At Brampton Village Primary School we are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and we expect all staff, volunteers, parents and visitors to share this commitment.
We have a number of policies and procedures in place that contribute to our safeguarding commitment.
Designated Safeguarding Lead Mr Allen (Headteacher)
Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead Mrs Cooper (Deputy Headteacher)
Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead Miss Edwards (SENCo)
Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead Mrs Shears (Child and Family Worker)
Sometimes we may need to share information and work in partnership with other agencies, when there are concerns about a child's welfare. We will ensure that our concerns about our pupils are discussed with parents/carers first, unless we have reason to believe that such a move would be contrary to the child's welfare.
We actively support the Government's Prevent Agenda to counter radicalism and extremism.
All matters relating to Safeguarding and Child Protection should be dealt with by one of the Designated Safeguarding Leads. If they are not available please contact a member of the Office staff.
If you believe a child is at risk or they have disclosed something to you that raises a concern please contact one of Designated Safeguarding Leads.
Brampton Village Primary School is a protective school, which fully recognises the contribution it makes to child protection and its responsibility under Section 175 of the Education Act 2002 to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.
Our Child Protection and safeguarding Policy applies to all staff and volunteers working in the school.
Under section 175 of the Education Act 2002 (as amended), *the Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014, the Non-Maintained Special Schools (England) Regulations 2015, and the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009 (as amended) to have arrangements in place to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.
We will endeavour to provide a safe and welcoming environment where children are respected and valued.
The school will therefore be alert to signs of abuse and neglect and will follow the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Safeguarding Children Partnership Board’s procedures to ensure that children receive appropriate and effective support and protection.
Parents/carers should know that the law requires all school staff to pass on information which gives rise to a concern about a child’s welfare, including risk from neglect, physical, emotional or sexual abuse. Parents/carers should know that records of safeguarding concerns may be kept about their child. They should be informed that school staff will seek, in general, to discuss any concerns with them including referrals to other agencies.
Local procedures state that “Consent should always be sought from an adult with parental responsibility for the child/young person before passing information about them to Children’s Social Care, unless seeking consent would place the child at risk of significant harm or may lead to the loss of evidence for example destroying evidence of a crime or influencing a child about a disclosure made.” This includes allowing them to share information without consent, if it is not possible to gain consent, if it cannot be reasonably expected that a professional gains consent, or if to gain consent would place a child at risk.
Where there is a need to share special category personal data, the Data Protection Act 2018 contains ‘safeguarding of children and individuals at risk’ as a processing condition that allows professionals to share information.
In accordance with legislation and local Information Sharing protocols, we will ensure that information is shared securely and sensitively. Information will only be shared with other services where it is deemed necessary and proportionate to ensure that children and young people are safe and receive the right service. In all circumstances, the safety of the child will be the paramount concern.
Schools will contact Children’s Social Care when they have reasonable cause to suspect a child may be suffering or likely to suffer significant harm. Occasionally, concerns are passed on which are later shown to be unfounded. Parents/carers will appreciate that the member of staff in the school with responsibility for child protection (known as the Designated Safeguarding Lead or Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead) was carrying out their responsibilities in accordance with the law and acting in the best interests of all children.
Under Section 3 (5) of the Children Act 1989, any person who has care of a child “may….do what is reasonable in all the circumstances of the case for the purpose of safeguarding promoting the child’s welfare”. This means that on rare occasions, a school may need to “hold” a child in school whilst Social Care and the Police investigate any concerns further.
Photographs and Videos
Whilst lots of parents and carers really enjoy seeing photos and videos of their children’s school life we are very mindful of our duty of care towards all our pupils. We take the issue of safeguarding very seriously and this includes the use of photographic and video images.
Any photographs or videos taken by parents, carers and relatives at school productions, sports days or other events are for the enjoyment of individual families. They must not be used in any way that could potentially place a child at risk. This would include publishing images in any form of print or on the internet including social networking sites. This is emphasised before concerts and shows etc.
We understand that in exceptional circumstances a parent or carer may not wish their child to be photographed or videoed in this way. If this is the case then please contact the Headteacher to discuss how this can be best achieved.
Being safe online
We all have a key role in helping all our children to be safe online and to know how to use it responsibly.
There is lots of useful and important information available on the school website on the ‘e safety’ tab.
If you have any concerns with regards to e-safety please do contact the school and we will be happy to discuss and advise.