Self-evaluation form for safeguarding and Child Protection
School:DanygraigPrimary School
Local authority:City and County of Swansea
The headteacher/principal should arrange for responses to be provided to the following questions, indicating particular strengths or areas for improvement required in each section. Inspectors will discuss the pro-forma information provided with relevant staff during the inspection. The electronic version of the form will expand to take the text of responses. There is additional space on the final page of the form for further information. This form must be signed and dated by the person who provides initial entries.
Is there a child protection policy that reflects the model in Circular 5/2008 by including sections on:- prevention through the teaching and pastoral support offered to learners;
- procedures for identifying and reporting cases, or suspected cases, of abuse; and
- support to learners who may have been abused?
Evidence –A full Child Protection Policy is in place that complies with Circular 5/2008. The policy contains sections on Prevention and pastoral support, procedures for identifying and reporting cases of suspected abuse, and the support that is given to learners who may have been abused. The policy is reviewed at least annually by a sub-committee of the Governing Body, and will include the Headteacher (Named Person) and the Chair of Governors.
Describe the arrangements for pre-employment identity and qualification checks. Is there a record that all staff appointed after 2002 have a CRB/DBS check? Is there a record of those governors who have CRB/DBS checks? Do the volunteers that work in the school and who are not supervised have up-to-date CRB/DBS checks?Is there an appropriate risk assessment to manage the decision about which governor or volunteer has the DBS check and which does not?
Evidence – All staff have current DBS/CRB checks. Details are kept on a spreadsheet, and the administration manager checks regularly to ensure renewals are sent for on time.
Governors have elected not to have DBS checks for all governors. However, based on their roles within the school, several governors have been DBS checked.
In the event of deciding whether a Governor or volunteer might need a DBS check, a Risk Assessment will be carried out in conjunction with the DBS team in the local authority to ensure appropriate steps are taken.
Provide details of the Designated Senior Teacher (and deputy where appropriate) and the Designated Governor. Are staff aware of who they are?
Evidence – The named person for matters of Child Protection is Mr NP Morgan, Headteacher. In his absence, the named person will be Mr A Byrne, Deputy Headteacher. The designated Governor for Child Protection matters is Cllr Clive Lloyd, the Chair of Governors.
All staff are aware of the identities of these individuals. The details are highlighted through regular CP training, ADDs sessions and regular, start-of-term briefings to ALL staff
How do you ensure that staff:
- are aware of the need to be alert to signs of abuse;
- know what to do when they have observed abuse by other staff in the school;
- know how to support a child who discloses abuse;
- make pupils feel encouraged and secure to discuss any concerns they may have;
- know how to refer disclosures and/or allegations about abuse from (a) within the school and (b) home or outside the provide;
- notify the local services team if:-
ii)if there is an unexplained absence of a pupil on the child protection register of more than two days duration from school (or one day following a weekend);
- know what to do if there is an allegation against the headteacher/principal;
- retain confidentiality and keep records secure; and
- are aware of not contacting parents if it would put the child at risk?
Evidence - All staff are aware of the need to be alert to signs of abuse through regular CP training from the Local Authority’s CP and Safeguarding Officer, Mr Paul Henwood. The issues are reinforced in termly in-house briefings and Memo reminders to all staff.
-All staff are aware that if they were to observe abuse by a colleague, they should report the matter directly to the named person or deputy. The named person would then contact Mr Paul Henwood, LA Child Protection and Safeguarding Officer in order that local processes and procedures might commence.
-Staff are aware (through training) that a child disclosing abuse will need sensitive support, during the course of the disclosure and during any ongoing processes, including multi-agency meetings or with police and social services.
-Learners are encouraged to communicate concerns via our Restorative Practice discussions, Circle Time, Checking in, Mood boards/worry words etc. The school employs a pastoral support officer who oversees all matters of pastoral support and emotional welfare.
-a) Staff are fully aware that in the event of a disclosure from a child, they will report the matter directly to Mr N Morgan (Named Person) or his deputy, Mr A Byrne. Mr Morgan or Mr Byrne will then contact Social Services and/or the police, depending on the nature of the incident.
-b) All staff members are aware that if they receive information or have a concern that has come to their attention outside school then they should contact the local social services team and/or the police, depending on the circumstances.
-i) As Headteacher and Named Person for CP I will be aware if any young people on the Child Protection Register (CPR) are excluded, and will notify the local social services team accordingly.
-ii) As Headteacher and Named Person for CP, I will be aware if any young person on the CPR is absent for more than 2 days and will notify the local social services accordingly (The school operates a first and third day contact with all pupils)
-All staff are aware that if they were to receive a potential CP allegation against the Headteacher, then they should immediately report the matter to the Chair of Governors, Cllr Clive Lloyd (Who will then contact the LA Child Protection and Safeguarding Officer, Mr Paul Henwood and inform him of the nature of the allegations or incident)
-All records, complaints, disclosures, allegations and contact with social services, the CCARAT consultation Team, the police or LA CP and Safeguarding Officer, Mr Paul Henwood are logged and kept securely and confidentially in the Headteacher’s office. An outline of the number of disclosures or matters of a CP nature is given to Governors (Without specific and confidential details) at termly meetings
-Staff are aware that parents will not be contacted in the event of a potential CP allegation being made, if by doing so would put that child at risk of further harm. A decision is within the responsibility of the HT.
Have all staff and volunteers had basic training and is this kept up-to-date with refresher training, for example in accordance with best practice defined by the LSCB?
Have the designated staff been trained in inter-agency working and is this kept upto-date with refresher training, for example in accordance with best practice defined by the LSCB?
Are temporary staff and volunteers made aware of the child protection policy and procedures?
Are staff new to the school and newly qualified teachers informed about child protection policy and procedures?
Evidence – All staff have received CP awareness training from the Local Authority’s CP and Safeguarding Officer, Mr Paul Henwood. This Training is delivered once every three years.
Designated staff have trained in initial inter-agency working. The named person, Headteacher and deputy also take part in regular Governor CP training.
Temporary staff, volunteers and Newly Qualified Teachers (NQT) are made aware of CP and procedures to follow in the event of concerns coming to light as part of their Induction Programme into the school (Heads of Department oversee this induction)
Has the school made parents aware of the policy and procedures, and of the need to share information with other agencies if necessary? Has the school made learners aware of what to do if they have a concern?
Evidence – The school makes parents aware of CP procedures and policy. Details are posted on the school’s Portal Web-Site. Parents are regularly directed to the web-site via newsletters.
Hard copies of policy and procedures are available from the school on request (For anyone but particularly for those who do not use the internet.
-Learners are made aware of what they should do if they were to have concerns or worries through our Restorative Practice methods (Overseen by our Pastoral Support and emotional welfare officer, Mrs Katie Jones)
-In the event of any information needing to be shared about a child with other agencies, then the consent of the parents would be sought prior to the potential sharing of information (Unless a child might be put at risk of further harm by contacting the parents
Provide details of any anti-bullying policy that complies with the Human Rights Act 1998 and Equality Act 2010, and how the school deals with any complaints from pupils or parents arising from such incidents.
Evidence – The school has a full anti-bullying policy, which is reviewed regularly and covers the following areas –
-What is bullying?
-The responsibilities of the school’, The purpose of Restorative Practice and the role of the Pastoral Support Officer’,
-Procedures for dealing with allegations of bullying’
-Support and follow-up
-Anti-bullying strategies
-Outside Agencies
-Additional Learning Needs
-Home and School
-Conclusion
-We also operate a strategic Equality Plan (Equality Act 2010) Restorative Practice (RP) plays a large part in dealing with complaints of bullying – through RP mediation and the involvement of the Pastoral Support/Emotional Welfare Officer. Circle time, checking in and out, Mood boards and other RP methods help in detecting problems and concerns. RP and emotional welfare also supports the victims and instigators of bullying.
Provide details of how the school ensures the security of the school site.
Evidence – The school operates a full CCTV system. This covers all the entrances and exits of the school building. We use an intercom entry system (together with CCTV monitors) Staff and visitors wear identity badges. A ‘Signing-in’ book is in use for all visitors/contractors etc. All physical boundaries are fenced and playground areas have gates, which are closed during the school day. During break times, the gates are monitored by supervisory staff.
The school has had an upgraded fire detection system installed (August 2014) In addition, an emergency lighting system covers most of the premises.
The Caretaker’s role includes regular inspection of boundary fences and gates, fire doors and the fire detection and emergency lighting systems. Fire safety equipment, including the alarm, is checked and logged regularly and before the start of every half term. The caretaker will also physically inspect emergency exits to ensure they are clear. He will visually inspect the condition of the premises and immediately ensure problems are rectified.
Provide details of the health and safety policy. Describe how the school deals with first aid, drug and substance misuse, sex and relationships education, education visits, internet safety and, if appropriate the welfare of learners on extended vocational placements.
