safeguarding
We follow rigorous guidelines and procedures to ensure the safety of all children (Health & Safety, Child Protection and Risk Assessment). All staff have an up to date and enhanced DBS check. All visitors are required to prove their identity and are accompanied during their visit. Jennifer Penney (Head of School) is the designated teacher for Child Protection and maintains an up-to-date knowledge of legislation and child protection procedures. All staff are given training to raise awareness of safeguarding issues. The school is on a safe site, with restricted access via a buzzer system that is operated by the office staff.
Our Safeguarding Team
Should anyone have concerns over a child’s safety, it is their responsibility to inform the designated teacher immediately. All concerns are taken seriously and confidentially on a need to know basis.
Jennifer Penney
Designated Safeguarding Lead
Helen Hibbins
Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead
Alison McCulloch
Designated Teacher for Looked After Children
Out of Hours
If your concern is urgent and requires immediate attention, especially outside of school hours, contact the appropriate authorities.
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Hertfordshire Council Safeguarding team: 0300 123 4043
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Police: 101 or for immediate emergency: 999
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FGM – Mandatory reporting: Police on 101
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Local Authority Designated Officer for Allegations: LADO: Dawn MacDougall 07741 500 428 | dawn.macdougall@hertsforlearning.co.uk
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Children and Young People with Disabilities: 0-25 years: 07812 323 854
Whistleblowing
The Avanti Schools Trust Policy can be found here.
The NSPCC Whistleblowing Advice Line can be reached at 0808 800 5000 and is available 8.00am – 10.00pm Monday to Friday and 9.00am – 6.00pm at the weekend.
You can also email help@NSPCC.org.uk at any time. It’s free and reporting can be anonymous. More Information can be found here.
Safeguarding Curriculum
Safeguarding is of high importance, and we want to teach each and every one of our pupils how to stay safe in and outside of school.
We ensure that opportunities are identified in the taught curriculum and wider curriculum for pupils to learn about safeguarding.
We are sensitive in our teaching and recognise that some more sensitive subjects need to be taught at an age appropriate level, or by specialist services or one-to-one level where a more urgent need arises.
Operation Encompass
Operation Encompass is a scheme by which police inform the child’s school soon after a domestic abuse incident occurring within the family. Children can be significantly physically or emotionally harmed when this is the case and the information received will be used to make sure the right support is available for children and their families. This will usually happen by the start of the next school day.
Operation Encompass will ensure that a specially trained member of the school staff, known as the Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL), is informed. The DSL can then use the information that has been shared, in confidence, to ensure the wellbeing of the child.
The school will be able to make provisions or adjustments to assist for any difficulties experienced by the child or the families involved.
We are committed to offering the best support possible to all our pupils and we believe this scheme is extremely beneficial for all involved.
Support for Parents and Pupils
The following sections provide useful links to further information.
Addiction
SupportLine - SupportLine provides a confidential telephone helpline offering emotional support to any individual on any issue. The Helpline is primarily a preventative service and aims to support people before they reach the point of crisis. SupportLine is open to any individual of any age. Calls are received from children, young adults and adults.
Frank - Talk to Frank for facts, support and advice on drugs and alcohol.
Bereavement
Childhood Bereavement Network - A hub for those working with bereaved children, young people and their families across the UK.
Grief Encounter - We work closely with individuals, families, schools and professionals to offer a way through the anxiety, fear and isolation so often caused by grief.
Hope Again – Supporting young people coping with bereavement and living after loss.
Winston's Wish – Supporting children and their families after the death of a parent or sibling.
Bullying
Anti-Bullying Alliance - The Anti-Bullying Alliance is a coalition of organisations and individuals that are united against bullying.
Bullying UK - Bullying UK, part of Family Lives, is a leading charity providing advice and support to anyone affected by bullying.
Ditch the Label - Advice, information and tips for young people who are being bullied or are affected by bullying.
Children Missing
Runaway Helpline - Runaway Helpline is here if you are thinking about running away, if you have already run away, or if you have been away and come back.
Crime
Fearless - Fearless is a service that allows you to pass on information about crime 100% anonymously.
Domestic Abuse
Wellbeing Connect Services (WCS) – offers a one-stop-shop care approach to families experiencing mental health and domestic abuse through variety of services.
Refuge - Refuge supports women, children & men experiencing domestic violence with a range of services.
Honour-Based Abuse
AFRUCA - AFRUCA works in UK BAME communities to protect and safeguard children from abuse and harm.
Karma Nirvana - Karma Nirvana is an award-winning British human rights charity supporting victims of honour-based abuse and forced marriage.
Housing
Shelter - Shelter helps millions of people every year struggling with bad housing or homelessness through our advice, support, and legal services.
LGBTQ+
Stonewall - Information and support for LGBTQ+ communities and their allies.
Mental Health
Anxiety UK - Anxiety UK is a national registered charity for those affected by anxiety, stress and anxiety based depression.
Beat - Beat is the UK's eating disorder charity. We exist to end the pain and suffering caused by eating disorders.
CALM - The Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM) is leading a movement against suicide.
Harmless - Harmless is a passionate organisation who works to address and overcome issues related to self-harm and suicide.
Heads Together - Heads Together work to ensure that people feel comfortable with their own and their friends and family everyday mental health and well being.
MindEd - MindEd for Families has advice and information from trusted experts and will help you to understand what problems occur, what you can do to best support your family, and how to take care of yourself.
Samaritans – Samaritans is a registered charity aimed at providing emotional support to anyone in emotional distress, struggling to cope, or at risk of suicide
Self Harm UK – Access to Alumina. Alumina is a free, online 7 week course for young people struggling with self-harm.
Young Minds - The UK’s leading charity fighting for children and young people's mental health.
Online Safety
Thinkuknow - Thinkuknow is the education programme from NCA-CEOP, a UK organisation which protects children both online and offline.
UK Safer Internet Centre - Advice about smartphones, gaming devices, tablets and other internet-connected devices.
Net Aware - Your guide to apps, games and social media sites.
Parent Support
Click – Click is a unique service providing early intervention relationship support from a mobile-friendly platform. Individuals, couples, families and professionals can use Click to access helpful, evidence-based support from a secure, mobile-friendly space.
DAD.Info – Europe’s largest advice and support website for fathers. It celebrates the changing role of Dads with engaging, helpful, practical, entertaining resources and content for every stage of their journey. It is home to the largest connected community of active, involved Dads through its interactive forum, providing great peer to peer support and advice for what can be one of the most challenging and rewarding life experiences.
Netmums – The UK’s most relevant, inclusive and supportive parenting community, welcoming millions of parents every month to explore forums, parenting content, recipes, local listings, product reviews and courses.
Relate – The UK's largest provider of relationship support. Here to help you make the most of your couple and family relationships, past, present or future. Services include Relationship Counselling for individuals and couples, Family Counselling, Mediation, Children and Young People's Counselling.
Sexual Abuse
The Havens - support anyone in London who has been raped or sexually assaulted in the past 12 months including men, women, young people and children of all ages. The service offers treatment, advice and support 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Mosac - Mosac helps all non-abusing parents and carers whose children have been sexually abused.
Stop It Now - Stop It Now! offers anonymous and confidential support to help you prevent child sexual abuse.
The Lucy Faithful Foundation - The Lucy Faithfull Foundation is the only UK-wide child protection charity dedicated solely to preventing child sexual abuse.
Medicine & Sickness
We will administer medication that has been prescribed by a doctor to avoid children missing too much time from school. Our procedure must be followed:
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Complete a Medicine at School form (obtainable at the school office)
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Long term complaints (asthma/diabetes) will require meeting with the school nurse and risk assessment agreed.
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Medicine should be brought to the school by the parent (Not the child) and handed to the office staff.
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Medicines must be clearly labelled with your doctor’s label, contents, child’s name, and dosage. Medicines should be locked in the office.
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Children will go to the office where their medicine will be administered by one of the first aid trained office staff. Teachers and/or office staff cannot accept responsibility for timing of the administration of the medicine. Parents are able to come to school to administer the medicine themselves should they be concerned about this.
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Under no circumstances should medicines be kept in cloakrooms or classrooms. This will eliminate the risk of the wrong child taking the medicine.
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The school can only administer medication, which has been prescribed by a doctor (including Calpol and Piriton).
If your child is sick at school, a trained first aider will attend and in consultation with the Head Teacher or Deputy Head Teacher will decide how to proceed and may decide to send home.
Please note that in line with guidance, children who have been vomiting or suffered from diarrhoea must not return to school until 48 hours following the last episode.
