Dear Parents and Carers,
Safeguarding at Barrow School
The safety and well-being of our pupils is of paramount importance to us. We continue to work hard to put into place the best policies, procedures and practice to ensure that safeguarding at Barrow is highly effective. With that aim in mind, we want to ensure that you as parents are well informed about reporting procedures and roles of the key people we have in school.
Our Safeguarding Team from September 2024 is made up of the following members of staff and governors:
Designated Safeguarding Lead – Mrs Woodland
Alternate Designated Leads – Mrs Ashe & Miss Fairweather
Designated Safeguarding Governor – Andrew Willson
The Safeguarding Leads in school have a responsibility on a daily basis to:
• Make sure all staff are aware how to raise safeguarding concerns
• Ensure all staff understand the symptoms of child abuse and neglect
• Refer any concerns to social care
• Monitor children who are the subject of child protection plans
• Maintain accurate and secure child protection records
The role of the Designated Safeguarding Governor is to help ensure that safeguarding is effective within a school, not to carry out the work of the Designated Safeguarding Lead. Key aspects of the role are to:
• Understand the safeguarding requirements
• Support the work of the Designated Safeguarding Lead
• Report back to the Governing Body about how effective safeguarding is
• Check that the school is compliant with statutory guidance
• Check out whether there is a consistency in safeguarding across the whole school
• Make sure that there are effective systems in place to keep vulnerable children safe
The children’s safety, both in and out of school, is of huge importance to us and we have a responsibility to consider the wellbeing of all children who attend this school. This means we are vigilant regarding things we see and hear from the children themselves, the adults who work here and also information received from other sources that indicate to us that a child may be at risk of harm. In most situations, any matter of concern that is identified will usually be discussed with the parent/carer of the child. We recognise these can be difficult conversations to have but we will, nevertheless, raise any matters of concern as we know the wellbeing and safety of every child is important. In the best interests of your child we would hope that we can have an open and honest conversation, should the situation arise.
In certain circumstances we will share these concerns in accordance with the Local Safeguarding Children’s Board Procedures. This means we will contact the Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) in Suffolk. They will make a decision as to whether the concern warrants further assessment or investigation. MASH is the first point of contact with children’s social work services.There may also be times when you are aware of problems or worries regarding a child which you feel the school needs to know about. We do understand that coming into school to tell us about such matters may not always be an easy thing to do. Reporting any issues, in confidence, to one of our Designated Safeguarding Leads, however, is a very effective way of enabling us to deal with risks before they escalate into harm. Such information sharing goes a long way to help us create the safe and reliable environment for your children that you expect our school to be. If you are concerned about a child’s welfare or safety you can also contact social care directly through their Customer First helpline on 0808 800 4005.
If you require any further information regarding safeguarding at Barrow please do refer to our Safeguarding Policy online or contact one of the Safeguarding Team in school. We will be very happy to talk through any questions you may have. Alternatively use the tab above to email the safeguarding team directly.
Yours faithfully
Helen Ashe
Headteacher
