At Felbridge Primary School, we recognise our moral and statutory responsibility to safeguard and promote the welfare of all pupils. We endeavour 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.

Safeguarding is the action that is taken to promote the welfare of children and protect them from harm.

Safeguarding means:

• protecting children from abuse and maltreatment

• preventing harm to children’s health or development

• ensuring children grow up with the provision of safe and effective care

• taking action to enable all children and young people to have the best outcomes

Safeguarding children and child protection guidance and legislation applies to all children up to the age of 18. Child Protection is part of Safeguarding and promoting welfare. It refers to the activity that is undertaken to protect specific children who are suffering, or are likely to suffer, significant harm.

Safeguarding, in some way, informs all of our decision making and we do all we can to ensure our children are safe, happy and feel well supported.

All staff are vigilant and safeguarding conversations will always be prioritised and part of our daily dialogue.  The staff named below meet regularly as a safeguarding team and all staff are mindful to notice and share concerns. The weekly staff briefing, attended by all teachers and any other staff member who wishes to attend, always provides time to talk about our 'pupil radar' - any pupil who we have noticed may need monitoring or extra support for any reason. A weekly Pupil Radar list is shared with all staff, including lunchtime staff, to help us monitor children and watch out for those who may need extra support.

Please click here if you wish to read the DfE document that informs our policy decisions.

Please click here if you wish to read our latest Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy.

The Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) is:

Mr Hugh Hogan-Fleming: Co-Headteacher

Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads (DDSLs)

Mrs Rachael Sims Co-Headteacher & Co-Deputy Headteacher	Mrs Laura Oliver Co-Deputy Headteacher	Mrs Emma Warland Office Manager

The Designated Safeguarding Lead and Deputies can be contacted via the school office, via phone on 01342 323413, or via email at dsl@felbridge.surrey.sch.uk.

If you are concerned about a child’s welfare,

please record your concern, along with any observations or conversations, and report it to the Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) or a Deputy DSL as soon as possible. DO NOT conduct your own investigation.

Sometimes we may need to share information and work in partnership with other agencies if there are concerns about a child’s welfare. We will ensure that concerns about pupils are discussed with parents/carers first unless we have reason to believe that such a move would be contrary to the child’s welfare.

If your concerns relate to the actions of a member of staff (which could suggest that s/he is unsuitable to work with children) then you should report this to the DSL- the Headteacher- in confidence.

Should the concern relate to the actions of the Headteacher you should report this in confidence to the Chair of Governors & Safeguarding Governor who will consider what action to take.

The Chair of Governors is Mrs Marie Clowes. The lead governor for safeguarding is Mr Matt Barcraft-Barnes. Both can be contacted via the office.

Safeguarding and the curriculum

There are opportunities for embedding safeguarding across school life, both in and beyond lesson time. Weekly assemblies, focussing on our values, provide a variety of contexts in which to discuss safety and wellbeing at a whole-school level, as well as to share important reminders about expectations and opportunities in school.

Many aspects of safeguarding and personal welfare- physical, emotional and mental- will be covered through our PSHE (Personal, Social & Health Education)  and RSE (Relationships & Sex Education) programme across the school. Online Safety and other dangers of a connected world are taught through specific units of work in our computing curriculum, but also at appropriate times when using technology or the internet. For more details, see our curriculum pages.

We have chosen to use the 'Jigsaw' scheme as the backbone of our PSHE and RSE curriculum because it is current, relevant and engaging for our children. The spiral topics allow a huge range of opportunities to be woven in through the year, building year after year to increase children's knowledge and understanding so that they are equipped with what they need to know to stay safe and when to speak out.

The links between Jigsaw and safeguarding are explained in this useful document.

Involving Everyone

This year the school council helped us to write a safeguarding poster and anti-bullying posters in language everyone can easily understand.

Safeguarding and the curriculum

Teaching with, working with and talking to children about their safety happens in many areas of school life, both in and out of class. The document below details some of the ways in which we work with children to help them feel and keep safe.