Safeguarding Statement

At Rushwick, we regard the safeguarding of children as our main priority. We believe that we all have the right to be happy, to be safe and to learn. We all have the responsibility to make this happen.

We will ensure that:

• The welfare of the child remains paramount.
• All children whatever their age, culture, disability, gender, language, racial origin, religious beliefs and/ or sexual identity have the right to be protected from harm.
• All suspicions and allegations of abuse will be taken seriously and responded to swiftly and appropriately.
• All staff and volunteers working at our school have a responsibility to report concerns to Mrs E Whetham (Headteacher/ Designated Safeguarding Lead) or Miss V Lloyd (Deputy Headteacher/ Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead).

Our designated safeguarding lead at Rushwick is Mrs E Whetham  who is also the designated teacher for looked after and previously looked after children.

Members of Staff Responsible

We are all responsible for ensuring that each child remains safe. The school has a Safeguarding Team consisting of:

• Designated Safeguarding Lead: Mrs E A Whetham
• Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads: Miss V Lloyd (Deputy Headteacher) and Mrs A Stephens (SENDCo/Class Teacher)
• Designated Safeguarding Lead for the Local Academy Board member: Reverend A Potter
• DoWMAT - The Trust’s Senior Designated Officer for Safeguarding: Mrs V Shelley (CEO)

We are alert to the signs of abuse and neglect and follow our procedures to ensure that children receive effective support, protection and justice. Child protection forms part of the school’s safeguarding responsibilities. We have built a safeguarding culture where staff, governors, volunteers and children know how they are expected to behave and feel comfortable sharing concerns. We ensure that all staff, families and visitors are aware of our safeguarding and child protection procedures and policies. The school has a policy that ‘it could happen here’.

Operation Encompass is a process whereby the police and county council will inform a member of staff if a child or young person has experienced any domestic incident. This will be done prior to the start of the next school day. Information sharing between professional agencies allows school staff to provide emotional and practical support to their pupils experiencing domestic abuse.

To find out more about this nationwide project, please click the image below to go to the Operation encompass website. (Opens in a new window).

Working with Worcester County Council, we support families through contacting "Family Front Door" and also offering "Early Help" to families who need some extra support.  Further information on Early Help can be found using the following link:

Early Help in Worcestershire

Parents can find further advice about how to keep their child safe online on the "Think u Know" website.  The link is as follows:

https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/parents/ 

Children can contact Childline at any time if they have any issues, and can talk to them confidentially if they wish.  Further information can be found:

https://www.childline.org.uk/ 

We would also like to make you aware of the Childline App "For Me" which is a free way for children to get advice if they need it.  Further information can be found on the following link:

https://www.childline.org.uk/toolbox/for-me/ 

Parents may also find the following NSPCC website useful to offer suggestions about how to keep your child safe:

https://www.nspcc.org.uk/preventing-abuse/keeping-children-safe/