Safeguarding
Safeguarding at Saffron Walden County High School
Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children underpin the school’s support for our students.
We have a legal duty to protect children from maltreatment; prevent impairment of children’s health or development; ensure that children grow up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care; and take action to enable all children to have the best outcomes.
Where a child is suffering significant harm, or is likely to do so, we have a legal duty to take action to protect that child. We also have a duty to promote the welfare of a child in need of additional support, even if they are not suffering harm or are at immediate risk.
SWCHS’s staff form part of the wider safeguarding system for children and we work with social care, the police, health services and other services to promote the welfare of children and protect them from harm.
Paul Singh, Deputy Headteacher, is the school’s Designated Safeguarding Lead and Paul Singh and Sharon McCormick are the Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads. They provide support to staff members to carry out their safeguarding duties and liaise closely with other services such as children’s social care.
When concerns or allegations involve members of staff the Headteacher will be informed immediately. The school will then follow the Essex Local Authority procedures for managing allegations against staff. In the event of an allegation against the Headteacher the Chair of the Local Governing Body will be informed who will seek the advice of the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO).
| Safeguarding Contacts | |
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Designated Safeguarding Lead Mr Paul Singh Tel: 01799 513030 Email: PSingh@swchs.net |
Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead Mrs Sharon McCormick Tel: 01799 513030 Email: SMcCormick@swchs.net |
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Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead Ms Katie Vanderpere Brown Tel: 01799 513030 Email: KVanderpere-Brown@swchs.net |
Sixth Form Safeguarding Officer Mrs Jo Chapman Tel: 01799 513030 Email: JChapman@swchs.net |
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, neglect and exploitation and will follow the Cambridgeshire 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 and exploitation. 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.
Holding power
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.