Safeguarding

Our Safeguarding Team

At Shirwell Primary School we are committed to all aspects of the safety of our pupils. The physical and emotional safety of the children and adults is of paramount importance to us all. This page is a summary many of the day-to-day measures we have in place to ensure that everyone in our school family is able to learn, play and work in an environment which keeps them safe and secure

Our Safeguarding Team meets regularly to ensure the practices and approaches in place are consistent and effective across the school. 

Our designated team is Kelly McKeague (Safeguarding Lead) Sarah Berry (Deputy Safeguarding Lead) 

If you have a concern related to safeguarding, you can call 01271850259 and ask to speak to a member of the safeguarding team. 

If you have a non-urgent question related to safeguarding email shirwell@thsp.org.uk and mark it as FAO Designated Safeguarding Lead.

You can read our safeguarding policy here. All safeguarding processes and procedures are underpinned by 'Keeping Children Safe In Education' which you can access here.

Visiting the school

All visitors must enter through the main entrance on each site and report to reception where they will be asked to sign in and wear a visitor badge. We use an electronic sign-in system across which means that we have completely accurate picture of who is in each building at all times.

Maintaining a Safe Environment

We have a team of people ensuring our school environment is safe for the children and adults within it. Our Headteacher Simon Allen is supported by trust site management and this is checked by our Health and Safety Governor Joanne Gay. 'Formal' monitoring walks alongside day-to-day vigilance ensure our environment remains a safe place to learn, play and work.

Reporting a Hazard

While our team constantly monitor the site many eyes are better than a few.  If you spot a potential hazard, please do not hesitate to let Mr Allen know and we will see to it as quickly as possible.

Play

Our play policy is rooted in the outdoors alongside the principle that 'risky play' is often the most enjoyable and beneficial form of play, and so we provide varied opportunities for children to climb, build, explore and play imaginatively.

We risk assess all opportunities carefully, always balancing the likely level of risk against the potential benefits of the play, and our staff are trained to support the children in making appropriate decisions. Accidents do occasionally happen, as they do in every school, however we live in a scratchy bumpy world.  We believe giving opportunities for child-led play will help children become more adept at managing risks independently.

First Aid 

We have a designated First Aid space on each site and many qualified First Aiders. We are very proactive in contacting parents and carers if we are particularly concerned about a child, and do so as a matter of course if a child has a head bump. If this is to inform you of a bump but your child is well enough to stay in school, we will usually inform you at pick up. All children who are treated in the First Aid room are given a letter to take home with details of the injury or symptoms they have been treated for.

Behaviour

Our behaviour policy works towards ensuring all adults and children at Shirwell are able to thrive in an environment which not only provides the emotional and physical safety we all need but also offers the support, nurture and guidance we each need to be the best we can be.

If bullying occurs, we identify and tackle it as outlined in our Bullying Policy

An essential aspect of our culture of safeguarding is supporting our children with developing the knowledge, self-awareness, strategies and resilience to nurture long-term positive mental health. There are several aspects to this and we are continually looking for ways to further enhance this provision.

We all have ups and downs in life but in childhood it can be particularly hard to cope with sad feelings and worries that arise when things are hard or scary. There may be times when your child is unhappy or struggling emotionally. You may notice that they seem low or worried or that their behaviour changes. We may notice that they seem withdrawn or upset at school. If you are worried about your child’s mental health then you are not alone. Many parents and carers have similar worries and stresses.  We can work with families to target support through Early Help

Services for children & young people

The School

Your GP

A GP can check any physical symptoms linked to your child’s health and talk with you about their emotional well-being making a referral to a specialist service if necessary.

The School Nurse

The school nurse service can provide advice and support to school-age children and their families for a variety of health related concerns. Anyone can ask to see the school nurse – children, young people, or their parents/carers and you can self-refer via the link below, or we can arrange that for you. 

Websites that offer information and advice

The following organisations provide reliable information and advice to help parent/carers to support their child when experiencing emotional difficulties:-

Young Minds - Help for Parents Information about all aspects of child mental health, including a Parent Helpline 0800 802 5544.

Childline - Lots of information and tips for children of all ages about feelings and difficult situations.

Minded for Families - Free learning resource about mental health for parents and carers.

Happy Maps - Lots of information about health topics including mental health, organised under different age groups i.e under 5’s primary age, secondary age, young adults.

It is crucial that children learn to balance the benefits offered by technology with a critical awareness of their own and other’s online behaviour, and develop effective strategies for staying safe and making a positive contribution online, this forms an important part of our curriculum.