A Message from Hallgate Primary School

The governors and staff at Hallgate Primary School are committed to keeping children and young people safe.

Safeguarding

At Hallgate Primary School, the health, safety and well-being of children is of paramount concern to us. We listen to our pupils and take seriously what they tell us. Our aim is for children to enjoy their time as pupils in this school. We want to work in partnership with you to help your child achieve their full potential and make a positive contribution to the world they will be part of in the future.

To promote a safe environment for pupils, our selection and recruitment policy includes all checks on staff and regular volunteers‟ suitability, including Disclosure and Barring Service checks, as recommended by East Riding Local Authority and as governed by current legislation. In accordance with our responsibilities under section 175/157 of the Education Act 2002 and “Keeping Children Safe in Education” 2023, we have a Designated Safeguarding Lead for Child Protection (Mrs Chrissie Shiels) and Deputy (Mrs Laura Longden and Mr John Sheppard) who are all members of the senior management team, and have received appropriate training for this role. It is their responsibility to ensure that all staff in contact with children receive safeguarding and child protection awareness training on a regular basis, this includes Prevent, Female Genital Mutilation, E Safety, Child Sex Exploitation and peer to peer abuse.

Occasions do arise when our concern about a child requires us to consult other agencies. Whilst we would always aim to work in partnership with parents, there may be exceptions to this when concerns are raised for the protection of a child.

On very rare occasions, Social Care, whilst undertaking an investigation under s47 of the Children Act 1989, may want to speak to a child without parents knowledge. This would be a decision made in collaboration with partner agencies and would only be done in situations where a child might be at immediate risk. To gain consent at this point may increase the level of risk to the child or cause evidence of a crime to be lost.

The procedures, which we follow, have been laid down by the Local Safeguarding Children’s Board, and the school has adopted a Child Protection Policy in line with this for the safety of all. The Policy can be found on the school website (see Policies section).

What to do if you have a concern

The Designated Safeguarding Lead is Mrs Shiels.

Should any visitor, parent or member of staff have any concerns about a child, or if a child makes a disclosure to them, they should speak to Mrs Shiels directly. In the absence of Mrs Shiels, they should speak to Mrs Longden or Mr Sheppard. Alternatively a disclosure form can be obtained from the school office or staff room and placed in a sealed envelope for Mrs Shiels' attention.

We ask all adults who come into contact with children to be approachable and to listen. We ask them not to ask ‘leading questions’ but to jot down what the child has said carefully and accurately.

Adults MUST report any disclosure to the designated safeguarding lead. We remind them that any conversation they have with a child is confidential but not private, so that the child understands that they may have to tell the Safeguarding Lead what has been said.

Looked After Children

Children become looked after if they have been taken into care by the local authority, or have been accommodated by the local authority (a voluntary care arrangement). Most Looked After Children (LAC) live with foster parents but a smaller number may be in children’s residential units, living with a relative or even placed at home with their birth parents.

We are committed to providing quality education for all our pupils, based on equality of access, opportunities and outcomes. We fully subscribe to the 5 outcomes of Every Child Matters and, therefore, the Government’s aim for every child, whatever their background or their circumstances, to have the support they need in order to:

• Ensure that LAC pupils take as full a part as possible in school activities;
• Ensure that carers and social workers of LAC pupils are kept fully informed of their child’s progress and attainment;

Ensure that LAC pupils are involved, where practical, in decisions affecting their future provision.

Named Staff / Personnel with Designated Responsibility for Child Protection

Serious concerns about a child or young person should immediately be reported to the Designated Safeguarding Lead or their Deputy.