Safeguarding

Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy

Summary for Parents

The Designated Leads for Safeguarding at Old Oak Primary School are:

Co-Headteachers	Mr. Joseph Brown and Mrs. Katie Beardsworth
SENCO	Ms. Jude-Brandt

Details of our Safeguarding Policy can be found here:

Old Oak Primary School Safeguarding Policy

Why Is Safeguarding Important?

Keeping children safe is everybody's responsibility. Safeguarding children and young people means protecting them from abuse or neglect, getting the right support in place as early as possible and creating an environment in which children feel safe and healthy. Old Oak Primary School is committed to providing a safe learning environment and safeguarding processes that promote the welfare of its pupils. The Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy provides clear direction to staff and others about expected behaviour when dealing with safeguarding issues to make sure they are handled sensitively and professionally. We will ensure you understand the school's statutory role to safeguard and promote the welfare of its pupils.

Our School Commitment

We create an environment where children feel secure and are encouraged to talk and are listened to
We teach children the skills they need to stay safe
We use safe recruitment practices
We have clear procedures for identifying safeguarding concerns and making child protection referrals when we need to
We monitor and support children on Child Protection or Child in Need plans and we attend relevant meetings and provide reports
We raise awareness amongst staff of safeguarding issues and ensure staff are equipped to deal with concerns
We work with parents and professionals by providing opportunities to talk, offering support and advice, and signposting to other services if extra support is needed
We work closely with other professionals and agencies to make sure children are safeguarded and are getting the right services to help them achieve their potential

Dealing with Disclosures

If a child discloses they are being abused or feel unsafe, the member of staff will:

Listen to what the child says without displaying shock or disbelief and will accept what the child is saying. School staff will not investigate whether the disclosure is true or not, this is the responsibility of Children's Social Care
Allow the child to talk freely
Reassure the child but not make promises to keep secrets or to keep the information confidential as a referral to Children's Social Care may need to be made
Reassure the child that what has happened is not their fault and that they were right to tell someone
Not ask direct or leading questions but allow the child to tell their story
Not criticise the alleged perpetrator
Explain what will happen next and who will be told
Make a formal record and pass this to the Designated Lead for Safeguarding

Referrals to Children’s Social Care

A decision on whether or not to make a referral to Children’s Social Care will be made by the Designated Lead for Safeguarding.

When there is doubt about whether the concerns raised meet the threshold for a Child Protection referral, the Designated Person/s may discuss the situation on a 'no names basis' with the relevant local authority's Children's Social Care duty team for advice. As a parent/carer you would be contacted before a referral is made unless it was felt this would place your child at further risk of harm. If you did not agree to the referral but your child was still at risk of harm the referral would still go ahead.

Records

It is school policy to keep written records of Safeguarding concerns, which are documented as they arise. These records are kept securely in a separate file to a pupil's education file. Only the Designated Person/s have access to these files. We monitor any concerns we may have and will discuss these with you unless it places the child at further risk of harm.

Confidentiality and Information Sharing

All information gathered by school staff about your child or your family is confidential and can only be shared with your consent, with one exception. Where a child is suffering harm or is at risk of suffering harm we have a legal duty to share this information with Children's Social Care. Where a child is on a Child Protection Plan or where a Child Protection Investigation is being undertaken, we must share any information requested about the child by Children's Social Care.

We have a legal duty to work with other agencies and professionals to make sure children are safeguarded and are getting the right services to help them achieve their potential. We will always seek your consent to share information with a view to working in partnership with yourself and other services.

Staff Training and Support

We are committed to making sure our staff are well equipped to deal with safeguarding issues. All staff are aware of the Child Protection and Safeguarding policy and have regulare safeguarding training.

We also have a number of policies in place to ensure our pupils are safeguarded. These relate to:

Bullying
Behaviour
Special Educational Needs
Health and Safety
Safeguarding

These policies are available on request and can also be found on the school website under Policies.

IF YOU ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THE SAFETY OR WELFARE OF YOUR CHILD, OR A CHILD YOU KNOW, YOU SHOULD ACT WITHOUT DELAY.

You can contact the school designated persons or contact Hammersmith and Fulham Children's Safeguarding Service:

020 8753 6600 to speak about your concerns in confidence.

Please refer to our Safeguarding Polidy for full details of the Safguarding process at Old Oak.

For further information:

Policy and Government guidance

For information about local safeguarding procedures, further information about ways to protect your child or if you have concerns regarding a member of staff please visit:

Hammersmith and Fulham Local Safeguarding Children Board

Preventing Extremism

If you concerned that a child, young person and/or their parents may hold extremist views or are at risk of being radicalised you have a duty to ensure that they receive support to protect them from being drawn into terrorism.

To get in touch with the Prevent Team in Hammersmith & Fulham and Kensington and Chelsea

Telephone: 0208 753 5727

Email: preventenquiries@lbhf.gov.uk