St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School Safeguarding Handbook

2017-18

Contents

Section 1: Guidance for all staff, volunteers and visitors and visitors

Schools’ Safeguarding Charterp4

Safeguarding advice for visitorsp5

Mandatory induction checklist for all staff and volunteersp7

Recognising indicators of abuse and neglectp8

How to respond if a child discloses to youp11

Hearing the voice of the childp12

Internal child protection/child welfare concern formp15

Body mapp16

Schools’ safeguarding flowchartp17

Forced marriage and so-called ‘honour based’ violencep18

Female genital mutilationp22

Child sexual exploitationp27

Youth produced sexual imagery/Sexting p32

Criminal exploitationp32

Extremism and radicalisationp34

Safeguarding children with special educational needs and disabilitiesp37

Neglectp38

Schools’ model child protection policyp39

Safer working practices code of conduct for adultsp54

Managing allegations against staff and volunteers policy p56

and procedures

Section 2: Guidance for Designated Safeguarding Leads and those who provide cover for the role

Core standards for safeguarding teamsp65

Schools’ Designated Safeguarding Leads flowchartp66

Early Help Assessmentsp68

Making a referral to Children’s Services by completing a Multi-Agencyp69

Referral Form

Escalation guidancep75

Strengthening Families Approach and Developing Protective Factorsp79

Information sharingp81

Record keepingp82

Child protection/safeguarding file chronologyp83

Transfer of child protection/safeguarding recordsp84

Record keeping auditing templatep85

Supervision statementp87

Developing an effective model of supervisionp88

Supervision checklistp91

Record of safeguarding supervisionp92

Learning from serious case reviewsp93

Key contactsp96

Section 3: Guidance for school leaders and governors

Reporting to governors templatep99

Ofsted safeguarding quick checklist and evidence filep102

Safer recruitment policies and proceduresp106

Mandatory checklist for personnel filep112

Mandatory induction checklist for all staff and volunteersp113

Single Central Record templatep114

Single Central Record and personnel checklistp115

Section 1:

Guidance for all staff, volunteers and visitors

Schools’ safeguarding charter

We are committed to:

Always acting in the best interests of the child, ensuring their views and wishes are heard and acted upon

Safeguarding children and promoting their welfare. This is a shared responsibility within our school and together with all partner agencies.

Working with partner agencies to safeguard children by adhering to Local Safeguarding Children Board policies and procedures and national guidance, particularly the LSCB responding to needs framework/levels of need guidance. We will contribute to effective holistic assessments of the child and family to ensure better outcomes for children.

Working in partnership with other agencies to provide early help in keeping with the statutory guidance in Keeping Children Safe in Education (DFE) and Working Together to Safeguard Children (DFE). Schools are well placed to promote early help and undertake early help assessments with other agencies before children’s needs escalate to a point where a statutory referral to Children’s Services is required.

Providing effective induction of all staff and volunteers, and regular on-going training to ensure all adults can recognise signs and indicators of abuse and harm. Adults working with children are always expected to act in the best interests of the child and understand that, if necessary, anyone can make a referral to Children’s Services.

Ensuring that safer recruitment practices are adhered to and that we have well understood safeguarding policies and procedures. Our code of conduct for adults will promote safer working practices and a culture of vigilance and challenge.

Challenging ourselves and multi-agency partners to ensure actions to improve outcomes for children are completed in a timely way.

Quality assuring our practices and specifically completing any actions arising from the Local Authority’s 175 safeguarding audit. Governors and school leaders will quality assure all safeguarding practices, including maintaining support and oversight through effective supervision of the Designated Safeguarding Lead and safeguarding team, their decisions, actions and record keeping.

Implementing any learning arising from local and national serious case reviews and other reviews, for example the need to listen and respond to the views and wishes of children, especially when assessing their needs and providing on-going support.

Providing children with a curriculum which enables them to learn about risk and how to keep themselves safe and maintain happy and healthy relationships. We will provide a listening culture where children have identified adults who they can discuss their concerns with.

Safeguarding advice for visitors

The following guidance should be given to all visitors:

Our school is committed to safeguarding children and promoting children’s welfare and expects all staff, governors, volunteers and visitors to share this commitment and maintain a vigilant and safe environment. It is our willingness to work in a safe manner and challenge inappropriate behaviour that underpins this commitment.

By signing in and out using the electronic sign in system or the visitors’ book you are agreeing to follow the advice within this leaflet. All visitors must wear the visitor’s badge provided by reception. An adult without a badge will be accompanied to the school’s reception to confirm they have signed in.

Visitors must be accompanied at all times by a member of the school staff.

Unsupervised visitors: If your visit involves unsupervised contact with young people you will be asked to show the photographic ID badge provided by your employer and written confirmation that you have an Enhanced DBS Certificate including a Barred List Check. You may be required by the school to present your Enhanced DBS Certificate. We will note down the DBS number and date issued but will not make a copy of it. You will also need to read and understand the school’s Code of Conduct for Adults and Part 1 of the DFE’s Guidance, ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’ (2016). The school’s Child Protection Policy is available on the school’s website.

If you have ANY concerns about a child’s welfare or well-being or have a concern about the behaviour of any adult within the school towards a child:

  • discuss your concerns without delay with the Designated Safeguarding Lead or the Headteacher or a member of the safeguarding team.
  • Remember it is important to share your concerns even if you are unsure.
  • Anyone (in emergencies or if they need to) can make a referral directly to Children’s Services.
  • The Local Authority Designated Officer (L.A.D.O.) for managing allegations against staff and volunteers can be contacted via Children’s Services.
  • The school office can provide you with a copy of the school’s procedures for managing allegations against staff and volunteers.

If a child makes a disclosure to you:

  • Do not investigate but report them immediately to the Designated Safeguarding Lead or another member of the senior staff at the school
  • Avoid being shocked or embarrassed.
  • Listen to the child without interrupting them.
  • Do not promise to keep a secret.
  • Do not ask the child any leading questions.
  • Reassure them that ‘it is not their fault and they have done the right thing to tell you’.
  • Immediately following the disclosure report your concerns to the Designated Safeguarding Lead (see above) and write down what the child said using the child’s own words and phrases. Sign and date this document and hand it to the Designated Safeguarding Lead.
  • Consider how best to manage your own feelings
  • Following reporting your concerns remember that the disclosure and the child’s identity should remain confidential

The school has a full code of conduct to encourage safer working practices for all adults working with young people, including advice regarding ‘on-line safety’.

Remember:

  • provide a positive role model to young people
  • dress appropriately, ensuring your clothing is not likely to be viewed as offensive or revealing
  • treat all members of the school’s community with respect and tolerance
  • work with children so that you are visible by a member of the school staff
  • respect a child’s privacy and dignity
  • always be able to justify any physical contact you have with a young person
  • always report any situations that arise that you may feel may give rise to a complaint or misunderstanding in respect of your own actions
  • There should be no delay in ringing 999 and requesting fire, police or an ambulance.

Never:

  • Photograph a child without the school’s permission
  • Never use your personal mobile phone in areas used by young people
  • Ignore inappropriate behaviours towards children either by other children or adults
  • Share personal details with a child
  • Meet or contact the child out of school including by text, email, Facebook or other social media or give a child a lift home
  • Discuss the school, children or adults working within the school on social media
  • Make inappropriate comments to a child including racist, homophobic, sexist or sexualised comments
  • Give gifts to a young person (unless part of the school’s agreed rewards policy or with the agreement of your line manager) or show them preferential treatment

Key staff or governors:

Headteacher: Mr Charlie Newstead

Designated Safeguarding Lead: Mr Charlie Newstead

Those trained to deputise for the Designated Safeguarding Lead:

Ms Pauline McIlroy (Deputy Head Teacher) & Mrs Emma Tuffin (Learning Mentor)

Chair of Governors: Mr John Mulcahey

Safeguarding Governor: Ms Pauline McIlroy

The names of first aiders are displayed around the school on green notices outside classroom areas, in the staffroom and beside the first aid cupboard.

