Definition of ‘Safeguarding’
Keeping children safe in Education, DfE, 2024, defines safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children as:
‘Protecting children from maltreatment; preventing impairment of children’s health or development; ensuring that children grow up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care; and taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes. ‘Children’ includes every one under the age of 18’.
Safeguarding within Tanfield Lea Community Primary School
Everyone who comes into contact with children and their families has a role to play in safeguarding children. School staff are particularly important as they are in a position to identify concerns early and provide help for children, to prevent concerns from escalating. Schools and their staff form part of the wider safeguarding system for children working with social care, the police and health services both to promote the welfare of children and protect them from harm.
Safeguarding children permeates all aspects of our work as a school, with a preventative role to inform and boost the resilience of all students by enhancing protective factors in their lives. Accordingly this policy links with many other related policies in school:
- Behaviour policy
- Anti-bullying policy, including cyber-bullying
- Health and Safety policies
- Medication in school/First Aid policies
- Intimate Care policy
- School visits including risk-assessments
- IT/e-safety
- SEND/LAC
- Equal Opportunities
Children are encouraged to express and discuss their ideas, thoughts and feelings through a variety of activities and have access to a range of cultural opportunities which promote respect and empathy for others. As part of our new Prevent Duty Guidance (2023) under s.26 of the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015 we are aware of the importance of building children’s resilience to radicalisation by promoting fundamental British values and enabling them to challenge extremist views. Schools can build children’s resilience to radicalisation by providing a safe environment for debating controversial issues and helping children and young people understand how they can influence and participate in decision making.
Safeguarding at Tanfield Lea Community Primary School
We are all responsible for ensuring that each child remains safe, however the Designated Safeguarding Leads are as follows:
Training
Three members of staff are trained in Level 2 safeguarding and child protection
- Mr M Temple (Acting Head Teacher)
- Mr M Patterson (Acting Deputy Head Teacher)
- Mr P Mansfield (Behaviour Support Lead)
All other staff and governors have been trained in Level 1 safeguarding and child protection and this is renewed on a 3 year cycle.
All staff and governors have completed Prevent training and is renewed on a 2 year cycle.
Procedure
- If a concern is raised regarding a child, the designated safeguarding lead is informed immediately and a record made. The decision of the next step is then made and recorded.
- If a concern is raised regarding a member of staff this must be given to the Head Teacher.
- If a concern is raised regarding the Head Teacher this must be given to the Chair of Governors.
- All of these concerns are taken very seriously and correct procedures are followed as stated in our Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) Policy which can be found on our Policies page.
Further Information
If you would like further information:
Visitors and Volunteers at Tanfield Lea Community Primary School
All visitors are expected to sign in the visitors’ book and will be given a badge to identify them as a visitor.
Visitors are asked to read the visitor information leaflet. Regular visitors are provided with a leaflet to ensure they follow school protocol and asked to sign an agreement.
Recruitment at Tanfield Lea Community Primary School
The school is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Any offer of employment is subject to receipt of a satisfactory DBS Enhanced Disclosure and a minimum of two satisfactory references.
We follow strict procedures to ensure that everyone who works with our children is vetted, keeping our children as safe as possible. Ongoing checks and ‘whistle blowing’ are in line with the current policy.
Mrs O’Malley and Personnel Committee Governors have completed the Safer Recruitment Training.
All DBS checks are renewed on a continuous 5 year cycle.
Please refer to our Safer Recruitment Statement for further information.
Information Sharing
We have an obligation to obtain necessary information from parents in advance of a child being admitted to school, including:
- emergency contact numbers;
- the child’s special dietary requirements, preferences or food allergies the child may have;
- the child’s special health requirements;
- information about who has legal contact with the child; and who has parental responsibility for the child.
PARENTS AND CARERS MUST TELL US OF ANY CHANGES TO THESE DETAILS.
We take confidentiality very seriously. Any information which we hold is treated as confidential and shared on a ‘need to know’ basis.
Children who go missing from home
Tanfield Lea Community Primary have agreed to work with police to help in the search for missing children. Please refer to the letter below for the protocol when a child goes missing from home.
Children who go missing from home
Links with External Agencies
Because our first concern must be the well-being of your child, there may be occasions when we have to consult with other agencies before we contact you. The procedures we have to follow have been laid down in accordance with the local authority child protection procedures.
We are fortunate to be supported by a range of external agencies which can be called upon to support the work we do in school. These include School Nurse, Health Practitioners, Educational Psychology, Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services, Behaviour Support, Social Services and Specialists in supporting Special Educational Needs.
Reporting Concerns or Complaints
Further to the above procedures, we have in place a concerns and complaints policy. This enables children, staff and carers to report anything they feel is of concern.
Concerns should be raised in the following order:
- To the Class Teacher. Then, if no resolution;
- To the Head Teacher. Then, if no resolution;
- To the Chairman of Governors. Then, if no resolution;
- To the Local Authority.
Contact details are available from the school office.
Review of Policy and Practice
In order to ensure that best practice is maintained our polices are reviewed regularly to incorporate the latest statutory guidance.
If you would like more information on safeguarding, please contact the school for all our policies or view our policies section on our website.
