SAFEGUARDING

Safeguarding is the ‘golden thread’ running through the ethos and culture of our school and in all that we do 

"Schools and colleges and their staff are an important part of the wider safeguarding system for children. This system is described in the statutory guidance Working Together to Safeguard Children.  

Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is everyone’s responsibility. Everyone who comes into contact with children and their families has a role to play. In order to fulfil this responsibility effectively, all practitioners should make sure their approach is child-centred. This means that they should consider, at all times, what is in the best interests of the child." 

At St. Michael’s we are acutely aware of the importance of ‘Keeping Children Safe In Education', and take notice of, and adhere to all the national and local policies and guidance in regard to Safeguarding Children and Young People. We also extend this to staff and visitors to our school.

We are fully committed to safeguarding and promoting the safety and welfare of children at all times. We expect all staff, governors and volunteers to share this commitment, and training, monitoring and reporting procedures are in place to ensure this commitment is realised. 

We aim to provide a safe environment that is conducive to learning. We also aim to identify children who are suffering or likely to suffer significant harm, and take appropriate to keep them safe in school and at home when required.

As a school we ensure  that safeguarding and child protection are at the forefront of all that we do and are part of the whole school policy and procedures.  We view safeguarding not just as 'words' but as the all important actions we take to keep all those in our care safe.

Adults in our school take all welfare concerns seriously and encourage children and young people to talk to us about anything that worries them.

As a school we follow and adhere to Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) where it is stated: 'Good safeguarding requires a continuing commitment from governing bodies, proprietors, and all staff to ensure the safety and welfare of children is embedded in all of the organisation’s processes and procedures, and consequentially enshrined in its ethos.' (Paragraph 342)'.

At St. Michael's, safeguarding is the golden thread that permeates throughout all that we do both socially and academically and it an important part of our school ethos and culture. There is a whole-institution approach to safeguarding and all staff and governors at the school recognise their statutory role and responsibility to read Part 1 and Annex A of the document below. The school is compliant with this reading. We have also added the link for translation versions to ease the reading. 

Furthermore, the staff sign a 'Safeguarding Declaration' as outlined in their annual job description, demonstrating a full commitment to safeguarding and all that it entails for those who work at our school. 

Training: The school is fully compliant with the Safeguarding training requirements. Please click on the training link at the bottom of this tab. 

We will always act in the best interest of the child. Below are the documents the school adheres to: 

• Safeguarding & Child Protection Policy

• Children Missing Education

St. Michael’s CE School pupils are taught about safeguarding, including online, through various teaching and learning opportunities, as part of providing a broad and balanced curriculum. Children are taught to recognise when they are at risk and how to get help when they need it. Please refer to the relevant safeguarding policies.

General Safeguarding Role and Responsibilities

The Board of Governors and staff of St. Michael’s CE School fully recognise their statutory responsibilities and duties placed upon them to have arrangements in place to safeguard and promote the welfare of all pupils at the school. We recognise that all staff, including volunteers, have a full and active part to play in protecting pupils from harm. Members of the Board of Governors and all staff who work at St. Michael's sign the termly 'Safeguarding Declaration' confirming their understanding of their role and responsibility as outline in the Department of Education publication: "Keeping Children Safe in Education".

• Designated Safeguarding Lead– Points of Contact

The Leadership Team and staff promote a culture of safeguarding that is the ‘golden thread’ running through all that we do to provide a safe, caring, positive, and stimulating environment where pupils can learn and which promotes the social, physical and emotional wellbeing of each individual pupil. We have developed a ‘child-friendly’ safeguarding policy for the children to develop an understanding of what it all means to them:

• Child-Friendly Safeguarding Policy

• Safeguarding Appendices (to be read in conjunction with the school policy)

This very important page and additional information links below outline how we put ‘Safety and Security First at St. Michael’s’ and has direct links to the relevant pages on our school website and gives an overview of our school procedures.  This page will be updated as/when information changes.

The Ofsted publication: “Inspecting safeguarding in early years, education and skills settings” outlines the expectations for the Inspection Body when visiting the school.

This overview of our Safeguarding arrangements (below Tabs) are intended to give an overview of the policy and procedures we have in place at St. Michael’s CE School for Staff and Governors.  It is not an exhaustive overview, rather one that is reviewed and updated regularly. The main safeguarding portfolio is the central source of evidence for the school.