensure that whenever or wherever bullying occurs in school it is brought immediately to the notice of the class teacher and also to the Principal. Parents and pupils are made aware of and encouraged to draw their concerns about bullying to the attention of the school staff and principal. All allegations will be fully investigated. Parents will then be reported back to on the steps taken. (For more detailed information please refer to our Positive Behaviour Policy and Anti-Bullying Policy)
Procedures for all staff suspecting abuse/or child in need
In the event of hearing a report or seeing evidence that may suggest a cause for concern requiring further investigations or a child is in need, it is your responsibility to:
- keep records/arrange a meeting with the designated teacher and complete the Concern sheet. All child protection notes must be in a secure place and be confidential
- if classroom teacher suspects abuse/neglect/need-keep confidential records. If referral is for child in need it MUST be discussed with the Parents/Carer and if it is a child protection matter discuss with CPO/DCPO/P and together we will complete UNOCINI form and decide if these concerns will be discussed with parent/carer.
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Do not undertake investigations or make extensive enquiries of other family members or carers. You may clarify DPC (Discrete Preliminary Clarification) the facts of the allegation
At this stage further action becomes the responsibility of the designated teacher, deputy designated teacher and principal who will follow these procedures:
· reports received on concern sheets received by DT/DDT/P
· through referral form and assessing positives and negatives of the situation the next step will be agreed-no action taken/keep an eye/phone SS or PSNI or BO advice taken/Complete UNOCINI
· discussions among DT/DDT/P- decisions made
· UNOCINI/reports to Social Services/PSNI Care Team or other agency involving parents when appropriate
· written referral to be submitted on UNOCINI by designated/deputy child protection teacher/principal
· copy of UNOCINI to Child Protection Support Service for Schools ABC FAO
Paula McCreesh, Linda O’Hara, Elaine Craig or Michael Kelly (028 94482223)
· the DT/DDT/Principal will record action taken Appendix 6