Safeguarding at Southwark

Southwark Primary School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of young people and expects all staff, visitors and members of the school community to share this commitment. We are fully focused on ensuring that consistent, effective safeguarding procedures are in place. In addition to this, throughout the curriculum children are taught how to stay safe, including online.

Keeping the school community safe

You can speak to any member of staff about anything that is worrying you. Every child has the right to be safe from harm and danger. Every adult at Southwark Primary School has a responsibility to ensure pupils are safe at home and school. We will always listen to you and do everything we can to help.

There are 4 staff in school with the specific job of keeping children and families safe.  You can call the school office and ask to speak to one of these members of staff.  You can also contact them directly on Class Dojo or click the 'Speak Out' button on the school website to compose an email which is sent to Mrs Wattam and myself directly.

Mrs Wattam - Senior Designated Safeguarding Lead & Designated teacher for children who are looked after (CLA).

Mr Skirton - Head Teacher & Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead

Mr Ince - Y456 Assistant Head Teacher & Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead

Mrs Bennett - Y23 Assistant Head Teacher & Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead

Mrs Hale - Curriculum Assistant Head Teacher & Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead

Mr N Payne - Nominated Governor for Child Protection & Safeguarding & children who are looked after (CLA)

Safeguarding Statement

At Southwark Primary School we recognise our moral and statutory responsibility to safeguard and protect children
from harm and promote the welfare of all pupils. We endeavor to provide a safe and welcoming environment where
children are respected and valued. We are alert to the signs of abuse and neglect and follow our procedures to
ensure that children receive effective support, protection and justice. The procedures contained in this policy apply to all staff, volunteers, visitors and governors. All procedures encompassed by this policy will be followed robustly, rigorously and in a timely manner. The policy takes into account the Keeping Children Safe in Education Guidance (September 2023).

In accordance with this policy, Safeguarding and Child Protection are defined as two different things:

  • Safeguarding is what we do for all our pupils and staff;
  • Child protection being the procedures we use for children and young people who have been significantly harmed or are at risk of such harm.

We will ensure that all parents/carers are made aware of our responsibilities with regard to child protection
procedures and how we will safeguard and promote the welfare of their children through the publication of our Child Protection/Safeguarding Policy on our website. The policy is also available in paper form upon request. These duties and responsibilities, as set out within the Education Act 2002 sec175 and 157, DfE Statutory Guidance Keeping Children Safe in Education 2023 (KCSIE) and HM Working Together to Safeguard Children 2018 are incorporated into our Safeguarding Policy.


Safeguarding Principles

Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all children, regardless of age, disability, gender, ability, culture, race, language, religion or sexual identity, is of paramount importance.


Everyone’s responsibility - Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is everyone’s responsibility. If children and families are to receive the right help, at the right time, everyone who comes into contact with children and their families has a role to play in identifying concerns, sharing information and taking prompt action. 


Child First - In order to fulfil our responsibility effectively, all members of the school community should make sure their approach is child-centred. This means that they should consider, at all times, what is in the best interests of the child.


It could happen here - Staff working with children are advised to maintain an attitude of ‘it could happen here’ where safeguarding is concerned.


Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is defined within KCSIE 2023 & for the purpose of this policy
as:

  • protecting children from maltreatment
  • preventing impairment of children’s mental and physical health or development
  • ensuring that children grow up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care
  • taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes

 

Online Safety at Southwark

At Southwark Primary, our vision is a school community that embraces the use of different technologies to enhance learning and thinking, as well as teaching all of our children how to be safe and responsible digital citizens who make informed decisions about their actions online.

Children are taught to use technology safely, respectfully and responsibly, keeping personal information private; they recognise acceptable and unacceptable behaviour and can identify where to go for help and support when they have concerns about content or contact on the internet or other online technologies.

We believe that regular, open conversations between parents, carers and children about using the internet is ultimately the best way to keep children safe online. While there are huge benefits to being online, it is important to be aware that any time children use the Internet, they face some potential risks. We believe understanding what your child is doing online helps keep them safe online: make talking about what they do online a normal part of everyday life, rather than something that only happens when there’s a problem or issue.

In this day and age, online safety has to be more than a reminder not to speak to strangers online. As children begin to navigate the internet and use it in different ways as they grow older, their own personal conduct online is also an area where they need guidance. We believe it is important to teach children about both the technological and social and emotional aspects of being safe and successful online.

For further information about our approach to online safety at Southwark, please see the policy document below and you can visit our online safety page by clicking the link below.

https://www.southwarkprimary.net/safeguarding/e-safety/

 

For all relevant Southwark Primary School Safeguarding Policies, please click here.

 

SPEAK OUT

Use the form below if you're worried or concerned about something at school or at home. By using the form below you are informing a trusted adult within school of your concern. This may be any form of bullying - face to face or online, an email or other message that is suspicious or rude, offensive online chat or a website that has made you feel upset or uncomfortable or anything else that you need to report.