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HINCHINGBROOKE
SCHOOL
Policy Statement
on
CHILD PROTECTION
Drawn up by: AJH
Date: Nov 2006
Date adopted by Governing Body: 28.03.07
Revised:
CHILD PROTECTION POLICY FOR HINCHINGBROOKE SCHOOL
INTRODUCTION
Hinchingbrooke fully recognises the responsibility it has under section 175 of the Education Act 2002 to have arrangements in place to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.
Through their day-to-day contact with pupils and direct work with families, staff at the school have a crucial role to play in noticing indicators of possible abuse or neglect and referring them to the appropriate agency, normally the appropriate Child and Family Team (Social Care).
This policy sets out how the school’s governing body discharges its statutory responsibilities relating to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children who are pupils at the school
There are four main elements to our policy:
PREVENTION through the teaching and pastoral support offered to pupils and the creation and maintenance of a whole school protective ethos
PROCEDURES for identifying and reporting cases, or suspected cases, of abuse.
SUPPORT TO PUPILS who may have been abused.
PREVENTING UNSUITABLE PEOPLE WORKING WITH CHILDREN
Our policy applies to all staff and volunteers working in the school including community education staff and governors. Teaching assistants, mid-day supervisors, secretaries as well as teachers can be the first point of disclosure for a child. Concerned parents may also contact school governors.
| 1 | PREVENTION |
| 1.1 | We recognise that high self-esteem, confidence, supportive friends and good lines of communication with a trusted adult help to protect children.
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| 1.2 | The school will therefore:
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| 1.2.1 | establish and maintain an ethos where children feel secure and are encouraged to talk, and are listened to;
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| 1.2.2 | ensure children know that there are adults in the school whom they can approach if they are worried or in difficulty;
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| 1.2.3 | include in the curriculum activities and opportunities for PSHE which equip children with the skills they need to stay safe from abuse and information about who to turn for help;
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| 1.2.4 | include in the curriculum material which will help children develop realistic attitudes to the responsibilities of adult life, particularly with regard to child care and parenting skills.
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| 2 | PROCEDURES |
| 2.1 | We will follow the procedures set out in Interagency Procedures produced by the Cambridgeshire Local Safeguarding Children’s’ Board “Safeguarding and Promoting the Welfare of Children in Need in Cambridgeshire”, also known as the “Blue Book” and also the Education Child Protection Procedures which is the companion document to the Blue Book for all education staff.
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| 2.2 | The Designated Senior Member of Staff for Child Protection |
The school will:
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| 2.2.1 | ensure it has a designated senior member of staff, who has undertaken as a minimum, the 2 day child protection training course, accredited by the Local Safeguarding Children’s’ Board;
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| 2.2.2 | ensure this training is updated every two years in accordance with government guidance;
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| 2.2.3 | recognise the importance of the role of the designated teacher and ensure s/he has the time and training to undertake her/his duties;
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| 2.2.4 | ensure there are contingency arrangements should the designated member of staff not be available; other staff have been trained as part of a Hinchingbrooke child protection team;
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| 2.2.5 | ensure that the designated member of staff will take advice from a child protection specialist when managing complex cases;
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| 2.3 | The Role of Governors and School Staff |
The school will:
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| 2.3.1 | ensure every member of staff and every governor knows:
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| 2.3.2 | provide training for all staff from the point of their induction, and updated every three years at a minimum, so that they know:
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| 2.3.3 | ensure that all staff and volunteers recognise their duty and feel able to raise concerns about poor or unsafe practice in regard to children and that such concerns are addressed sensitively and effectively in a timely manner in accordance with agreed whistle-blowing policies.
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| 2.4 | Liaison with Other Agencies |
| The school will:
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| 2.4.1 | work to develop effective links with relevant agencies and co-operate as required with their enquiries regarding child protection matters including attendance and written reports at initial case conferences, core groups and child protection review conferences;
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| 2.4.2 | notify the local Social Care team if:
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| 2.5 | Record Keeping The school will:
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| 2.5.1 | keep clear detailed written records of concerns about children (noting the date, event and action taken), even where there is no need to refer the matter to Social Care immediately;
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| 2.5.2 | ensure all records are kept secure and in locked locations;
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| 2.5.3 | ensure all relevant child protection records are sent to the receiving school or establishment when a pupil moves schools.
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| 2.6 | Confidentiality and information sharing
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| 2.6.1 | Staff will ensure confidentiality protocols are adhered to and information is shared appropriately. If in any doubt about confidentiality, staff will seek advice from a senior manager or outside agency as required.
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| 2.6.2 | The Headteacher or Designated Teacher will disclose any information about a pupil to other members of staff on a need to know basis only.
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| 2.6.3 | All staff must be aware that they have a professional responsibility to share information with other agencies in order to safeguard children.
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| 2.6.4 | All staff must be aware that they cannot promise a child to keep secrets.
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| 2.7 | Communication with Parents The school will:
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| 2.7.1 | undertake appropriate discussion with parents prior to involvement of another agency unless the circumstances preclude this. (Further guidance on this can be found in the Education Child Protection Procedures section 4.27)
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| 2.7.2 | ensure that parents have an understanding of the responsibility placed on the school and staff for child protection by setting out its obligations in the school brochure (See section 4.40 of the Education Child Protection Procedures for a model wording of text) and through staff informing individual parents as the need arises.
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| 3 | SUPPORTING THE PUPIL AT RISK
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| 3.1 | We recognise that children who are abused or witness violence may find it difficult to develop a sense of self worth and to view the world as benevolent and meaningful. They may feel helplessness, humiliation and some sense of self-blame. |
| 3.2 | This school may be the only stable, secure and predictable element in the lives of children at risk. Nevertheless, when at school their behaviour may be challenging and defiant or they may be withdrawn. |
| 3.3 | We recognise that some children actually adopt abusive behaviours and that these children must be referred on for appropriate support and intervention.
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| 3.4 | The school will endeavour to support the pupil through:
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| 3.4.1 | the content of the curriculum to encourage self-esteem and self- motivation (see section 2); The child protection team will liaise with staff responsible for PHSE and school groups such as the Anti Bullying Committee.
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| 3.4.2 | the school ethos which (i) promotes a positive, supportive and secure environment (ii) gives pupils a sense of being valued (see section 2);
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| 3.4.3 | the school's Inclusion and Equality, SEN and behaviour policies are aimed at supporting vulnerable pupils in the school. All staff will agree on a consistent approach, which focuses on the behaviour of the offence committed by the child but does not damage the pupil's sense of self worth. The school will ensure that the pupil knows that some behaviour is unacceptable but s/he is valued and not to be blamed for any abuse which has occurred;
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| 3.4.4 | liaison with other agencies which support the pupil such as Social Care, Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services, the Educational Psychology Service, Behaviour Support Services and the Education Welfare Service;
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| 3.4.5 | a commitment to develop productive and supportive relationships with parents whenever it is in a pupil’s best interest to do so;
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| 3.4.6 | recognition that children living in a home environment where there is domestic violence, drug or alcohol abuse are vulnerable and in need of support and protection;
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| 3.4.7 | vigilantly monitoring children’s welfare, keeping records and notifying Social Care as soon as there is a recurrence of a concern.
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| 3.5 | When a pupil on the child protection register leaves, information will be transferred to the new school immediately. The Child Review Manager will also be informed. We will follow the procedures for children that ‘Missing Children’.
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| 3.6 | Drug Use and Child Protection
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| 3.6.1 | The discovery that a young person is using illegal drugs or reported evidence of their drug use is not necessarily sufficient in itself to initiate child protection proceedings but the school will consider such action in the following situations:
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When there is evidence or reasonable cause;
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| 3.6.2 | Children of Drug Using Parents
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| 3.6.3 | Further enquiries and or further action will be taken when the school receives reliable information about drug and alcohol abuse by a child’s parents/carers in the following circumstances;
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| 4 | PREVENTING UNSUITABLE PEOPLE FROM WORKING WITH CHILDREN
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| 4.1 | The school will operate safe recruitment practices including ensuring appropriate CRB and reference checks are undertaken according to Circular DfES/0278/2002 Child Protection: Preventing Unsuitable People from Working with Children and Young People in the Education Service. (A copy is available upon request.) School interview panels will also contain at least one member of staff properly trained to ensure all interviews and appointments of staff reflect the importance of safeguarding children.
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| 4.2 | The school will consult immediately with the designated LA Officer for Child Protection in the event of an allegation being made against a member of staff and adhere to the relevant procedures set out in the Education Child Protection Procedures, Blue Book and the school's Personnel Manual (i.e. the Manual produced by EPM Ltd for subscribing schools).
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| 4.3 | The school will ensure that any disciplinary proceedings against staff relating to child protection matters are concluded in full even when the member of staff is no longer employed at the school and that notification of any concerns is made to the relevant authorities and professional bodies and included in references where applicable.
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| 4.4 | The school will ensure that all staff and volunteers are aware of the need for maintaining appropriate and professional boundaries in their relationships with pupils and parents as advised by the Local Authority’s Code of Conduct.
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| 4.5 | The school will ensure that staff and volunteers are aware that sexual relationships with pupils aged under 18 are unlawful and could result in legal proceedings taken against them under the Sexual Offences Act 2003 (Abuse of position of trust).
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OTHER RELATED POLICIES
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| 5.1 | Physical Intervention Our policy on physical intervention by staff is set out in a separate document and is reviewed annually by the governing body. We acknowledge that staff must only ever use physical intervention as a last resort, and that at all times it must be the minimum force necessary to prevent injury to themselves, another person or property
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| 5.2 | Bullying Our policy on bullying is set out in a separate document and is reviewed annually by the governing body. We acknowledge that to allow or condone bullying may lead to consideration under child protection procedures.
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| 5.3 | Racist Incidents Our policy on racist incidents is set out in a separate document and is reviewed annually by the governing body. We acknowledge that repeated racist incidents or a single serious incident may lead to consideration under child protection procedures.
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| 5.4 | Health and Safety Our Health and Safety policy, set out in a separate document, is reviewed annually by the governing body. It reflects the consideration we give to the protection of our children both within the school environment and when away from the school when undertaking school trips and visits.
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| 5.5 | Children with Statements of Special Educational Needs We recognise that statistically children with behavioural difficulties and disabilities are most vulnerable to abuse. School staff who deal with children with profound and multiple disabilities, cerebral palsy, sensory impairment, and or emotional and behavioural problems, and especially those with communication difficulties, are particularly sensitive to signs of abuse.
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| 5.6 | All young people have the right to confidential advice on contraception, condoms, pregnancy, abortion and sexually transmitted disease, but this should be in the form of sex education or as part of the PHSE curriculum. If staff discuss this as a personal issue with a student they must report this to the child protection team in school. Advice on sex and contraception from a health worker or Connexions worker should not be arranged by individual education staff.
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| 6 | GOVERNING BODY CHILD PROTECTION RESPONSIBILITIES
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| 6.1 | The governing body fully recognises its responsibilities with regard to child protection and to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. It will:
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| 6.2 | Extended Schools and Before and After School Activities
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| 6.2.1 | If the governing body provides extended school facilities or before or after school activities directly under the supervision or management of school staff, the school’s arrangements for child protection as written in this policy shall apply.
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| 6.2.2 | Where services or activities are provided separately by another body the governing body will seek assurance that the body concerned has appropriate policies and procedures in place for safeguarding children and child protection and there are arrangements to liaise with the school on these matters where appropriate |
Appendix A
Standards For Effective Child Protection Practice In Schools
Child protection matters are receiving an increased priority in Ofsted inspections. The following standards may assist schools in evaluating their practice
In best practice, schools:
- have an ethos in which children feel secure, their viewpoints are valued, and they are encouraged to talk and are listened to;
- provide suitable support and guidance so that pupils have a range of appropriate adults to whom they can turn if they are worried or in difficulties;
- work with parents to build an understanding of the school’s responsibility to ensure the welfare of all children and a recognition that this may occasionally require children to be referred to investigative agencies as a constructive and helpful measure;
- are vigilant in cases of suspected child abuse, recognising the signs and symptoms, have clear procedures whereby teachers report such cases to senior staff and are aware of local procedures so that information is effectively passed on to the relevant professionals;
- monitor children who have been identified as at risk, keeping, in a secure place, clear records of pupils’ progress, maintaining sound policies on confidentiality, providing information to other professionals, submitting reports to case conferences and attending case conferences;
- provide and support child protection training regularly to school staff every three years and in particular to designated teachers every two years to ensure their skills and expertise are up to date, and ensure that targeted funding for this work is used solely for this purpose;
- contribute to an inter-agency approach to child protection by developing effective and supportive liaison with other agencies;
- use the curriculum to raise pupils’ awareness and build confidence so that pupils have a range of contacts and strategies to ensure their own protection and understand the importance of protecting others, taking into account of the guidance for Governors on sex and relationship education in circular 5/94;
- provide clear policy statements for parents, staff and children and young people on this and on both positive behaviour policies and the schools approach to bullying;
- have a clear understanding of the various types of bullying - physical, verbal and indirect, and act promptly and firmly to combat it, making sure that pupils are aware of the schools position on this issue and who they can contact for support;
- take particular care that pupils with SEN in mainstream and special schools, who may be especially vulnerable to abuse, are supported effectively with particular attention paid to ensuring that those with communication difficulties are enabled to express themselves to a member of staff with appropriate communicative skills;
- have a clear policy about the handling of allegations of abuse by members of staff, ensuring that all staff are fully aware of the procedures and that they are followed correctly at all times, using the guidance set down in circular DFES/0027/2004 Safeguarding Children in Education;
- have a written whole school policy, produced, owned and regularly reviewed by schools staff and which clearly outlines the school’s position and positive action in respect of the aforementioned standards;
- the school will ensure that specified information is passed on in a timely manner to the LA for monitoring purposes.
APPENDIX B
CHILD PROTECTION ADVICE
SOMETHING IS WRONG – SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS
BEHAVIOUR SIGNS
In some ways the task of spotting an abused secondary child may seem easier than that of a primary child.
For one thing, older children are less likely to have injuries that have resulted from playing; for another, they have much more awareness of what is happening to them, and a much greater ability to use language in telling someone. However, this may be counter-balanced by the increased load of shame and/or guilt. A child who has suffered abuse for many years will be only too aware of the obvious question s/he may be asked – “Why didn’t you tell before?” – and is unlikely to have an answer. Such a child is more likely to give off signals which invite detection of the abuse by an adult, thus relieving the child of the burden of making a decision to tell, and risk the consequences.
The most likely result is difficult, challenging behaviour which disrupts the class and seems designed not to elicit help or sympathy of any kind. Behaviour like this is not necessarily a signal from an abused child. But it might be, and the possibility should be explored along with others.
Some typical behaviour patterns in school exhibited by abused children include:
- Very aggressive behaviour to other students eg hitting out at the slightest argument, hair-trigger temper.
- Persistent bullying.
- Running away.
- Persistent sexually provocative speech or behaviour.
- Constant attention seeking, usually by direct and unreasonable challenges to authority.
- Frequent absences, particularly one day absences.
- Self-injury, particularly cuts on arms, legs.
- Withdrawn, moody behaviour and wariness of any talk about home.
- Petty theft and arson offences.
- Undernourished appearance, inadequate clothing.
- Panic attacks, fainting, headaches or stomach aches.
- Stealing, telling lies.
- Writing/drawing sexually explicit stories/pictures.
- Very low self-esteem, lack of confidence.
TALKING
A secondary student will need to “test the water” before telling. S/he might do this by “hanging around” you, asking trivial questions about work, helping put things away etc. Be aware that any casual conversation could be an opener to disclosure. It is important to take what is said seriously, and not be dismissive.
The “test” might be a totally outrageous tale, perhaps something that happened “to a friend”. Some children know that what has happened to them will be difficult to believe (particularly with sexual abuse) and they will try out something else that’s “outrageous” to gauge the likely reaction.
A measured response to an improbable tale, or a “has anything like that ever happened to you?” will signal to the child that you are prepared to believe the improbable; a dismissive or amused response may close the door on disclosure.
PROCEDURE FOR WORKING WITH A CHILD ABUSE DISCLOSURE
Actions staff must take when a student makes a disclosure
It is possible that one or two students in your tutor group, teaching group, club, team etc will have experienced some form of abuse, whether it be physical, sexual, emotional abuse or neglect. They may see you as an adult they trust and want to talk about a problem. The moment of disclosure can be traumatic for any member of staff, so it is important to be prepared mentally and practically for the possibility. These principles should help:
1 Listen
- Find the time and a private place to talk as soon as possible.
- Try to remain calm and re-assuring. The student will need to know you can cope with the situation.
- Indicate that the student has been right to speak out and that you care about them.
- Accept the student’s language and terminology.
2 Believe
- It is helpful that you tell the student that you believe them.
- Remember that the decision to confide in an adult takes great courage on the part of the child. Acknowledge the child’s bravery. To be disbelieved adds greatly to the existing trauma.
- It is not your role to determine the validity of these disclosures. (It is important to acknowledge that even if a child is later found to be telling a lie, there is always a serious reason for this.)
3 Acknowledge
- The student’s feelings.
- Beware of projecting your own eg the student may be feeling embarrassed or feel that they are wasting your time.
- Let the student know you understand how difficult it is to talk about such experiences.
- Let the student know that it is NOT their fault.
- Avoid condemning the alleged abuser, particularly if the abuse occurs within the family. (This can trigger a strong reaction which may lead to further ambivalent feelings for the child who may already be caught between caring for the abuser and wanting the abuse to stop.)
- Avoid asking “why” questions.
- Let the student know that you are willing to help, but avoid saying, ”Everything will be alright”.
4 Report
- To one of the child protection team members using the nagging doubt form.
- Indicate that you can’t keep this to yourself, that you want it to stop too and that you must pass it on to a designated teacher trained in Child Protection work.
- Ask them if they have told anyone else.
- Let the student know what is likely to happen next.
- A checklist for recording Child Protection concerns must be filled in and sent to one of the child protection team as a record of disclosure.
THE INCIDENT SHOULD NEVER BE LEFT TO THE NEXT DAY
REPORTING THE DISCLOSURE
- The trusted member of staff should contact one of the child protection team at the first appropriate moment, as soon as possible.
- If required, contact the Emergency Duty Staff or a nearby colleague for your lesson to be covered whilst you stay with the student until one of the designated child protection teachers arrive. PARENTS SHOULD NOT BE CONTACTED AT THIS STAGE
- The child protection team will then.
- ring Social Care and/or the Police Family Unit to discuss the disclosure, who will then, if necessary, involve the multi-disciplinary agencies and advise on contacting parents, when appropriate;
- keep the student informed of the procedures/actions.
If you are unable to refer a case in school for example, you become aware of the abuse case outside school hours, you should report the case directly to the Team Manager in the Local Social Care Office or Duty Officer if out of hours. The telephone number for this area is 01480 375515 or 01733 561730.
DEFINITIONS AND CRITERIA FOR REGISTRATION
These criteria apply to children under 18 years old. Child abuse may fall into any of the following four categories. These categories represent the criteria for registration on the Child Protection Register.
CRITERION 1 – NEGLECT: The persistent or severe neglect of a child, or the failure to protect a child from exposure of any kind of danger, including cold or starvation, or extreme failure to carry out important aspects of care, resulting in the significant impairment of the child’s health or development, including non-organic failure to thrive.
CRITERION 2 – PHYSICAL INJURY: Actual or likely physical injury to a child, or failure to prevent physical injury (or suffering) to a child including deliberate poisoning, suffocation and Munchausen’s syndrome by proxy.
CRITERION 3 – SEXUAL ABUSE: Actual or likely sexual exploitation of a child or adolescent.
CRITERION 4 – EMOTIONAL ABUSE: Actual or likely severe adverse effect on the emotional and behavioural development of a child caused by persistent or severe emotional ill-treatment or rejection. All abuse involves some emotional ill-treatment. This category should be used where it is the main or sole form of abuse.
www. teachernet.gov.uk Documents referred to in Safeguarding Children in education
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Guidance referred to in 'Safeguarding Children in Education'
