Managers Meeting 12 June 2005 Kingsfield

Flegg High School
A Business and Enterprise Academy

POLICY STATEMENT

Whole school policy for safeguarding incorporating child protection and recruitment

1.  AIM

The purpose of Flegg High School’s safeguarding policy is to ensure every child who is a registered pupil at our school is safe and protected from harm. Flegg High School fully recognises its responsibilities for Safeguarding Children and Child Protection. There are five main elements to our Safeguarding Policy.

a)  Ensuring we create a safe environment e.g. positive ethos, pastoral structure and support for pupils.

b)  Ensuring that we follow rigorously the correct child protection procedures as laid out by the Norfolk Safeguarding Children Board and statutory national policies

c)  Ensuring support for pupils who may have been abused.

d)  Protect our children from maltreatment.

e)  Ensure that children and young people grow up in circumstance consistent with the provision of safe and effective care.

The policy will give clear direction to all pupils, staff, governors,

volunteers, parents and visitors to Flegg High School, about expected

behaviour and our legal responsibility to safeguard and promote the

welfare of ALL children at our school.

Flegg High School fully recognise the contribution it can make to

protect children from harm. The elements of our policy are prevention,

protection and support.

CONTENTS

2. School Commitment/Ethos

2.1

We recognise that pupils need an environment where they feel secure and are encouraged to talk, BE LISTENED TO, and are safe. Children

will be able to talk freely to any member of staff If they are worried

or concerned about anything.

2.2

We will ensure that pupils are made aware that there are adults and pupils in school (Peer Supporters for example) who they can approach if they are worried or are in difficulty.

2.3

We will endeavour to support all pupils through an appropriate curriculum
which includes realistic approaches to adult life and keeping safe, including
E-Safety.

2.4

The Childs’ welfare is of paramount importance.

2.5

All staff and regular visitors will, either through training or induction,

know how to recognise indicators of concern, how to respond to a

disclosure from a child and how to record and report the information.

We will NOT make any promises to a child.

2.6

We will ensure that positive working relationships are established with
appropriate agencies which support pupils’ e.g. social care, mental health, school nurse, educational social worker, educational psychologist, behaviour support team and police. We are committed to working in partnership.

3. ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

3.1 The Principal will ensure that there is a senior designated teacher/professional who has received appropriate training and support for the role. It is strongly recommended that there is a named senior deputy designated teacher/professional:

Mr M Ward – Senior Designated Teacher/Professional – (SDP)
Miss E Roberts – Deputy Senior Designated Professional (Deputy SDP)

3.2 It is for the senior designated professional to ensure that NSCB

(Norfolk Safeguarding Children’s Board) procedures are implemented and to make
relevant referrals when necessary. It is the duty of the designated professional to
make ALL staff aware of internal procedures and to advise staff on child

Protection matters. The designated professional will liaise with Children’s Services and other agencies, where necessary, and make referrals to Children’s Services. In the absence of the SDP, the Deputy SDP will assume these responsibilities or as delegated by the SDP.

The Governing Body of Flegg High School will ensure that:

3.3 The school has a nominated child protection governor. It is recommended that all governors be trained in child protection procedures. It is the duty of the governing body to ensure that the school has an appropriate policy which is reviewed annually. The policy must be made available to parents by a statement in the school prospectus. The governing body MUST inform the LA with information about how their duties have been discharged. The content of the policy has been written following consultation with the LA and the requirements of the Norfolk Safeguarding Children’s Board Policies and Procedures. The Governing Body is accountable for ensuring the effectiveness of this policy and our compliance with it. National Statutory obligations are also inherent in the policy. The Governors will ensure that the policy is full implemented and hold the SLT to account.

3.4 All staff and adults at Flegg High School have a responsibility to protect children in our care. All staff will undertake appropriate Child protection training. Any concern for a child’s safety and welfare will be recorded in writing and given to the senior designated professional. The Senior Designated Professional at Flegg High will represent the school at Child Protection Conferences and Core Group meetings or delegate responsibility to the Deputy SDP when appropriate.

3.5 The governing body will receive a Safeguarding report that will record any
training that has taken place and the number of staff attending. It will also record all safeguarding activities. NO INDIVIDUAL PUPIL WILL BE IDENTIFIED.

3.6 At all times the Principal and governing body will ensure the safe recruitment practices are followed. We will ensure that our Principal and at least one governor have completed appropriate safer recruitment training and are accredited by the National College of School Leadership.

3.7 At Flegg High School we require evidence of original academic certificates. We do not accept testimonials and insist on taking up references prior to interview. We will question the contents of application forms if we are unclear about them. We will undertake enhanced Criminal Records checks and use any other means of ensuring we are recruiting and selecting the most suitable people to work with our children. We will use the recruitment and selection process to deter and reject unsuitable candidates and will adhere to the requirements of Safeguarding Children in Education and Safer Recruitment 2007. We will fully support the aim of the DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) to help employers make safer recruitment decisions to protect young people from unsuitable adults.

3.8 It is the responsibility of every member of staff, volunteer and regular visitor to our school to ensure that they carry out the requirements of this procedure and at all times work in a way that will safeguard and promote the welfare of all of our children, including using the DBS update services as appropriate.

3.9 The governing body of our school is accountable for ensuring the effectiveness of this policy and our compliance with it. Although our governing body takes collective responsibility to safeguard and promote the welfare of our children we also have a named governor, who will hold regular meetings with the SDP and audit procedure within the school.

