Blessed Dominic Catholic Primary School Safeguarding Team

Ms Sulis - Deputy Head (Designated Safeguarding Lead)

Mrs Pears - Headteacher (Designated Safeguarding Officer)

Mrs Sowa – Inclusion Lead (Designated Safeguarding Officer)

Ms Keegan – Assistant Head (Designated Safeguarding Officer)

Mr Frayne - Chair of Governors (Designated Safeguarding Governor)

For urgent Child Protection / Safeguarding advice:

Please call MASH on 020 8359 4066 or email mash@barnet.gov.uk :

• The phone line is open from 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays.
• Outside of these hours, please contact the Emergency Duty Team on 020 8359 2000
• Barnet Local Authority Officer (LADO) can be contacted via Barnet MASH Team 020 8359 4066 

What is Safeguarding? 

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.

It is extremely important that we keep our children safe and secure at all times. In order to do this, we have a variety of systems in place in which we ask parents to support and fully adhere to at all times.

• A secure entry system.
• CCTV cameras are placed around the school site.
• On-site parking is restricted to school staff only.
• The main car parking gate is closed between 8.30am – 4.30pm so that cars cannot enter the site.
• A member of the SLT stands at the front gate entrance every morning.
• All staff and governors are issued with photo-identity lanyards.
• Adults authorised to visit the school site are required to sign in and out and wear visitor’s passes at all times.
• All adults working regularly with children will be subject to CRB/ DBS check.
• Adults who occasionally help at school will never be left with children by themselves.
• Compliance teachers and other adults working with children must read and agree to the Safeguarding Visitors Compliance Card on entry to the school.
• Extracurricular clubs must provide the school with qualification certification and CRB/DBS.
• All staff and governors receive safeguarding training at least every three years.
• Staff, governors, parents and children sign an Acceptable Use Agreement.

All schools have a duty to protect children from the risk of radicalisation by promoting fundamental British Values and by enabling children to challenge extremist views in a safe and secure environment. As a school community, we are mindful of our responsibility to promote and actively seek the inclusion of all members of society. All staff at Blessed Dominic have completed the Prevent Training which aims to ensure that early warning signs are picked up and acted upon.

Online Safety

In Blessed Dominic we realise how the internet has drastically changed the way children interact with the world. They have access to in-depth knowledge, tools to express their creativity and people from all over the world. We promote this tool and provide stimulating activities for children to develop their skills in this area of the curriculum. However, along with this fascinating new way to connect with the world, the internet offers new risks.

• Online bullying
• Exposure to inappropriate material
• Online Predators
• Revealing personal information

It is important to ensure that all children are aware of these risks and learn to use the internet safely and responsibly.

As a school we:

• Ensure all children are aware of the risks online
• Ensure children feel safe by reporting incidents
• Attend Online Safety meetings/ training
• Provide staff and parental training
• Discuss and review the Online Safety Policy
• Involve older children in the delivery of Online-Safety sessions across the school

What is Child Protection?

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.

Staff Understanding of Safeguarding and Child Protection

All staff must read and sign Part 1 of Keeping children Safe in Education 2023 and all staff receive a minimum of one safeguarding and child protection training session annually.

Additionally, there is a rolling programme of professional development for child-facing staff to address safeguarding themes throughout the academic year.

Keeping_children_safe_in_education_2023

Parents and Volunteers

All parents and volunteers must have read and signed the Volunteer / Parent Agreement Form before they start a placement at Blessed Dominic Catholic Primary School.

Prevent Duty

The aim of “Prevent” is to reduce the threat to the UK from terrorism by stopping people becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism. Delivery of Prevent is grounded in early intervention and safeguarding -  please click here for Channel Duty Guidance

You can report a concern of radicalisation using the Prevent National referral form (ODT, 22 KB) and emailing it to preventreferrals@met.pnn.police.uk

The Department for Education also has a dedicated telephone helpline, 020 7340 7264, which school staff and governors can call to raise concerns about extremism with respect to a pupil. You can also email counter.extremism@education.gov.uk. Note that this is not for use in emergency situations.

In an emergency, call 999 or the confidential anti-terrorist hotline on 0800 789 321 if you:

1. Think someone is in immediate danger
2. Think someone may be planning to travel to join an extremist group
3. See or hear something that may be terrorist-related 

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)

The Department for Education’s Keeping Children Safe in Education explains that FGM comprises “all procedures involving partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs”.

FGM is illegal in the UK and a form of child abuse with long-lasting, harmful consequences. It is also known as ‘female genital cutting’, ‘circumcision’ or ‘initiation’.

Any teacher who discovers that an act of FGM appears to have been carried out on a pupil under 18 must immediately report this to the police, personally. This is a statutory duty, and teachers will face disciplinary sanctions for failing to meet it.

FGM - Female Genital Mutilation Indicators:

• Child's family comes from community known to practice FGM
• Child may talk about special or long holiday to country where practice is prevalent
• Child may confide that she is to have a special procedure or attend a special occasion

FGM Helpline:   0800 028 3550                 fgmhelp@nspcc.org.uk