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.

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 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.

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. The three ways in which you may be involved 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, Miss R J Oxley (Principal)
  • You may be approached by Social Services and asked 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
  • 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 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.
  • 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 Heads of Departments and then 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 our 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 1998
  • Data Protection Act 1998

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 "gt;What to do if you’re worried that a child is being abused"gt;, 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 Teacherne Child Protection.

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.

Tower College is part of the St Helens Local Education Authority Network to support Child Protection. The St Helens Area Child Protection Committee (ACPC) was formed in 2000, and the contact person is Chris Addison, Deputy Head of Access and Inclusion at the Rivington Centre, St Helens. Mr Geoff Tither is also available to give advice on matters associated with children’s welfare.

Key Contacts

Name Telephone Number
Chris Addison / Geoff Tither 01744 455477
St Helens Social Services 01744 456965
St Helens Police Family Support Unit 0151 777 6183/4
Merseyside Police Vulnerable Persons Liaison Officer 0151 777 8162
Barnardos Merseyside Scheme 0151 233 1336
Knowsley Social Services 0151 443 4113
Knowsley Police Family Support Unit 0151 777 6381
Liverpool Social Services 0151 225 3901
Liverpool Police Family Support Unit North 0151 777 4584/5
South 0151 777 5182/3
Sefton Social Services 0151 934 4572
Sefton Police Family Support Unit 0151 777 3182/3

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).

Signed for and on behalf of the Board of Governors,

Miss R J Oxley, Principal & Child Protection Officer, 1st September 2007.

To be reviewed annually.