Safeguarding
Silchester CE Primary School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We are fully committed to ensuring that consistent effective safeguarding procedures are in place to support families, children and staff at school. All concerns are passed through the members of staff who are trained as "Designated Safeguarding Leads" in school in accoradance with our Child Protection Policy.
Designated Safeguarding Lead: Rachel Moir
Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead: Glen Golding & Lina Ouazzani
Named Governor for Safeguarding: Sally Raeside
If you have any serious concerns about your child or any other pupil at Silchester CE Primary, please do not hesitate to contact the Designated Safeguarding Lead who knows who to contact for the best advice and help and is experienced in using the appropriate degree of confidentiality.
Our school's vision - “for everyone to flourish” and “having a heart for people" - is the foundation upon which our safeguarding practises are built. We believe that every child has the right to feel safe and receive equal protection from harm, and that safeguarding is the responsibility of everyone in our school community.
Our Approach to Safeguarding
We take a proactive approach to safeguarding, with robust policies and procedures in place to protect our pupils. Our dedicated Safeguarding Team, led by our experienced Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL), works tirelessly to ensure that any concerns are identified and addressed promptly. We have a duty of care to report any safeguarding concerns and share this information with certain individuals and outside agencies where relevant. We place a strong emphasis on early intervention, working closely with parents, carers, and external agencies to provide the necessary support and resources to keep our children safe. Our staff are regularly trained in recognising and responding to signs of abuse or neglect, and they are committed to upholding our school's values of compassion, courage, and respect.
Empowering Our Pupils
At Silchester C of E Primary, we believe in empowering our pupils to be active participants in their own safety. Through our comprehensive PSHE (Personal, Social, Health and Economic) curriculum, we equip our children with the knowledge and skills to recognise and report any concerns they may have. Our pupils learn about online safety, healthy relationships, and how to seek help when they need it. We encourage open and honest conversations, fostering an environment where children feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and feelings.
Working with the Community
Safeguarding is a shared responsibility, and we are proud to work closely with our local community to ensure the well-being of our pupils. We regularly engage with parents, carers, and external agencies, such as social services and the police, to ensure that our safeguarding practises are effective and up-to-date. We also believe in the importance of transparency and communication. Our school website and other communication channels are regularly updated with the latest safeguarding information, resources, and contact details for our Safeguarding Team.
Commitment to Excellence
At Silchester C of E Primary, we are committed to maintaining the highest standards of safeguarding. We are continually reviewing and improving our practises to ensure that our children are protected and empowered to thrive. We believe that the best thing to do is to get it right, and the next best thing is to get it wrong, but the worst thing to do is nothing. That's why we remain steadfast in our dedication to keeping our children safe, and why we invite you to join us in this important mission.
Resources from the NSPCC’s Speak out. Stay safe. Online programme
Activities for children at home
Keep busy while learning about staying safe and speaking out with our at-home activities for primary school children. These are hosted on the NSPCC website www.nspcc.org.uk/activities.
Online safety hub
You may also like to visit the NSPCC Online Safety Hub where you will find advice and information on a range of different online safety topics including gaming, social media, sharing nudes, parental controls and more.
You will also find online safety information for families of children with additional needs and disabilities. We have worked with Ambitious about Autism and parents and carers who have children with additional needs and disabilities to create activities to help talk about online safety which you can find at www.nspcc.org.uk/keeping-children-safe/online-safety/online-safety-families-children-with-send.
Childline Under 12’s Website
Childline also have a website with age appropriate advice for primary school children on topics such as bullying. It also has games and other interactive tools. Your child can visit it at www.childline.org.uk/kids.
The Childline website has an accessibility tool too, you can find out about it by clicking on the accessibility link in the Get Support menu. Children can use it to:
- Read the website out to them
- Change the text size and font
- Change webpages to just text only
- Add a mask or ruler to help them focus on just part of the page
- Magnify parts of the webpage
- Translate the website in to over 120 languages
Talking PANTS with your children
Talk PANTS is a simple conversation to help keep children safe from sexual abuse. From P through to S, each letter of PANTS provides a simple but important message that can help keep children safe. You can find out more and download the free resources at www.nspcc.org.uk/pants.
Penguin and Ladybird have partnered with the NSPCC to create a Pantosaurus book aimed at children aged 4 - 8. You can find copies of the new book on sale at https://shop.nspcc.org.uk/ or in Matalan’s selected stores. All profits from the sale of this book will support the NSPCC
Are you concerned about the safety or welfare of a child? |
Do you work in the community? |
You don’t need to know everything about the child before contacting chldren’s services. If you are concerned about the welfare of a child, it is important theta you talk to someone about this.
Contact children’s services on 0300 555 1384 |
If your job involves entering and working in people’s homes and something concerns you about a child, contact children’s services.
Contact children’s services on 0300 555 1384 |
The following websites have information to keep your child safe online.
www.vodafone.co.uk/mobile/digital-parenting
www.commonsensemedia.org - parents guide to fortnite
http://nspcc.org.uk - parents guide to minecraft
Contacts and Other Information
Should you have any concerns relating to the safety and welfare of a child at the school you should immediately contact our designated person for safeguarding: Mrs Moir (Head of school) or Mr Golding (Executive Head of School).
Should you have any concerns in terms of Safeguarding relating to the behaviour of a member of staff, you should immediately contact the designated person as above. If the allegation concerns the Executive Headteacher or Head of School, you should contact: Sally Raeside, Safeguarding Governor, via the school who will arrange for her to call you as soon as possible.
Should you feel that your concerns have not been dealt with appropriately by the school/chair of governors, you should contact: Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO), which can be found on the following website.
http://www3.hants.gov.uk/childrens-services/contact-cs/childrens-services-allegations.htm
Hampshire Children’s Service
Contact Children's Services | Children and Families | Hampshire County Council (hants.gov.uk)
Hampshire Safeguarding Children Partnership
NSPCC – Speak Out Stay Safe
NSPCC – Talking about Online Safety
Teaching Your Child about Internet & Online Safety | NSPCC
NSPCC – The PANTS Rule
Let's talk PANTS with Pantosaurus! | NSPCC
NSPCC – Worried about a child
Worried about a child? (nspcc.org.uk)
ThinkUKnow
Prevent