Child Protection Policy

This document replaces all previous departmental documents regarding Child Protection for pupils at Tower College. It sets out our principles of Child Protection and the seriousness with which we view our responsibilities to the pupils in our care and their families and is reviewed annually to assess the efficiency with which related duties have been carried out. All deficiencies must be put right straight away.

Our aims and objectives in respect of our Child Protection policy are:

• To ensure each pupil’s health, welfare and happiness

• To enable the teaching staff and assistants to be familiar with and follow Christian Schools Ltd’s procedures and protocols for safeguarding the welfare of our pupils

• To ensure that relevant information and training are available for all staff members

• To promote communication between and within departments, ensuring continuity of care for all pupils

• To enable the teaching staff and assistants to provide appropriate help and care for our pupils whether within school or from outside sources

• To ensure that all relevant people and bodies are kept fully informed of individual pupil’s needs and provision

• To build further on links with the St Helens Education Authority, its Area Child Protection Committee (ACPC), Social Services, Family Support units, educational psychologists, local clinics, ISC and IRSC etc.

• To ensure that all relevant bodies are informed in the case of a Child Protection situation, including reporting to the DCSF any staff member whose employment has been terminated due to the danger they present to children.

Our values and principles for individuals: We believe in:

• Protecting vulnerable pupils from abuse and exploitation

• Putting the safety and well-being of pupils first

• Listening to the wishes and feelings of pupils and taking them into account as far as possible

• Treating pupils as individuals and not merely objects of concern or providers of evidence

• Endeavouring to work in partnership with parents and carers

• Working in a non-oppressive and anti-discriminatory way with pupils and families of whatever race, religion, culture, ability and lifestyle and promoting anti-discriminatory practice

• Keeping pupils and parents or carers fully informed, unless to do so would put children at risk or conflict with their welfare

• Respecting and promoting the dignity of children, young people and their families and carers

  
  

  SAFEGUARDING OUR CHILDREN

All employees of Christian Schools Ltd trading as Tower College who come into contact with children have a duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. Recruitment procedures are therefore rigorous in vetting all staff; teaching and non-teaching. Staff must provide a full employment history, at least two referees and have a CRB check.

The three ways in which staff may be involved in Child Protection issues are:

• You may have concerns about a child which you feel should be referred to the Social Services or the Police. Our procedure is to inform your Head of Department and the school’s designated Child Protection Officer, Mrs . Mrs Dawson will inform the Principal.

• You may be approached by Social Services to provide information about a child or family or to be involved in an assessment or to attend a Child Protection Conference. This may happen regardless of who made the referral to Social Services.

• You may be asked to carry out a specific type of assessment, or provide help or a specific service to the child or a member of the family as part of an agreed plan and to contribute to the reviewing of the child’s progress (including attending Child Protection Conferences).

All staff should:

• Be familiar with the school’s procedures

• Know who to contact to express concerns

• Attend regular training as provided by the company; three yearly for all staff, and annually for key Child Protection staff, and Healthy Schools Committee members. Training is available through the St Helens LEA, through ISA and the school has used private consultants.

• Remember that an allegation of child abuse or neglect may lead to a criminal investigation so nothing should be done that may jeopardize a police investigation, e.g. asking a child leading questions, questioning siblings or attempting to investigate allegations of abuse.

• Communicate with a child in a way that is appropriate to their age and understanding. Where concerns arise as a result of information given by a child, it is important to reassure the child but not to promise confidentiality.

• Remember that siblings of children about whom you are concerned must not be questioned for evidence.

• All concerns expressed to Heads of Departments and / or the Child Protection Officer should be recorded for the child’s records and should include details of discussions, decisions, reasons for decisions and school personnel involved in the process. Concerns should not be circulated in written memorandum or reports to staff, but must be discussed with the Child Protection Officer.

Staff responsible for making referrals should :

• know who to contact in the police, health, education authority and social services to express concerns about a child’s welfare

• in general, seek to discuss your concerns with the child, as appropriate to their age and understanding, and with their parents and seek their agreement to making a referral to social services unless you consider such a discussion would place the child at risk of significant harm.

• When you make your referral, agree with the recipient of the referral what the child and parents will be told, by whom and when.

• If you make a referral by telephone, confirm it in writing within 48 hours. Social services should acknowledge your written referral within one working day of receiving it, so if you have not heard back within 3 working days, contact Social Services again.

During the Child Protection Process all staff should:

• Provide relevant information about the child or family members when required to do so by the Child Protection Officer, Heads of Department, Social Services or the Police.

• Contribute to assessments of the child if requested.

• Provide support or specific services to the child or member of the family as part of an agreed plan, and contribute to the reviewing of the child’s developmental progress.

INFORMATION SHARING AND CONFIDENTIALITY ISSUES.

Our duty to safeguard our children’s welfare may cause anxiety about possible conflicts with legal restrictions on information sharing.

You may be asked for information in connection with an assessment of a child’s needs under section 17 of the Children Act 1989 or an enquiry under Section 47 of that Act or in connection with court proceedings. In all cases the main restrictions on disclosure of information are:

• Common law duty of confidence

• Human Rights Act

• Data Protection Act

Each of these has to be considered and other statutory provisions may also be relevant. But in general, the law will not prevent you from sharing information with other practitioners if:

• Those likely to be affected give consent

• The public interest in safeguarding the child’s welfare overrides the need to keep the information confidential; or disclosure is required under a court order or other legal obligation

Further information regarding the legal position about information disclosure and data handling can be found in the booklet “ What to do if you’re worried that a child is being abused”, copies of which are kept in the Main Office and in the Staff Room, and with Heads of Departments.

Useful information, including Government publications (Green Paper; Every Child Matters) can also be found on the following websites or from the following addresses:

www.dfes.gov.uk/everychildmatters/

www.teachernet.gov.uk/childprotection

Department of Health

Child Protection Policy Team

Ground Floor

Mowden Hall

Darlington

DL3 9BG    Tel: 01325 392175

Tower College subscribes to ‘Protecting Children’, published by Optimus Publishing. Copies are available in the Staff room.

Their website can be found at www.optimuspub.co.uk

Tower College is part of the St Helens Local Education Authority Safeguarding Unit to support Child Protection. The St Helens Area Child Protection Committee (ACPC) was formed in 2000.

Allegations of abuse against staff

The Investigation and Referral Support Co-ordinators Network aims to inform and update all those people who work within Local Education Authorities and Independent Schools Council partners in providing a safe educational environment for all pupils and staff. Regular monthly newsletters of the IRSC are available in the Staff Room. Its lists of publications and guidance are extremely useful.

The Independent Schools Council (ISC) has a network of regional co-ordinators who are developing procedures for handling allegations of abuse against teachers. Tower College is in Cluster 22 which covers Warrington, Cheshire, Halton, Knowsley, Liverpool, St Helens, Wirral and Sefton (Lead area).

Staff should ensure that they do not make themselves vulnerable to allegations by never communicating with pupils electronically, which can be misconstrued, however well-meaning and innocuous. Staff and pupils should not have knowledge of one another’s mobile phone numbers, email or msn numbers or be linked through friends networking sites. Staff should avoid one –to – situations where practical. The music tutor rooms and the medical room have vision panels in the doors, for the protection of both pupils and staff. Common sense should prevail, as although very one must be protected, pupils should not be made to feel uncomfortable by staff rushing about to find another pupil or staff member to be present in a situation where they are alone with a child.

In all of our dealings with our pupils, their safety and well-being are paramount.
 
Signed, for and on behalf of the Board of Governors.
 
R J Oxley(Miss)
Principal.
January 2010