Safe Guarding Children Policy

Safe Guarding Children Policy

SAFE GUARDING CHILDREN POLICY

FOR

ST PATRICK’S & ST JOSEPH’S

PRIMARY SCHOOL

Teachers in charge – Mrs Claire McCloy

Mrs Catherine Ball

Deputy Teacher in charge– Mrs Laura Heron

Chairman of the Board of Governors – Mr Michael James

Governor in charge – Mrs Anne Marie McKenna

1.INTRODUCTION

The following statements of principle, policy and procedure aim to set the conceptual framework which underpins the practices within St. Patrick’s and St. Joseph’s Primary School. This ethos is reflected in all actions and decisions taken by staff as they follow the detailed guidance set out in the NEELB Child Protection Procedures, DENI Circular 1999/10. Children (NI) Order 1995 Guidance and the Child Protection Committee Procedures. All parents will receive a full copy of the Child Protection Policy when their child starts school and the policy is also available on the school website. The Child Protection Policy is reviewed annually and parents will be made aware of any changes made.

1.1General Principles

The principles and philosophy which underpin our work with children are those set out in the ‘UN Convention on the Rights of the Child’ (UK Agreement in 1991) and enshrined in the Children (NI) Order 1995 (effective from November 1996). In particular the principle we support is that; every child has the fundamental right to be safe from harm, given proper care by those looking after them and having their physical, emotional, spiritual needs addressed.

The following principles form the basis for effective child protection activity and underpin the guidance, which we follow:

  • The child’s welfare must always be paramount; this over-rides all other considerations. Where a child is disabled or has special needs these must be taken into consideration.
  • A proper balance must be struck between protecting children and respecting the rights and needs of parents and families; but where there is a conflict, the child’s interests must always come first.
  • Children have a right to be heard, to be listened to and to be taken seriously. Taking account of their age and understanding they should be consulted and involved in all matters and decisions, which may affect their lives. Where a child has a disability specialist assistance should be sought to achieve this.
  • Parents/carers have a right to respect and should be consulted and involved in matters, which affect their family.
  • Actions taken to protect the child (including investigation) should not in themselves be abusive by causing the child unnecessary distress or further harm.
  • Intervention should not deal with the child in isolation; the child’s needs should be considered in the context of the family. Agencies’ actions must be considered and well informed so that they are sensitive to and take account of the child’s gender, age, stage of development, religion, culture and race, and any special needs.
  • Where it is necessary to protect the child from further abuse, alternatives, which do not involve moving the child and which minimise disruption of the family, should be explored.
  • All agencies concerned with the protection of children must work together in the best interests of children and their families. Each agency must have an understanding of each other’s functions, responsibilities and priorities in relation to children and commit to maintaining effective communication.

2.CONTEXT

The area of child protection is one of the most sensitive areas of a school’s policy. The overriding aim of protecting the child has to be tempered by the need to be even-handed and professional in the school’s approach to everyone concerned.

This policy of St. Patrick’s and St. Joseph’s Primary school has been developed in consultation with the Governors, NEELB, CCMS and with the whole staff. At this school our ethos is reflected in all actions and decisions taken by staff as they follow the detailed guidelines set out in the NEELB Child Protection Procedures, DENI Circular 1999/10. Children’s Order NI 1995 Guidance and Pastoral Care in Schools; Promoting Positive Behaviour June 2001.

2a. Child Protection in Context

*About three to four children in the UK die each week as a result of abuse.

*Children are abused not only by strangers but also more often by people they know, or members of their own family.

*Child abuse happens in all social classes and all cultural groupings.

*Children of all ages suffer from abuse.

*Abuse can have long lasting traumatic effects, which damage children’s development- both physically and psychologically.

St. Patrick’s and St. Joseph’s is a federated school, which is situated on two sites 2½ miles apart encompassing the Garvagh and Glenullin catchment areas. A large majority of children come from the immediate surrounding rural area.

At present there are 190 pupils enrolled at the school, 10 teaching (full and part time) and 13 non- teaching support staff.

We aim, as a community to provide a warm and caring environment where children are happy and relationships at all levels within the school are good. The children are friendly and well behaved and enjoy school life. This is a Catholic school and as such each child is encouraged to partake fully in our religious celebrations and live according to our shared faith.

Our School Aims

1To develop and sustain a caring and happy environment for each individual pupil.

2To develop the personal qualities of self-confidence, self-discipline, self-learning and as a result of this achieve their true potential.

3To enable children to learn respect and value themselves and others and their environment.

4To promote close links between home, school and communities both locally and all others.

5To provide a broad and balanced curriculum appropriate to the needs of each individual pupil at each stage of their development including spiritual, moral, cultural, intellectual and physical development.

Our school motto encapsulates our ethos;

St. Patrick’s and St. Joseph’s Primary School

‘Takes the hand

Touches the heart

Stretches the mind’

3.PROCEDURES

The staff of St. Patrick’s and St. Joseph’s recognise their four main responsibilities in the areas of Child Protection. These are in the areas of prevention, recognition, response, referral and confidentiality/record keeping. Parents will be updated annually about the school’s responsibilities and procedures and we hope they will support us in our practice. Each new intake will receive a full copy of our responsibilities and procedures.

