St Edward's School
SAFEGUARDING
Safeguarding is a priority at St Edward’s School. We are committed to effectively promote the safety and well-being of young people and protecting all vulnerable individuals in our care from any form of abuse.
We adhere to guidance outlined in Keeping Children Safe in Education September 2021. Safeguarding themes are well understood across our school and we are particularly mindful of issues around:
Children missing from care or education
Bullying and cyber-bullying and the misuse of social media
Radicalisation
Gang culture
Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE)
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)
Contextual safeguarding
A WELCOMING
AND SAFE ENVIRONMENT
KEY STAFF
Designated Safeguarding Lead:
Karen Thorne (Head of Pastoral Care)
Nominated Governor for Safeguarding:
Michael Tennant (Chairman of the Board)
Contact
The school has a dedicated email address for safeguarding concerns: safeguarding@melchetcourt.com
(Please note the account is monitored during term-time only.)
Safeguarding
&
Child Protection Policy
Safeguarding is effective. Staff are collectively committed to supporting pupils and providing effectively for their needs. Consequently, pupils feel safe and extremely well cared for.
Ofsted (2018)
Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Support for parents and carers to keep children safe online.
Anti-Bullying Alliance
Information, advice and support for parents and carers. Support if you are being bullied.
Child Exploitation and Online Protection
Are you worried about online sexual abuse or the way someone has been communicating with you online?
USEFUL LINKS
Catch22
Catch22 is a social business, a not for profit business with a social mission. For over 200 years we have designed and delivered services that build resilience and aspiration in people and communities.
Refuge
For women and children Against domestic violence.
Safe 4 Me
COVID-19: Supporting education and safeguarding children.
Think U Know
Help your children get the most out of the internet.
Young Minds
Whether you want to know more about how you're feeling, get information about a mental health condition or know what support is available to you, our guides can help
NSPCC
Everything we do protects children today and prevents abuse tomorrow, to transform society for every childhood.
Pace
Pace recognises and celebrates the lifelong commitment parents have for their child. We understand the lengths to which they will go to keep their child from harm.
Parents Protect
Here you will find resources, publications, posters and other awareness raising material that will help us prevent child sexual abuse.
REMOVE A NUDE IMAGE SHARED ONLINE
It can be scary finding out a nude image or video of you has been shared online. But we can help. Follow the steps below to get your image or video removed from the internet.
IWF
You can anonymously and confidentially report: Child sexual abuse content
Non-photographic child sexual abuse images.
THINK NINJA
ThinkNinja is a mental health app designed for 10 to 18 year olds. Using a variety of content and tools, it allows young people to learn about mental health and emotional wellbeing, and develop skills they can use to build resilience and stay well.
"A truly whole-school approach ensures that pupils’ learning and development are top priorities for all who care for them. The staff are attuned to the individual needs of the pupils. They are intuitive and nurturing in their approach. Consequently, pupils develop trusting relationships with an experienced and well-established team of staff."
Ofsted (2019)
KEEPING CHILDREN
&
YOUNG PEOPLE SAFE
We invest in robust policies, processes and structures, ensuring all our young people are safe and have a high quality network of support.
All adults who work with our young people undertake a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check prior to appointment.
We restrict unsupervised contact with children and young people only to those who have been correctly vetted and suitably trained.
A COMMITMENT TO
SAFEGUARDING
We strive to maintain a transparent and open culture where everyone feels safe and able to share concerns. We firmly believe that safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. To ensure the best possible provisions and outcomes in relation to safeguarding:
Safeguarding is represented at a senior level.
We work in partnership with key local and national agencies involved in safeguarding.
A safeguarding e-learning module is included in St Edward’s mandatory training programme, provided to everyone working in our school. All site based staff also complete mandatory face-to-face training in safeguarding which is regularly refreshed.
All recruitment into school follows robust procedures, developed in line with safeguarding requirements and recommendations.
Robust Governance and monitoring processes ensure that policy is appropriately applied, and that practice is regularly evaluated.
"FEELING SAFE AT ST EDWARD'S SCHOOL"
REPORTING CONCERNS
Concerns relating to safeguarding are always listened to and taken seriously. In accordance with our safeguarding policy all staff, volunteers and visitors to our school are expected to immediately report any safety and safeguarding concerns about any child or young person.
Safeguarding policies for our school can be found in the 'About' section on the school's policies page.
REMOVE HARMFUL
CONTENT
Reports can be made 24/7 through the online reporting forms and helpline practitioners will review and respond to reports within 72 hours between 10am and 4pm Monday to Friday.
HSCP
Hampshire Safeguarding Children Partnership (HSCP) is a statutory body that leads on keeping children safe and ensuring their wellbeing in the local authority (LA) area of Hampshire. The Partnership includes local agencies who work together to make sure that child protection services in Hampshire are effective and keep our children safe.
GOOGLE SAFETY CENTRE
Children today are growing up with technology, not growing into it like previous generations. So we’re working directly with experts and educators to help you set boundaries and use technology in a way that’s right for your family.
National Online Safety
At National Online Safety, it is our mission to make the internet a safer place for children. We will achieve this through equipping school staff, parents and children with the knowledge they need to understand online dangers and how best to react should an incident arise.
PARENT ZONE
Parent Zone sits at the heart of modern family life, providing advice knowledge and support, to shape the best possible future for children, as they embrace the online world.
