Safeguarding

Safeguarding and Child Protection at Sutton in Craven C of E VC Primary School

Every person who works with our children understand their responsibility in keeping children safe and are confident in how they will do that.

Sutton in Craven C of E VC Primary School is committed to ensuring the welfare and safety of all children in school. All North Yorkshire schools, including Sutton CE Primary School, follow the North Yorkshire Safeguarding Children Board procedures. We have Safeguarding and Child Protection policies and procedures in place where all staff, including our volunteers and supply staff, must ensure that they are aware of our procedures.

Sometimes we may need to share information and work in partnership with other agencies when there are concerns about a child’s welfare. The school will, in most circumstances, endeavour to discuss all concerns with parent/carers about their child/ren first. However, there may be exceptional circumstances when the school will discuss concerns with Social Care and/or the Police without parental knowledge (in accordance with Child Protection procedures). The school will, of course, always aim to maintain a positive relationship with all parents.

Safeguarding means:
• protecting children from abuse and maltreatment
• preventing harm to children’s health or development
• ensuring children grow up with the provision of safe and effective care
• taking action to enable all children and young people to have the best outcomes.

Child protection is part of the safeguarding process. It focuses on protecting individual children identified as suffering or likely to suffer significant harm. This includes child protection procedures, which detail how to respond to concerns about a child.

ANY PARENT OR MEMBER OF STAFF WITH ANY CONCERNS SHOULD IMMEDIATELY REPORT THEM TO THE DESIGNATED SENIOR PERSON: SEE CONTACTS BELOW.

The Designated Safeguarding Lead for Child Protection is: Mrs Orla Gibbons (Headteacher)

The Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead who deputises in her absence is: Mrs Alison Campbell (SLT and Class Teacher)

Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy

All staff have an up-to-date understanding of safeguarding children issues and are able to implement the safeguarding policy and procedures.

Staff are able to respond appropriately to any:

  • significant changes in a pupil’s behaviour; deterioration in general well-being;
  • unexplained marks, bruising or signs of possible abuse;
  • signs of neglect;
  • comments pupils make which may give cause for concern;

All staff are aware of the need to maintain privacy and confidentiality.

Safeguarding and Child Protection documents

School Commitment

At Sutton in Craven C of E VC Primary School, we put the safety of our pupils above all.  Each child’s welfare is of paramount importance. Safeguarding is at the centre of our practice and policies. We believe that all pupils have the right to be happy, to be safe and to learn and work in partnership with all members of the school community to protect our children from harm. It is the responsibility of everyone who comes into contact with children to keep them safe. We recognise some children may be especially vulnerable to abuse and that children who are abused or neglected may find it difficult to develop a sense of self-worth and to view the world in a positive way. We will always take a considered and sensitive approach so that we can support all of our children.

We will ensure that:

  • All pupils, whatever their age, culture, disability, gender identity, language, racial origin, religious beliefs and/or sexual orientation have the right to be safe and protected from harm;
  • All suspicions and allegations of abuse will be taken seriously and responded to swiftly and appropriately;
  • All staff and volunteers at Sutton in Craven C of E VC Primary School have a responsibility to report any concerns to the designated leads for safeguarding.

Areas of Safeguarding

Our child protections and safeguarding policy cover all areas of school life and include:

  • Staff and Visitors – we ask all staff and visitors to sign in and identification lanyards are issued for visitors to wear whilst they are in school. It is our responsibility to ensure that everyone is vetted, informed and trained. Staff are trained in child protection issues and they are aware of the procedures to follow. Staff are encouraged to be vigilant in order to maintain the safety of our pupils. All staff and volunteers are given a copy of the relevant documentation outlining safeguarding procedures at our school. They are also referred to the document below ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education 2020’;
  • Safer Recruitment – we follow strict procedures to ensure pupils are safe. On-going checks and ‘whistle-blowing’ are in line with current policy;
  • Children’s Behaviour – we promote safe and happy behaviours and lifestyles. This is embedded in our curriculum;
  • Parents and Carers – we encourage collaboration and support families;
  • Premises – we keep children safe in our environment and ensure it is fit for purpose;
  • Curriculum – we provide positive learning experiences and we teach children how to keep themselves safe;
  • Online/E-Safety – we work with a number of professionals to ensure that children are knowledgeable about dangers online and how to protect themselves;
  • Outside School – we work in collaboration with others to ensure that children work in safe environments and participate in safe activities when out of school;
  • We participate in the Growing Up In North Yorkshire Survey and use this to help us support our children and families more effectively

