Schools and Further Education Colleges
All schools (including independent schools and non-maintained special schools) have a statutory duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of pupils as set out in Section 175 of the Education Act 2002 and the Children Act 1989.
The Independent Schools and Thomas Telford CTC will carry out their business in accordance with the Regulations made under section 157 of the Education Act.
Boarding Schools and Residential Schools situated within the Borough will conduct their business according to the above requirements and also in accordance with the National Minimum Standards applicable to them. The Ofsted web site will provide access to this information.
The statutory duty also applies to further education institutions with regard to young people who are under eighteen years of age. The duties require the promotion of a safe learning environment and the identification of child welfare concerns and the need for planned action to address them.
During the past few month’s, wide consultation has taken place with stakeholders to produce a model template document, that schools/colleges may wish to use for their Child Protection and Safeguarding in School/College Policies. This may be refined and amended appropriately to reflect your school/college or educational setting, but essentially the document aims to capture the key elements of Child Protection and Safeguarding in policy formulation. The document can be found in the document library filed as outline school cp procedure.
Schools will have a designated person responsible for child protection. Staff should use their Institution’s internal procedures to arrange to discuss their concerns with this person, who will be able to advise on appropriate further action. For further information contact the Principal Officer at the Safeguarding Advisory Service, Tel: 01952 385678.
All Education Staff should read their Internal Safeguarding and Protection Procedures, including the Restraint Procedure (there are notes of guidance available in the document library filed as restraint in schools) and be familiar with paragraphs 2.121 to 2.131 of " Working Together to Safeguard Children" as revised in 2006. Staff should also be aware of the Confidentiality Policy of their school and of the advice available from the document library.
Guidance from the government also covers Safer Working Practice for Adults who work with Children and Young People in Education Settings which can be found in the document library.