3.1Prevention

We believe that we can offer a supportive environment to children who maybe abused, have been abused and may in the future be abused. All children are vulnerable.

The school has developed and provides a ‘child protection ethos’ and a preventative curriculum. We offer children an alternative model to violent or abusive behaviour and alternative methods of responding. We aim to involve the whole school in creating a ‘listening school’.

The school offers protection on two levels:

  • Immediate protection – creating a listening environment that makes it easier for children to share their concerns
  • Long-term protection, enhancing self-esteem and encouraging pro social skills, breaking the cycle of abusive behaviour. We aim to provide the children in our school with the skills necessary to keep themselves safe and deal with situations that arise in their lives.

The Board of Governors ensures that the school has and follows the Code of Practice/Staff Handbook for the conduct of all members of staff, teaching and non-teaching, towards the pupils attending the school. The Code of Practice/Staff Handbook covers all activities organised in and by the school, whether on school premises or elsewhere.

We ensure that persons beyond the school staff who are invited to be involved as helpers/leaders on trips, residential visits, or other out of school activities are subject to vetting procedures in keeping with current arrangements for the care and protection of young people with the exception of parents going on school trips or one-off visits to the school. People in this category are never left on a one to one with the children.

3.2Recognition

We use the following definition for Child Abuse:

Neglect – the persistent or significant neglect of a child, or the failure to protect a child from exposure to any kind of danger, including cold or starvation, or persistent failure to carry out important aspects of care, resulting in the significant impairment of the child’s health or development, including non-organic failure to thrive.

Physical – physical injury to a child, whether deliberately inflicted or knowingly not prevented.

Sexual – the sexual exploitation of a child or young person for an adult’s or another young person’s own sexual gratification; the involvement of children or young people in sexual activities or any kind (including exposure to pornography) which they do not understand, to which they are unable to give informed consent or that violate normal family roles.

Emotional – persistent or significant emotional ill treatment or rejection, resulting in severe adverse effects on the emotional, physical and/or behavioural development of a child.

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF CHILD ABUSE

Although these signs do not necessarily indicate that a child has been abused, they may help adults recognise that something is wrong. The possibility of abuse should be investigated if a child shows a number of these symptoms, or any of them to a marked degree:

PHYSICAL ABUSE

  • Unexplained recurrent injuries or burns
  • Improbable excuses or refusal to explain injuries
  • Wearing clothes to cover injuries, even in hot weather
  • Refusal to undress for gym
  • Bald patches
  • Chronic running away
  • Fear of medical help or examination
  • Self-destructive tendencies
  • Aggression towards others
  • Fear of physical contact – shrinking back if touched
  • Admitting that they are punished, but the punishment is excessive (such as a child being beaten every night to ‘make him study’)
  • Fear of suspected abuser being contacted.

SEXUAL ABUSE

  • Being overly affectionate or knowledgeable in a sexual way inappropriate to the child’s age
  • Medical problems such as chronic itching, pain in the genitals, venereal diseases
  • Other extreme reactions, such as depression, self-mutilation, suicide attempts, running away, overdoses, anorexia
  • Personality changes such as becoming insecure or clinging
  • Regressing to younger behaviour patterns such as thumb sucking, bringing out discarded cuddly toys
  • Sudden loss of appetite or compulsive eating
  • Being isolated or withdrawn
  • Inability to concentrate
  • Lack of trust or fear of someone they know well, such as not wanting to be alone with a babysitter or childminder
  • Starting to wet again, day or night/nightmares
  • Become worried about clothing being removed
  • Suddenly drawing sexually explicit pictures
  • Trying to be ‘ultra-good’ or perfect; overreacting to criticism

EMOTIONAL ABUSE

  • Physical, mental and emotional development lags
  • Sudden speech disorders
  • Continual self-depreciation (‘I’m stupid, ugly worthless etc’)
  • Overreaction to mistakes
  • Extreme fear of any new situation
  • Inappropriate response to pain (‘I deserve this’)
  • Neurotic behaviour (rocking hair twisting, self mutilation)
  • Extreme of passivity or aggression

NEGLECT

  • Constant hunger
  • Poor personal hygiene
  • Constant tiredness
  • Poor state of clothing
  • Emaciation
  • Untreated medical problems
  • No social relationships
  • Compulsive scavenging
  • Destructive tendencies

Note:

  • A child may be subjected to a combination of different kinds of abuse.
  • It is also possible that a child may show no outward signs and hide what is happening from everyone.

3.3Response (see Appendix 10)

In the event of an allegation of child abuse the staff member will:

Listen to the child and accept what is said

Record statements

Explain what they have to do next and to whom they have to talk

Reassure the child they have done the right thing to talk about it

Refer information to the Designated Teacher

3.4Referral - Co-operating to Support and Protect Children

Procedures for reporting suspected (or disclosed) child abuse

The designated teacher for child protection is Mr. Aidan Rafferty school Principal. In his absence Mrs Claire McCloy/Mrs Catherine Ball will assume responsibility for child protection matters.