Prevent Strategy

As part of Sutton in Craven C of E Primary School’s ongoing safeguarding and child protection duties we are fully behind the government’s Prevent Strategy. All staff have received ‘Prevent’ training and understand about and how to deal with any issues they may see inside or outside school.

Please click here for a link to the official government document.

Our Curriculum

One of our key priorities is teaching children to keep themselves safe. This is done through the curriculum all year round. All children in our school are aware they can talk to staff if they are worried. The school is committed to ensuring children are aware of behaviour towards them that is not acceptable and how they can keep themselves safe.

Our teaching includes:

Online/E Safety

E-safety is an integral part of children’s education in today’s digital world and is embedded in their learning at school. We also want to help our parents and children improve their own understanding of e-safety issues so they can learn to use the internet and all digital media in a safe and secure way.

You can download the DfE advice for parents on cyberbullying here

You can access the DfE online parents support website called Parent Info here

At Home

As a parent you’ll know how important the internet is to children – they use it to learn, play, socialise and express themselves.  It’s a highly creative place of amazing opportunities.  But the technology children use every day can seem a bit daunting and you might worry about the risks your child can face online – such as bullying, contact from strangers or the possibility of them seeing illegal or inappropriate content.

Talking to your child about how they use the internet will help you start to protect your children online and decrease the risks they face.  Here are some conversation starter ideas from www.childnet.com

  • Ask your children to tell you about the sites they like to visit and what they enjoy doing online.
  • Ask them about how they stay safe online. What tips do they have for you, and where did they learn them? What is OK and not OK to share?
  • Ask them if they know where to go for help, where to find the safety advice, privacy settings and how to report or block on the services they use.
  • Encourage them to help. Perhaps they can show you how to do something better online or they might have a friend who would benefit from their help and support.
  • Think about how you use the internet as a family. What could you do to get more out of the internet together and further enjoy your lives online

It’s important to remember that the legal age to have an account on most social media – Instagram, Facebook, Youtube, Snapchat – is 13 years old.

Parent Resources

We know that parents/carers will also be concerned that children stay safe when using the Internet at home and elsewhere. There are many websites that offer advice to parents on the topic of ‘keeping your child safe online’ There are some links below.

At School

As part of your child’s curriculum and the development of computer skills, we provide access to the internet only in teacher supervised lessons. We strongly believe that the use of the web and email is hugely worthwhile and an essential tool for children as they grow up in the modern world. But because there are always concerns about children having access to undesirable materials, we have taken positive steps to deal with this risk in school. Our school internet access provider operates a filtering system that restricts access to inappropriate materials.

Information Sharing

We have an obligation to collect necessary information from parents and carers in advance of a pupil being admitted to school including:

  • emergency contact numbers;
  • the child’s special dietary requirements;
  • the child’s special health requirements;
  • information about who has the legal contact with the child and parental responsibility for the child.

Written parental permission is requested, at the time of the child’s admission to the provision, to the seeking of any necessary emergency medical advice or treatment in the future.

PARENTS AND CARERS MUST NOTIFY US IMMEDIATELY OF ANY CHANGES TO THESE DETAILS.

We will explain how your data will be used.

Links with External Agencies

Our first concern must be the well-being of the pupil. There may be some occasions where we liaise with other agencies before we contact parents. The procedures we follow have been laid down in accordance with the Local Authority Child Protection Procedures.

Other agencies we work with include the prevention service, community police, social services, CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services), educational psychologists etc. and specialists who support pupils with specific needs.

Please request our complaints policy if you have any comments or complaints about our safeguarding procedures.

Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy
Safeguarding Support for Children and Families