Other Safeguarding Guidance:

In the case of a fire follow the following procedures:

Make your way out using the nearest exit (exits and routes to exits are marked by green signs)

Assemble on the Junior Playground

If a child or member of staff needs emergency treatment or first aid:

Inform any member of staff who will inform a qualified first aider to administer any treatment required.

Mandatory induction checklist for all staff and volunteers

All staff and volunteers should receive an appropriate safeguarding induction and on-going training. The following checklist will support schools to ensure staff and volunteers receive copies of key guidance and are sign-posted to where they can find further guidance.

Mandatory Induction Checklist
Name:
Post:
I confirm I will ensure I read and understand the following documents
Signed:
Staff and volunteers should receive copies of the following information/guidance:
Date received
Name of the Headteacher, Designated Safeguarding Lead, Chair of Governors and Safeguarding Governor
Names of those trained to deputise for the Designated Safeguarding Lead
Role of the Designated Safeguarding Lead (Appendix B of Keeping Children Safe in Education)
DFE Guidance: Keeping Children Safe in Education Part 1 and annexe A
School’s child protection policy and procedures
School’s managing allegations against staff procedures
School’s whistle-blowing policy
Safer Recruitment Consortium: Guidance for safer working practice for
those working with children and young people in education settings
Staff/Visitors Code of Conduct (Within Safeguarding Handbook)
DFE Guidance: ‘Whattodoifyouareworriedachildis beingabused’
Staff and volunteers should know where to find the following information/guidance:
Additional safeguarding guidanceincluding: child sexual exploitation, female genital mutilation, forced marriage, missing children, faith abuse, fabricated or induced illnesses, gangs and extremism and radicalisation
School’s policies for students including: anti-bulling, behaviour for learning, equality and diversity
Policies for supporting children including: intimate care, positive and safe handling, medical needs
Health care plans for students
Fire evacuation procedures
Lock down guidance/procedures

Recognising indicators of abuse and neglect

All staff should read and understandPart 1 and Annexe A of Keeping Children Safe in Education.

The guidance defines four types of abuse and neglect:

  • Physical
  • Emotional
  • Sexual
  • Neglect

The DFE provide the following guidance:

All school and college staff should be aware that abuse, neglect and safeguarding issues are rarely standalone events that can be covered by one definition or label. In most cases, multiple issues will overlap with one another.

Abuse: a form of maltreatment of a child. Somebody may abuse or neglect a child by inflicting harm or by failing to act to prevent harm. Children may be abused in a family or in an institutional or community setting by those known to them or, more rarely, by others (e.g. via the internet). They may be abused by an adult or adults or by another child or children.

Physical Abuse: a form of abuse which may involve hitting, shaking, throwing, poisoning, burning or scalding, drowning, suffocating or otherwise causing physical harm to a child. Physical harm may also be caused when a parent or carer fabricates the symptoms of, or deliberately induces, illness in a child.

Emotional Abuse: the persistent emotional maltreatment of a child such as to cause severe and adverse effects on the child’s emotional development. It may involve conveying to a child that they are worthless or unloved, inadequate, or valued only insofar as they meet the needs of another person. It may include not giving the child opportunities to express their views, deliberately silencing them or ‘making fun’ of what they say or how they communicate. It may feature age or developmentally inappropriate expectations being imposed on children. These may include interactions that are beyond a child’s developmental capability as well as overprotection and limitation of exploration and learning, or preventing the child participating in normal social interaction. It may involve seeing or hearing the ill-treatment of another. It may involve serious bullying (including cyberbullying), causing children frequently to feel frightened or in danger, or the exploitation or corruption of children. Some level of emotional abuse is involved in all types of maltreatment of a child, although it may occur alone.