3.10 Our governing body ensures our recruitment practices are safe and compliant
with statutory requirements.

3.11 The governing body undertakes to remedy without delay any weakness in regard
to our safeguarding arrangements that are brought to their attention.

3.12

The Principal

At Flegg High School the Principal is responsible for:

·  Identifying a member of the senior leadership team to be the Senior Designated Person for safeguarding (SDP);

·  Identifying an alternate member of staff to act as the Senior Designated Person for safeguarding (SDP) in his/her absence;(Deputy SDP)

·  Ensuring that policies adopted by the governing body are fully implemented and followed by all staff;

·  Ensuring that all staff and volunteers feel able to raise concerns about poor or unsafe practice and such concerns are addressed sensitively in accordance with agreed whistle-blowing procedures.

3.13

The Senior Designated Professional

3.14 Any concern for a child’s safety or welfare will be recorded in writing and given to the SDP (or Deputy SDP.) Through appropriate training, knowledge and experience our SDP will liaise with Children’s Services and other agencies where necessary, and make referrals of suspected abuse to Children’s Services.

3.15 The SDP at Flegg High School will represent our school at child protection conferences and core group meetings and will be responsible for ensuring that all staff members and volunteers are aware of our policy and the procedure they need to follow. This applies to the Deputy SDP as well.

3.16 The SDP will maintain written records and child protection files ensuring that they are kept confidential and stored securely.

3.17 The SDP or Deputy SDP will ensure that all staff, volunteers and regular visitors have received appropriate child protection information during induction and have been trained within the school to the agreed school’s safeguarding training pack provided by Children’s Services.

3.18 The SDP will keep the Governors fully informed of Safeguarding issues at the school.

4. TRAINING & INDUCTION

4.1 When new staff, volunteers or regular visitors join our school they will be informed of the safeguarding arrangements in place. They will be given a copy of our school’s safeguarding policy and told who our Senior Designated Professionals for Safeguarding are. They will also be provided with the recording form, given information on how to complete it and who to pass it to.

4.2 Every new member of staff or volunteer will have an induction period that will include essential safeguarding information. This programme will include basic safeguarding information relating to signs and symptoms of abuse, how to manage a disclosure from a child, how to record and issues of confidentiality. The induction will also remind staff and volunteers of their responsibility to safeguard all children at our school and the remit of the role of the Senior Designated Professional.

4.3 New staff who have not had any child protection/safeguarding training or staff who have had training more than three years ago will be provided with an introduction to safeguarding and will then be trained with the rest of the staff team at least 3 yearly. The SDP will provide annual updates on Safeguarding at the beginning of each academic year.

4.4 All regular visitors and volunteers to our school will be given a set of our safeguarding procedures; they will be informed of whom our SDP and alternate staff members are and what the recording and reporting system is. (See Appendix 2).

4.5 All members of staff will undertake appropriate safeguarding training at least once every three years but there will also be an annual update conducted by the SPD. The SDP, the Deputy designated member of staff and any other senior member of staff who may be in a position of making referrals or attending child protection conferences or core groups will attend one of the multi-agency training courses organised by Norfolk Safeguarding Children’s Board at least once every three years. In addition to this, the SDP and Deputy will attend Safeguarding Children in Education provided by the Local Authority every two years.

4.6 Our governing body will also undertake appropriate training to ensure they are able to carry out their duty to safeguard all of the children at our school. Training for Governors to support them in their safeguarding role is available from Norfolk Governor Services and/or the SDP at the school.

4.7 We actively encourage all of our staff to keep up to date with the most recent local and national safeguarding advice and guidance. This can be accessed via Norfolk Safeguarding Children Board at www.nscb.norfolk.gov.uk and within the Safeguarding Section of the Norfolk Schools website: http://www.schools.norfolk.gov.uk/behaviour-and-safety/safeguarding/index.htm . The SDP will also provide regular safeguarding updates for staff.

5. PROCEDURES FOR MANAGING CONCERNS

5.1 We will follow the procedures that have been agreed locally through the Norfolk Children’s Safeguarding Board, and the DFE Guidance “Keeping Children Safe in Education” and Working Together 2013.

5.2 There should be sufficient time allocated to the designated teacher to prepare reports for case conferences and to attend such conferences.

5.3 All records on child protection must be kept securely and separately from the main pupil files.

5.4 The school is aware of procedures where an allegation of abuse is made against a member of staff or volunteer.

5.5 The school will ensure that safe recruitment practices are always followed.

5.6 The Senior Designated Professional (SDP) should be used as a first point of contact for concerns and queries regarding any safeguarding concern in our school. If the SDP is not available, the Deputy SDP should be contacted regarding any concerns.

5.7 It is not the responsibility of school staff to investigate welfare concerns or determine the truth of any disclosure or allegation. All staff, however, have a duty to recognise concerns and pass the information on in accordance with the procedures outlined in this policy. Any member of staff or visitor to the school who receives a disclosure of abuse or suspects that a child is at risk of harm must report it immediately to the SDP or, if unavailable, to the Deputy designated person. In the absence of either of the above, the matter should be brought to the attention of the most senior member of staff.

5.8 All concerns about a child or young person should be reported without delay and recorded in writing using the agreed template (see Appendix 1).

5.9 Following receipt of any information raising concern, the SDP will consider what action to take and seek advice from Children’s Services as required. All information and actions taken, including the reasons for any decisions made, will be fully documented.

5.10 All referrals will be made in line with Norfolk Children’s Services procedures as outlined in Appendix 3.