Kirkheaton Primary School

Safeguarding Policy 2021 / 2022

Safeguarding at our school

Everyone at Kirkheaton Primary School is passionate about and committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. We expect all staff and visitors to share this commitment. Our staff are trained at regular intervals and are aware of how to keep our pupils safe and what signs to look for. Our pupils are encouraged to share any concerns that they have.
We are fully committed to ensuring that consistent effective procedures support families, children and staff who are part of our school.

Keeping Children Safe

Everyone at Kirkheaton Primary School is passionate about and committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. We expect all staff and visitors to share this commitment.

Key people you can talk to in school about safeguarding:

Mrs Caroline Fowler
Designated Safeguarding Lead

Mrs Samantha Gallant
Designated Safeguarding Lead

Mr Leigh Blanchard
Designated Safeguarding Governor

If you have any concerns about safeguarding or bullying you can also email the school by using the email:  safeguarding@kirkheatonprimary.com

Child Protection

In cases where the school has reason to be concerned that a child may be subject to ill treatment, neglect or other forms of abuse, the Designated Safeguarding Lead or Deputy Safeguarding Lead may report this concern to Social Services or other appropriate agencies.

Please remember that when a school refers a concern about a child, it is not accusing the parents of abuse but requesting that further investigation takes place to establish whether a child is at risk.

Recruitment

Only adults who are safe to work with our children may be employed or volunteer at Kirkheaton Primary. We undertake thorough checks including DBS checks, references, ID and full employment history.

We keep a Single Central Record of all of this information and this is regularly monitored.

Attendance

Children come to school to learn and good attendance is important if they are to gain as much as possible from their time in school. When children miss lessons, it is harder for them to reach their full potential.

Poor attendance and punctuality can:

• Lead to children feeling unsettled at school
• Affect friendships
• Reduce confidence
• Lead to academic problems, reducing the long-term life chances of children

Please support us in making sure your child comes to school regularly – this is a parents’ legal responsibility. Failing to come to school regularly will be considered a safeguarding matter.

Mrs Jemma Muncaster and Mrs Caroline Fowler are our attendance officers – please contact them on 01484 548049 if you would like to discuss any aspect of attendance.

What we Teach

We offer a secure and encouraging environment where children feel safe and their spiritual, moral and cultural development is enhanced through our PSHE/RSE curriculum, core values and our work with the local community and other agencies.

Online Safety

Pupils are taught how to safe online and this is reinforced in lessons and through assemblies. Pupils are taught what to do or who they can talk to if they are worried.

Operation Encompass

Kirkheaton Primary School takes part in Operation Encompass. This is where information from the police and social care regarding domestic incidents is shared with school. This means we can make sure that our pupils are fully supported in school.

Mrs Caroline Fowler is the lead for Operation Encompass.