ST. MARTIN’S C.E. AIDED PRIMARY SCHOOL

CHILD PROTECTION POLICY

Aims and principles

St. Martin’s C.E. Aided Primary School is committed to the safety and welfare of all its pupils and accordingly follows the ACPC and LEA guidelines on child protection.

Definitions of Abuse

Child abuse is frequently the subject of much professional and public discussion. It is important that relationships with children in school remain and are seen to remain entirely proper and professional.

The definitions are as follows:

• Neglect:
  "persistent or severe neglect ... or failure to protect a child from exposure to any danger, 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"
   
• Physical abuse:
  "actual or likely physical injury ... or failure to prevent physical injury or suffering"
   
• Sexual abuse:
  "actual or likely sexual exploitation of a child or adolescent. The child may be dependent and/or development immature"
   
• 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"

Note that these categories may overlap.

The Role of the Designated Teacher

The school Designated Teacher dealing with child protection is Miss S. Brown. The role involves:

• day-to-day operation of the policy
• liaising with outside agencies
• record keeping/reviewing and monitoring
• regular liaison with school staff
• staff training
• attending case conferences
• providing reports for case conferences
• supporting children and parents
• reporting annually to governors.

Staff Procedure

All staff have an important role to play in listening to what children say. They have a special relationship with pupils which is based on trust and respect. School can often provide a neutral place where a child feels it is safe to talk and to disclose sometimes very serious problems.

Any member of staff who:

• has suspicion that a child is injured, marked, or bruised in a way which is not readily attributed to normal knocks or scrapes which a child received in normal play, or is inconsistent with the explanation, or explanation is not consistent over time
• notes behaviours, actions or over-familiarities which give rise to suspicions that a child may have suffered abuse
• notes indications that a child is suffering from any lack of care or treatment, or that a child is suffering as a result of emotional maltreatment
• receives hints or a disclosure of any abuse from a child or other person

MUST REPORT THIS TO THE DESIGNATED C. P. TEACHER.

Staff must act with sensitivity when responding to the child's needs. The first principle is to listen carefully to what the child is saying and to treat it seriously. Everything a child says is important to him/her and staff should be particularly careful when making a response, even if what the child says is ultimately to be dismissed. It is important to value children as individuals and therefore value what they say. Children should not fear that they will not be believed or that they will be punished for what they say. Above all, the teacher's role is to enable the child to speak and if a pupil feels that a member of staff will believe what he/she has to say without blaming him/her and will give support, a major contribution can be mode towards protecting the pupil.

A promise of confidentiality should not be made to a child as this is not realistic. A child needs to hear the truth about what will happen and he/she needs a sincere offer of support through what may result.

What can be promised is that is someone else has to be involved, the child, depending on his/her maturity and level of understanding will be told with whom the teacher intends to speak or what action has to be taken. Again, depending upon the maturity and understanding of the child, this will first be discussed with him/her.

However, in cases where children may be at risk of significant harm, it is important for all staff to remember that the child's welfare is paramount.

All staff concerns about pupils' welfare are passed to the Designated Teacher. The Designated Teacher following consultation will make a decision as to whether a child protection referral should be made to Social Services. If it is felt that a referral should be made, then the Designated Teacher will contact Customer Relations, Social Services: telephone number 01723 501555. Following the Child Protection Guidelines, issued by the LEA, the parents will not necessarily be contacted before this step is taken.

If a child is interviewed by the Police or Social Services, on the school premises, Miss Brown or the Deputy Headteacher, will be present as well as the parents, if at all possible. Top of page.

Record Keeping/Reviewing and Monitoring

The school prospectus, which is given to all parents on their child's admission to school, draws attention to the availability on request of all school policies. The Child Protection Policy can be requested from the school at any time.

If a child discloses concerns to a member of staff, that staff member may be asked to write a report, detailing times, dates, witnesses and any action taken (see "Dealing with Suspected Abuse", paragraph 4).

The school is committed to working together with other agencies to protect the children in its care and as such will attend and provide reports for case conferences, and, where appropriate, contribute to the protection plan.

If a child is removed from roll or "disappears" without providing information of school to attend, the school will immediately inform the LEA who will investigate, and, if appropriate, the SSD.

If a child transfers to a different school, apart from sending on the academic file, St. Martin’s C.E. Aided Primary School will send on, separately packaged, the child's confidential file for the attention of the receiving Headteacher or Designated Teacher only.        Top of page.

All staff, both teaching and non-teaching, working in school, must be aware of the confidential nature of personal information about a child or his family and must ensure that confidentiality is maintained. However, any matter which may have implications for the welfare of a pupil must be brought to the attention of Miss Brown.

It is necessary, in order to protect the child, that particularly confidential information is available to the minimum number of people. Confidential information is recorded in the child's file, which is separate from the academic profile, and is always given on a "need to know" basis. If a child leaves school, this file is forwarded in confidence to the appropriate person at the receiving school.

Miss Brown or the class teacher may attend Case Conferences and hear detailed information about family circumstances and incidents of abuse and they receive minutes which record these. Such information is highly confidential, but will, where necessary, be made available to the relevant class teacher where they do not attend the conference themselves. Under no circumstances should information be passed on to anyone else.

Attendance/Providing Reports for Case Conference

St. Martin’s School is committed to the welfare of its pupils. Attendance at case conferences, by the Designated Teacher or Class Teacher, is viewed as most important. On the few occasions where attendance is not possible, then reports are sent.  Top of page.

Liaison with other Agencies

St. Martin’s School is committed to positive working relationships with other agencies in line with the inter-agency guide to arrangements for protecting children, "Working Together".

Support for Children and Families

The school recognises the necessity and nature of good relationships with parents of children in its care and attempting to preserve these wherever possible. The school, however, recognises that the child's protection is paramount.

In the interests of the child, every effort is mode to retain a working relationship with the family, especially where the family may have been involved in the abuse of the child.

Following a referral it is important that parents understand that the school has acted:

•  following consultation,
•  in what the school considers to be the best interests of the child,
•  in keeping with the NYCC guidelines.

Child protection in the Curriculum

Child protection issues are incorporated into the curriculum through talk/discussion times, circle times and through personal and social development education.

Training

All staff, which includes teachers, T.A.s and lunchtime staff, have copies of the Policy and fully understand their responsibilities towards child protection. The Designated Teacher arranges training sessions, such as updating staff re. procedure following receipt of circulars from the LEA. Educational Social Workers and representatives from S.S.D. are invited into school to talk to staff.

Teaching staff ore updated at staff meetings, about children whose names have been added to the Child Protection Register, following a case conference, or about children who give particular cause for concern.

The Designated Teacher will inform non-teaching staff about pupils for whom concern has been expressed, where necessary.

Roles of Governors

The named Governor for Child Protection is Mrs. Heidi Wilcock. The Governors review the Child Protection Policy and are made aware by the Designated Teacher of the frequency and amount of time the school is involved with child protection issues.

N.B. No names of families or details of cases are revealed to the Governors.

Policy reviewed September 2004 by Staff and Governors