Safeguarding
Safeguarding
If you have any concerns with regards to a Meden pupil please contact:
smorton@medenschool.co.ukIMPORTANT - Please note that this email will not be monitored during the school holidays. For urgent enquiries, use the contacts below!
If you require an urgent response outside of working hours (08:30-17:00), contact the Emergency Duty Team (EDT) on 0300 456 4546. In an emergency call 999. To report a crime call 101. You can also use the link below to find support.
NSPCC Helpline
Worried about a child?
If you're worried about a child, even if you're unsure, contact our helpline to speak to one of our counsellors.
Call us on 0808 800 5000, email help@nspcc.org.uk or fill in our online form.
Multi- Agency Safeguarding Hub
MASH click to link to page
Meden School - our commitment to safeguarding students
At Meden School all staff and leaders are committed to safeguarding and promoting our students' welfare, safety, mental and physical health and guidance. Our students' welfare is of paramount importance. Our school fully recognises the contribution it can make to protect and support students by fostering an honest, open, caring and supportive climate.
We follow the procedures set out by the Nottinghamshire Safeguarding Children Board (NSCB) and take account of guidance issued by the DfE. Meden School adopts the definition used Keeping Children Safe in Education 2020. This can be summarised as:
- Protecting students from maltreatment.
- Preventing impairment of students’ mental and physical health or development.
- Ensuring that students are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care.
- Taking action to enable all students to have the best outcomes.
At Meden School safeguarding is more than protecting students from deliberate harm. It relates to a number of aspects of school life that include health and safety, the use of reasonable force, meeting the needs of students and staff with medical or additional needs, first aid, educational visits, intimate care, internet and online safety and school security.
There are 3 main elements to our Safeguarding and Child Protection culture:
- Prevention: Creating a positive ethos and culture where teaching and pastoral support systems are in place and Safeguarding is seen as the responsibility of everyone.
- Protection: Following agreed procedures, ensuring staff are properly recruited, trained and supported to respond appropriately and sensitively to Child Protection concerns.
- Support: Support for students and school staff and students who may have difficulties and are unsafe.
To ensure our Child Protection Culture is maintained we have a dedicated safeguarding team made up of:
- Senior Designated Safeguard Lead – Simon Morton
- Deputy Safeguarding Lead – Kim Hickinbotham
- Safeguarding Officers – Emma Callaway & Emma Gray
- Administrative Safeguard Lead – Tracy Coulson
- Designated Safeguarding Governor – Mrs A Hodgkinson
The role of the Designated Safeguarding Lead:
The Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) is an appropriate senior member of staff who has the status and authority within the school to carry out the duties of the post including committing resources and, where appropriate, supporting and directing other staff.
All child protection concerns WILL be reported to the appropriate authority and the DSL is responsible for:
Managing referrals
- Refer all cases of suspected abuse to the local authority children’s social care and: The designated officer(s) for child protection concerns (all cases which concern a staff member)
- Disclosure and Barring Service (cases where a person is dismissed or left due to risk/harm to a child); and/or Police (cases where a crime may have been committed)
- Liaise with the Head of School to inform him or her of issues, especially ongoing enquiries under section 47 of the Children Act 1989 and police investigations
- Act as a source of support, advice and expertise to staff on matters of safety and safeguarding and when deciding whether to make a referral by liaising with relevant agencies
Training
The DSL and additional officers, will receive appropriate training carried out every year in order to:
- Understand the assessment process for providing early help and intervention, for example through locally agreed common and shared assessment processes such as early help assessments
- Have a working knowledge of how local authorities conduct a child protection case conference and a child protection review conference and be able to attend and contribute to these effectively when required to do so
- All staff at Meden School receive annual training with updates on safeguarding themes.
Safer Recruitment
As a school, it is our responsibility to prevent people who pose a risk of harm from working with children by adhering to statutory responsibilities to check staff who work with children, taking proportionate decisions on whether to ask for any checks beyond what is required; and ensuring volunteers are appropriately supervised.
For most appointments, an enhanced DBS certificate, which includes barred list information, will be required as the majority of staff will be engaging in regulated activity. In short, a person will be considered to be engaging in regulated activity if as a result of their work they:
- will be responsible, on a regular basis in a school or college, for teaching, training instructing, caring for or supervising children; or
- will carry out paid, or unsupervised unpaid, work regularly in a school or college where that work provides an opportunity for contact with children;
- engage in intimate or personal care or overnight activity, even if this happens only once
For all other staff who have an opportunity for regular contact with children who are not engaging in regulated activity, an enhanced DBS certificate, which does not include a barred list check, will be appropriate. This will include contractors that would have the opportunity for contact with children and who work under a temporary or occasional contract.
PREVENT DUTY
Protecting children from the risk of radicalisation is seen as one of our safeguarding duties.
Channel is a multi-agency approach to safeguarding, supporting and protecting children, young people and vulnerable adults at risk of radicalisation, extremism or terrorist related activity.
Radicalisation refers to the process by which a person comes to support terrorism and forms of extremism. There is no single way of identifying an individual who is likely to be susceptible to an extremist ideology. It can happen in many different ways and settings. Specific background factors may contribute to vulnerability which are often combined with specific influences such as family, friends or online, and with specific needs for which an extremist or terrorist group may appear to provide an answer.
Meden Safeguarding Policy Links
There are also helpful links for further advice
For online safety- please see the E-safety section of our website click here
Childline www.childline.org.uk Comforts, advises and protects children 24 hours a day and offers free confidential counselling. Phone 0800 1111 (24 hours) Chat 1-2-1 with a counsellor online
Kooth www.kooth.com Online counselling and emotional well-being platform for children and young people, accessible through mobile, tablet and desktop and free to access
Young minds www.youngminds.org.uk Advice and information about young people’s mental health including information on CAMHS and what the next steps to seeking support are.
Health for Teens www.healthforteens.co.uk Offers a great content from sexual health to your feelings, growing up, lifestyle and much more.
Samaritans www.samaritans.org 24 hour confidential listening and support for anyone who needs it. (Adults included.) Phone 116 123 (24 hours) Information and support for mental health issues
Harmless- www.harmless.org.uk provides a range of advice and support about self-harm, people who self-harm, their friends and families. Phone 0115 934 8445
B-eat www.beateatingdisorders.org.uk The UK's eating disorder charity. They have online support groups and a helpline for anyone under 18. Phone 0345 634 7650 (4pm – 10pm 365 days a year) Email fyp@b-eat.co.uk
The Mix www.themix.org.uk Information, support and listening on EVERYTHING for young people - call 0808 808 4994 (24 hours), get lots of support online
Drugs and alcohol - Frank www.talktofrank.com Confidential information and advice about drugs and substance abuse, whether it's for you or someone else. 0800 7766 00 (24 hours, will not show up on your phone bill)
LGBT Stonewall www.youngstonewall.org.uk The UK charity for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people and their allies. They offer information, advice. Phone 08000 50 20 20
Nottingham LGBT switchboard - A Nottingham chartity offering advice for LGBT and questioning, people, their friends & family. Phone line open 7-9.15pm Mon-Fri 0115 934 8485.