Evidence – The Health, Safety and Well-Being Policy complies with Local Authority requirements. It contains a statement of intent and policy, organisation and structure, designated persons, with responsibilities and functions (HT, Governors, Caretaker, staff) Arrangements for monitoring and review are clearly stated. The policy covers areas such as accidents at work, lone working, working at heights, electricity, gas and water service cut off points, smoking on site, protective clothing, Business Continuity Plan, First Aid, Emergency and evacuation, drug and substance misuse, sex and relationships – they are part of the PSHE Policy and age appropriate. All school visits, including residential courses, are fully risk assessed and staffed by competent and professional people. Hazards are assessed and control measures put in place as part of Risk Assessment. There are currently two First Aiders on site (This number has dropped because of staff turnover – An extended training session in First Aid for staff is planned for 5th January 2015. First Aid boxes are situated in the Medical Room, the staffroom, the STF classrooms and the Reception/Foundation classroom. A secure medicine cabinet is situated in the staffroom. The Internet Safety Policy covers a specific aspect of safety and well-being. The Headteacher and Deputy Headteacher have attended training on Health, Safety and Well-Being (Supporting employees) Both and the caretaker have undergone training in ‘Dealing With Accidents at work’. The headteacher, Deputy Head and Caretaker have undertaken full Premises Management and Fire Risk Assessment training.
Provide details of how the school deals with racist abuse, discrimination and harassment, and how it deals with any complaints from pupils or parents arising from such incidents.
Evidence – The school’s Strategic Equality Plan deals with all matters of Inclusion and equality. It sets out statements of intent and policy in accordance with the Equality Act 2010. All stakeholders are consulted annually on matters of equality, perceived discrimination, prejudice, bullying and racist, gender or religious abuse/prejudice. Returns over three years show that stakeholders are overwhelmingly content with what the school does and how we handle matters of equality. In terms of racist abuse, a log is kept of incidents. Matters will then be reported to the Local Authority and/or the police. To date there have been no recorded incidents. In addition to the fact that there have been no exclusions for over fifteen years this indicated that the school’s inclusive ethos is effective. Danygraig was one of the pilot schools for Asylum Seekers from 200. The Headteacher was a founding member of the Asylum Seeker Steering Group for Swansea. Along with the STF units this culture has brought about a sustained atmosphere of tolerance.
Provide details of the school’s policies about physical intervention and restraint, and how the school deals with any complaints from pupils or parents arising from such incidents.
Evidence – The school runs two STF facilities (Specialist Teaching Facility) All staff have undergone CPI training. The extensive staff also assist on the rare occasion physical intervention/restraint is required in main-stream classes. Mr P Hobbs (STF Teacher) and Mrs B Currenti (Assistant Head and ALN manager (Additional Learning Needs) carry out in-house refresher training for all staff engaged in ALN support.
In the event of a complaint from a parent or pupil following the use of physical intervention or restraint the matter will be dealt with as a potential Child Protection allegation. Mr Paul Henwood, the Local Authority’s Child Protection and Safeguarding Officer will be contacted so that Local Authority investigative procedures can take place.
Provide details of how safeguarding incidents are reported within the school’s management structure including governorsmeetings.
Evidence – Safeguarding incidents will be reported as follows. The Headteacher will be informed immediately. If the Local Authority need to be contacted the Headteacher will do so.
Full procedures for dealing with disclosures are in place (See CP Policy and Procedures) The Named Person will contact CCARAT immediately. All staff are fully aware of these procedures. In-house awareness raising training has been carried out with Governors. Incidents relating to Child Protection and Disclosures are outlined to Governors (without specific details) at Termly Governing Body Meetings – an agenda item will always deal with this. There will also be an item on the Headteacher’s annual report to Governors
In all matters of emergency, staff are aware of procedures. Individual children have Health Care Plans and others have Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans. Relevant staff are aware of these and these matters are discussed in SLMT (Senior Leadership and Management Team) meetings.
Other matters of a Safeguarding nature will be itemised on the agenda of a relevant Governor’s sub-committee. For example, a premises Safeguarding issue will be dealt with by the Premises sub-committee. The committee will deal with the matter and inform the full Governing Body at the termly or annual meetings.
Additional notes provided by the school
See all relevant policies and procedures dealing with the various Safeguarding matters – example Fire Risk Assessment, First Aid Policy etc.
Headteacher
Signature: Name: NP Morgan
Date:
Chair of Governors
Signature: Name: Cllr Clive Lloyd
Date:
Version control
Document version / Author / Date of issue / Changes made1.0 / Gerard E Kerslake HMI / 10May 2013 / Update to the previously issued self-assessment tool for schools to reflect changes arising from the Freedoms Act 2012.
This document will be subject to further changes as the Act is rolled out.
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