If a child makes a disclosure to a teacher or other member of staff which gives rise to concerns about possible abuse, or if a member of staff has concerns about a child, the member of staff must act promptly.

He/she should not investigate – this is a matter for the Social Services – but should report these concerns immediately to the designated teacher, discuss the matter with him/her and make full notes.

The designated teacher will discuss the matter with the Principal as a matter or urgency to plan a course of action, and ensure that a written record is made.

The Principal, in consultation with the designated teachers, will decide whether, in the best interests of the child, the matter needs to be referred to Social Services. If there are concerns that the child may be at risk, the school is legally obliged to make a referral. Unless there are concerns that a parent may be the possible abuser, the parents will be informed immediately.

The Principal may seek clarification or advice and consult with the Designated Officer from the Education Board, CCMS or the Senior Social Worker before a referral is made. No decision to refer a case to Social Services will be made without the fullest consideration and on appropriate advice. The safety of the child is our first priority.

3.4.1Allegations against a member of staff (Appendix 5)

If a complaint about possible child abuse is made against a member of staff, the Principal (or the designated teachers, if he/she is not available) must be informed immediately. The above procedures will apply unless the complaint is about the designated teacher or principal. The Chairman of the Board of Governors will be informed immediately.

3.4.2Allegations against the Principal

If a complaint is made against the Principal, the designated teachers (or his/her deputy, if he/she is not available). He/she will inform the Chairman of the Board of Governors, Mr Michael James, and together they will ensure that the necessary action is taken.

3.4.3Allegations against the designated teacher

Any complaints must be referred to the Principal.

3.4.4Suspension from duties

Where the matter is referred to Social Services, the member of staff will be removed from duties involving direct contact with pupils, and may be suspended from duty as a precautionary measure pending investigation by Social Services.

3.4.5Parent making a complaint about possible child abuse. (see Appendix 3)

3.5Confidentiality and Record Keeping

3.5.1For reasons of confidentiality the only people who need to know are:

Mr. Aidan Rafferty School Principal, Mrs Claire McCloy and Mrs Catherine Ball

3.5.2Record Keeping

All records, information and confidential notes are kept in separate files in the Principal’s Office on the Tirkeeran site. These only identify the child by their initials and date of birth. These records are kept separate from the pupil’s individual report.

Where an allegation is made against a member of staff and is pursued either as a formal referral or under the school’s disciplinary procedures, a summary is entered on a Record of Abuse Complaints. This entry, which will contain details of the complaint, will be made available to the Board of Governors at least annually.

  1. Code of Conduct

Staff are aware of and adhere to the Code of Conduct, which has been drawn up and agreed through Teachers’ Negotiating Machinery. (See Appendix 4)

  1. Staff/Visitor Vetting

All staff appointed to the school on all contracts will be vetted by their employing authority, as outlined in ‘Pastoral Care in Schools- Child Protection’ document, e.g. CCMS will vet all teaching appointments (TR 23). The Education Board will vet all appointments verified by them. Staff from outside agencies will be vetted by the agencies prior to commencement of duties.

Temporary staff can be employed on a daily basis at short notice or in emergency situations but must be supervised and have no one to one contact with children.

For voluntary staff the school will follow the procedures as outlined in Appendix 6.

All guest speakers will be asked to give details of their talk to the appropriate staff prior to a visit. (See Appendix 6)

5b Staff Training/Record keeping- with reference to training, policy approval by Governors and policy distribution to parents

The school is committed to on-going in-service training for all staff. All staff will receive general training on Child Protection Policy and Procedures with Designated Teachers, Deputy Designated Teachers and Principal. Records of when Governors reviewed and approved policies. Dates when parents received updates on Child Protection Policy. (Appendix 9)

  1. Monitoring and Evaluation

The school will update this Policy and Procedure in the light of any further guidance and legislation as necessary, and review it annually. Participation and consultation with children and parents will be undertaken.

The Child Protection Policy will be reviewed annually on the Baker Day during the mid term in February.

On-going evaluation will ensure the effectiveness of the Policy.

Use of Images (see Appendix 7)

IT Policy (see Appendix 8)

7. THE CURRICULUM

Child protection issues will be addressed through the curriculum as appropriate, especially through personal, social and health education.

At St Patrick’s & St Joseph’s Primary, we ensure that bullying is identified and dealt with for the benefit and social development of all concerned. All pupils are encouraged to show respect for others and take responsibility for protecting themselves.

Programmes for pupils on personal protection include:

Foundation andKey Stage 1 the children’s welfare is paramount and child protection within the curriculum it is an integral part of everyday teaching.

Key Stage 2 pupils - this covers the following areas: -

Road safetySay no to strangersDrugsBullying

The DENI reference of ‘Suicide Among Young People’ and the ‘Child Protection’ document 1998 is used. Other information resource materials and support agencies are used when necessary. E.g. CRUSE bereavement care Knockbracken Health Care Park, Saintfield Road, Belfast

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