Sexual Abuse: involves forcing or enticing a child or young person to take part in sexual activities, not necessarily involving a high level of violence, whether or not the child is aware of what is happening. The activities may involve physical contact, including assault by penetration (for example rape or oral sex) or non-penetrative acts such as masturbation, kissing, rubbing and touching outside of clothing. They may also include non-contact activities, such as involving children in looking at, or in the production of, sexual images, watching sexual activities, encouraging children to behave in sexually inappropriate ways, or grooming a child in preparation for abuse (including via the internet). Sexual abuse is not solely perpetrated by adult males. Women can also commit acts of sexual abuse, as can other children.

Neglect: the persistent failure to meet a child’s basic physical and/or psychological needs, likely to result in the serious impairment of the child’s health or development. Neglect may occur during pregnancy as a result of maternal substance abuse. Once a child is born, neglect may involve a parent or carer failing to: provide adequate food,

clothing and shelter (including exclusion from home or abandonment); protect a child from physical and emotional harm or danger; ensure adequate supervision (including the use of inadequate care-givers); or ensure access to appropriate medical care or treatment. It may also include neglect of, or unresponsiveness to, a child’s basic emotional needs.

It is important to remember that staff and volunteers should discuss any concern about a child’s welfare without delay with the school or setting’s Designated Safeguarding Lead withoutfeeling they need to determine the type of abuse.

The DFE guidance ‘What to do if you’re worried a child is being abused’ reminds us of the need to be alert to the signs of abuse and neglect and to consider the behaviour of children and parents/carers. It is important that all staff and volunteers read this guidance in fulland remain focused on the child. Staff and volunteers should receive training to help them become more aware of physical and behavioural indicators or changes in children that might be due to abuse or neglect. It is important to remember that children may be unable or afraid to disclose their concerns.

The following are examples of indicators of harm. Importantly you should also examine the indicators associated with specific forms of abuse e.g. female genital mutilation or child sexual exploitation.

The child may:

  • be regularly missing from school
  • have poor attendance including unexplained absences or punctuality or is oftencollected late from school
  • lack concentration at school, fall behind with their work or fail to reachdevelopmental milestones
  • ask you if you will keep a secret before offering to tell you something
  • talk about a friend who has a problem
  • have unexplained or untreated injuries
  • have repeated injuries
  • talk of being in pain or discomfort
  • be unwilling to change in front of other children
  • be unwilling to discuss injuries, marks or bruises
  • always cover their arms and legs even in hot weather
  • be fearful of medical help or parents being contacted
  • be afraid of parents or carers and unwilling to go home
  • be fearful of particular adults
  • have sudden behavioural changes including becoming aggressive, irritable, lethargic or withdrawn
  • have low self-esteem, self-harm or feel suicidal
  • display extreme anger or sadness or depression, display aggression or attention seeking behaviour
  • flinch when approached
  • be clingy
  • continually run away or talk about running way
  • be left in unsupervised or in unsafe situations or be involved in risk taking behaviour
  • have sudden changes in weight (loss or gain) or eating disorders
  • scavenge or scrounge food
  • be constantly hungry or tired
  • have poor social relationships or be socially isolated
  • display sudden speech disorders
  • be frequently unclean, inappropriately or inadequately dressed
  • experience being constantly ‘put down’, insulted, sworn at or humiliated
  • display sexualised behaviour seemingly inappropriate for their age including sexualised behaviour towards others
  • present artwork, play or write displaying sexual themes
  • take on a parental role within the home
  • be concerned for younger siblings without explaining why
  • have unexplained amounts of money
  • talk about terrifying dreams
  • soil or wet themselves or regress to other childhood behaviours including thumb sucking
  • have difficulty sleeping or start wetting the bed
  • begin or revisit ‘rocking’ behaviour
  • have urinary infections
  • have soreness or bleeding in genital or anal areas or in the throat
  • misuse drugs or alcohol

Staff and volunteers need to be familiar with the different signs of abuse and harm that might indicate specific forms of abuseassociated with, as examples: