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St Nicholas Church of England Primary School
Excellence for All, Excellence from All
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Safeguarding
At St Nicholas Primary School, the welfare of every child is our highest priority. We are a child-centred school, and all staff act in the best interests of the children in our care. Our safeguarding policy reflects our culture of prevention, protection and support.
We strive to maintain an ethos in which pupils feel safe, valued and listened to. Children are encouraged to speak openly with any member of staff if they are worried or have concerns. We follow the national guidance What to do if you are worried a child is being abused.
By creating a safe, open and supportive environment, and ensuring staff remain vigilant in identifying and responding to additional needs, we aim to prevent concerns from escalating into more serious safeguarding issues.
Everyone who comes into contact with children and their families has a responsibility to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. Staff at our school play a particularly important role, as they are well placed to notice early signs of concern and provide timely support.
Our school adheres to the policies and procedures of the Medway Safeguarding Children’s Partnership
Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility.
St Nicholas' Safeguarding team are:
Designated Person: Mrs Forghani-Ashrafi - Acting Headteacher
Deputy Designated Person: Mrs Edwards - Deputy Headteacher
Deputy Designated Person: Mrs Gates - SENDCo
Deputy Designated Person: Mrs Thornley - Class Teacher
The Governor responsible for safeguarding is: Joy O'Sullivan-Bach - osulj142@st-nicholas.medway.sch.uk
If the disclosure or your concern relates to a member of staff or any other adult, this must be shared with the Headteacher or Deputy Designated Person. If the concern is about the Headteacher, this must be shared with the Chair of Governors who can be contacted via email: ChairOfGovernors@st-nicholas.medway.sch.uk .
If you have any questions about safeguarding please see the Head of School or Deputy Designated person. We always value your feedback.
Keeping Children Safe
The School operates a policy of restricting unsupervised access to students to those adults who have been correctly vetted. All adults who work regularly with our young people must undertake an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check which must be completed before they commence working with the children. Adults visiting the site for meetings will be accompanied throughout their visit and do not need to be checked. They must sign in and out at Reception and wear a visitors badge at all times. Any unidentified adult in the school should be reported to reception immediately.
E-Safety
Children are encouraged to use technology and recognise the value it plays. Children are encouraged to manage the risk using technology poses, take responsibility for the things they do online and understand the potentially damaging impact it may have for their reputation. Further guidance is detailed in the schools E-Safety Policy.
ThinkUKnow provides age-appropriate guidance to help children and parents understand how to stay safe online.
CEOP (Child Exploitation and Online Protection) offers advice and support on keeping children safe online, including guidance on parental controls and recognising risks.
When should I report to CEOP?
You should make a report to CEOP if someone has acted inappropriately towards you, your child, or a young person you know online. This may include:
Sexual or inappropriate chat
Being asked to do something that makes you feel uncomfortable
Someone being persistent about meeting up in person
If this happens, you can make a report directly via CEOP’s website.
Please note pictures of the children should not be taken by visitors. Visitors should not use mobile phones whilst in school.
Safeguarding pupils from extremism and radicalism
Schools have a vital role to play in safeguarding pupils from the risks of extremism and radicalisation, a role which will be underpinned by the new duty in the Counter Terrorism and Security Act 2015 “to have due regard to the need to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism”.
Keeping children safe from these risks is a safeguarding matter and should be approached in the same way as safeguarding children from other risks.
Parents who have concerns about their children may look to schools as a trusted source of advice on how to keep their children safe from these risks. In addition to materials produced by local authorities and the police – such as the new “Prevent Tragedies” online campaign launched by the Police (http://www.preventtragedies.co.uk/) - there are online resources produced by civil society groups which provide valuable advice, for example ‘Families Matter’ (http://www.familiesmatter.org.uk/), (run by Families Against Stress and Trauma).