Safeguarding Information
What do our pupils say about safeguarding?
"This school is a happy and safe place to learn."
"I know who to tell if I am worried about someone, or someone has worried me."
"Even if my friend tells me not to tell, I will if they are unsafe."
"I think that the whole school is safe for me and my other peers because we have what we need."
Our dedicated safeguarding email address is:
safeguarding@st-marys-swanley.kent.sch.uk
You can use this address if you are worried about your own, or another child, and want to speak to one of the school safeguarding leads. This email address is checked every day, Monday through to Friday, and we will call you back if you leave a contact number.
If you are considering leaving your Primary aged child home alone, please read this advice:
Concerned?
Acting quickly can make all the difference.
If you think a child might be suffering neglect or abuse, it can be difficult to know what to do. But your action is vital in making sure that child gets the help they need.
If you are concerned about a child in Kent call the Kent Safeguarding Children Board reporting line on 03000 411111.
For more information about the Kent Safeguarding Children Board please visit their website https://www.kscb.org.uk/
Alternatively you can call Childline if you are an adult or a child, on 08001111. Childline can also be reached online at www.childline.org.uk
If you think the child is in immediate danger, you should call the police.
It is a requirement that schools be fully engaged, involved and included in safeguarding arrangements (Working Together to safeguard Children 2018), and they must set out how they will work together with any relevant agencies (Keeping Children Safe in Education 2021). St Mary's has strong relationships with health, children's services, the police and legal services (these partners are define in section 16E of the Children Act 2004). To safeguard our children, we will attend attend meetings, and be required to share information that will safeguard children. We are required to follow the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and Data Protection Act 2018, but these are not barriers for justified information sharing to keep children and young people safe.
Safeguarding Leads
At St Mary's we are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.
Our Designated Safeguarding Lead is Mrs McGarrigle (Headteacher). Our Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads are Mrs Davison (Deputy Headteacher), Mrs Caroline Hawkins (SENCO), and Mrs Shelton (Head of EYFS and KS1). The Governor with responsibility for safeguarding in our school in Mr Tom Narroway (LA Governor).
To contact any of our safeguarding leads please contact the school office on 01322 665212.
Training attended 2022-2023
DSL training
Senior Mental Health Lead training
Criminal Exploitation and County Lines
Whole school safeguarding training
Primary Aged Eating Disorders
Safeguarding Training Attended 2021-2022
Annual Advanced Certificate in Online Safety for Safeguarding Leads.
Becoming Trauma Informed
DSL training
Safeguard my School
Operation Encompass Training
Governor Safeguarding Training
(Education) Children and Parental Mental Health Issues
Adoption, post permanence and the school's role.
Emotion coaching
Sexual orientation and gender identity - children and young people.
Operation Encompass
St Mary's is part of Operation Encompass, which provides schools with information, if any child who attends there is involved in an incident of domestic abuse (even if they are not hurt, but witness another harmed). Information will only be provided to Mrs McGarrigle, and will only be used for support of the child involved. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call the school office and ask for Mrs McGarrigle.
IF YOU HAVE A CONCERN ABOUT A CHILD, AND FOR ANY REASON ARE UNABLE TO SPEAK TO SCHOOL STAFF OR KENT'S SAFEGUARDING SERVICES, THE FOLLOWING NUMBERS CAN BE USED (THEY CAN ALSO BE FOUND IF YOU GOOGLE THE NAMES):
CHILDLINE: call 0800 1111
or online contact or chat at: www.childline.org.uk/get-support/contacting-childline/
Childline insist that no problem is too big or too small. Their service is free, and will not appear on any telephone bill.
NSPCC: Adults should call 0808 800 5000 if they are concerned about the safety of a child.
Children should call the CHILDLINE number on: 0800 1111
Use of Images
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.
We understand that in some 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.
We like to use photographs of our children on our website, in school documents, on our school social media accounts and in newsletters. Consent letters regarding the schools' use of images of children are sent out upon admission to the school however if you require more information regarding this then please contact the school on 01322 665121.
Emergency Procedures
In the event of an emergency or threat situation in school, the school has procedures in place which we share with the local authority, and our partner agencies (for example Kent Police). We use guidance from Kent County Council to develop these procedures, but we do not share our policies in this area because to do so could place children and adults at additional risk. Parents are welcome to discuss these with us and raise any concerns.
If you are aware of any radicalisation or extremism threat, please use the following numbers:
999 if there is an immediate threat.
03000 414141 (Kent Helpline)
0800 789 321 (Police Helpline)
A school safeguarding pledge:
We commit to sharing responsibility for safeguarding in our school.
We commit to pray for our safeguarding leads, and all who work with children to keep them safe.
We commit to respect boundaries that are in place to protect others.
We commit to support those in our school who have been hurt or abused.
We commit to providing ongoing safeguarding training for all of our staff and workers in our school.
We commit to allowing sufficient time and resources to make our recruitment of workers safer.
We commit to maintaining an open culture where people are encouraged to share concerns.
We commit to not take offence when challenged about our presence or behaviour.
Amen
Assembly resources: