St Thomas à Becket C of E Primary School

EQUA Trust

Safeguarding

Safeguarding is the action taken to make sure children are safe from harm and flourish, physically, emotionally and mentally.

At St Thomas à Becket Primary School the safety and well-being of our children is our absolute priority.

Safeguarding includes:

  • 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 focuses on protecting individual children identified as suffering or likely to suffer significant harm. It includes procedures for responding to concerns about a child.

Schools have a key role to play in Safeguarding Children and Child Protection. We have regular contact with children so are in a strong position to identify signs of abuse and neglect.

We can safeguard children by:

  • creating safe environments for children and young people through robust safeguarding practices
  • maintaining an environment where children feel confident to approach any member of staff if they have a worry or problem
  • ensuring that adults who work in the school, including volunteers, don’t pose a risk to children
  • making sure staff are trained, know how to respond to concerns and keep-up-to-date with policy and practice
  • teaching children and young people about keeping safe

Safeguarding may include issues such as:

  • Bullying
  • Harassment and discrimination
  • Racist abuse
  • Use of physical intervention
  • Providing First Aid
  • Drug and substance misuse
  • Internet Safety
  • School site security
  • Preventing radicalisation
  • Children Missing from Education (CME)
  • Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)
  • Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE)

If you have about concerns about the health and safety or well-being of a child at this school, or feel that something may be troubling them, you should share this information with an appropriate member of school staff immediately.

Do not worry that you may be reporting small matters – we would rather you tell us things that turn out to be small than have us miss a worrying situation.

If you think the matter is very serious and may be related to a child protection concern for example, physical, sexual, emotional abuse or neglect, you must talk to one of the people below immediately.

Headteacher

 Safeguarding Lead

 Nicki Boast head@st-thomas-a-becket.wilts.sch.uk
Deputy Safeguarding Lead Chloe Stobbart cstobbart@st-thomas-a-becket.wilts.sch.uk
Deputy Safeguarding Lead Elka Priddin epriddin@st-thomas-a-becket.wilts.sch.uk
Designated teacher for Looked After Children Chloe Stobbart cstobbart@st-thomas-a-becket.wilts.sch.uk
Nominated Governor Antoinette Fish afish@st-thomas-a-becket.wilts.sch.uk
Chair of  Governors Keith Ratcliffe kratcliffe@st-thomas-a-becket.wilts.sch.uk

If you are unable to contact them, please ask the school office staff to find them and ask them to speak to you immediately about a confidential Safeguarding matter.

Operation Encompass

Our school receives information from Wiltshire Police in the event of any of our pupils experiencing or witnessing domestic violence or abuse.

This information is shared as part of Wiltshire Police’s ‘Operation Encompass’ programme, aiming to ensure schools can offer support to these pupils when needed.

Wiltshire Police aim to share this information with us before the next school day, following a domestic incident, so that we can be ready to support the pupil on their arrival to school.

Wiltshire Police also confirm with school whether or not the pupil is aware of the incident, so that decisions can be made around whether or not explicit or more discreet support can be offered. In the event of an incident taking place outside of Wiltshire, the relevant Police Force dealing with the situation will pass the information to Wiltshire Police, who will then inform school via Operation Encompass.

 

KCSiE (Keeping Children Safe in Education)

NSPCC: Keeping Children Safe

Early Support Offer

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