Safeguarding and Child Protection (Keeping Children Safe in Education)

 

SS John & Monica Catholic Primary School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. All staff share in this commitment.

Safeguarding and Child Protection (Keeping Children Safe in Education)

Your child’s welfare is of paramount importance to us. It is our statutory duty of care to safeguard your child. We will also seek external support if we have any concerns about your child, and in some instances, this may mean that we consult with other agencies before we contact you.
 
The Birmingham Safeguarding Children Partnership has laid down the procedures we follow. If you want to know more about this procedure, please speak to the Headteacher, an SLT member, or a DSL.
 
At SS John and Monica's, we are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, and we expect all staff, governors, parents, volunteers and visitors to share in this commitment.

If you want to know more about this procedure or you have a concern about a child, please speak to the Headteacher, Mrs M Elliott (Designated Safeguarding Lead), Mr Ullah, the Deputy Headteacher, Mrs Riches, Mrs Doyle, Mrs Nicholls (SENCO), and Mrs Ali, who are all Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads (DDSLs). A DSL or DDSL is available on site. In exceptional circumstances where the DSL or DDSL's may not be on site, at least one will be available via telephone/video conference.

Children's Advice & Support Service
 
The Children's Advice and Support Service (CASS) provides a single point of contact for professionals and members of the public seeking support or raising concerns about a child.

We want to keep all children and young people in Birmingham safe from harm. If you are concerned about a child, please contact CASS, which will listen to your concerns, assess them, and take action if the child is at risk.

Contact details
Monday to Thursday: 8:45 am to 5:15 pm
Friday: 8:45 am to 4:15 pm
Telephone: 0121 303 1888

Emergency out-of-hours
Telephone: 0121 675 4806

To report a concern about a child or to request support for a child or family,  go to: 

https://lscpbirmingham.org.uk/working-with-children/safeguarding-concerns

For all related policies, go to the Parent page, Policies.

Leads for other Safeguarding matters:

Single Point of Contact (SPOC): Mrs M Elliott

Educational Visits Co-Ordinator: Mrs M Elliott

Looked- After Children Lead: Mrs M Elliott

Mental Health Lead: Mrs M Elliott. 

Operation Encompass key adult: Mrs M Elliott

Whole School approach to Safeguarding, Preventing Child-on-Child Abuse, Online Safety and Mental Health

At SS John and Monica Catholic Primary School, safeguarding is at the heart of the school’s mission and Catholic ethos, with every member of the school community sharing a collective responsibility to ensure that pupils feel safe, valued, respected, and supported to flourish spiritually, emotionally, socially, and academically. SS John and Monica adopts a fully embedded whole-school approach to safeguarding, rooted in the Gospel values of dignity, compassion, respect, and care for others. Leaders have established a strong culture of vigilance, openness, and early intervention, ensuring that safeguarding is prioritised in every aspect of school life. Robust safeguarding procedures, regular monitoring, clear reporting systems, and ongoing staff training ensure that all adults understand their safeguarding responsibilities and are confident in identifying and responding to concerns swiftly and effectively. Staff, governors, and volunteers receive regular safeguarding updates and training, including child-on-child abuse, online safety, mental health awareness, trauma-informed practice, and contextual safeguarding, enabling safeguarding practice to remain current, responsive, and highly effective.

At SS John and Monica, significant importance is placed on preventing child-on-child abuse through a proactive and educative approach. Pupils are explicitly taught about respectful relationships, kindness, consent, personal boundaries, and appropriate behaviour through the PSHE curriculum, Relationships and Health Education, assemblies, restorative conversations, class discussions, and the wider Catholic life of the school. The school’s strong behaviour culture promotes inclusion, empathy, and mutual respect, and pupils are consistently encouraged to speak out if they are worried about themselves or others. Staff are highly vigilant to any signs of bullying, harmful behaviour, or peer conflict and respond quickly, consistently, and sensitively to concerns. Through this preventative work, pupils develop a clear understanding of what respectful behaviour looks like and demonstrate confidence in seeking support from trusted adults. Pupil voice activities further strengthen this work by allowing children to share concerns, contribute ideas, and reflect on how safe they feel within school. As a result, pupils report feeling safe, listened to, and well supported.

Online safety is treated as a key safeguarding priority across the school and is embedded throughout the curriculum and daily practice. Pupils at SS John and Monica are taught how to use technology safely, responsibly, and respectfully through dedicated computing lessons, PSHE teaching, assemblies, workshops, and events such as Safer Internet Day. Age-appropriate and SEND-adapted online safety agreements are used to ensure all pupils understand how to stay safe online, including how to protect personal information, communicate respectfully, identify unsafe content, and report concerns. Staff consistently reinforce safe online behaviours and model appropriate technology use throughout the school day. Robust filtering and monitoring systems are in place across school devices, and leaders work closely with parents and carers through workshops, communication, and guidance to strengthen online safety awareness beyond the classroom. This comprehensive approach ensures that pupils develop a strong understanding of online risks and increasingly demonstrate safe and responsible digital behaviours.

Mental health and emotional wellbeing are central to the nurturing ethos of SS John and Monica Catholic Primary School. The school recognises that children’s emotional wellbeing directly impacts their safety, relationships, confidence, and ability to learn. As a result, the school adopts a highly supportive and preventative approach to mental health through strong pastoral care, nurturing relationships, emotional literacy support, ELSA provision, sensory and regulation strategies, pupil check-ins, safe spaces, and targeted interventions for vulnerable pupils. Staff know pupils exceptionally well and are skilled in recognising early signs of emotional distress, anxiety, trauma, or mental health difficulties. Close partnerships with families and external agencies ensure that support is coordinated, timely, and child-centred. The school also actively promotes resilience, self-esteem, inclusion, and emotional awareness through assemblies, prayer and reflection, wellbeing activities, pupil leadership opportunities, and the wider curriculum. Consequently, pupils feel cared for, emotionally secure, and confident that adults will listen and help them when needed, contributing to a calm, inclusive, and supportive learning environment where all children are able to thrive.

SS John and Monica Early Help Offer

What is Early Help?
Early Help means providing help for children, young people, and families as soon as problems start to emerge or when it is likely that issues will negatively impact children’s outcomes.
Early Help…
•    is for children of all ages and not just the very young,
•    can be very effective in supporting a child, young person, and their family to step down from statutory services and prevent the escalation of issues.
•    is important because there is clear evidence that it results in better outcomes for children.
Birmingham City Council and Birmingham Safeguarding Children’s Trust recognise that Early Help is a term that describes much of the everyday work of schools.

 
Early Help in Birmingham
All partner organisations working with children and families in Birmingham aim to improve children’s lives by partnering to raise aspirations, build achievement, and protect the most vulnerable.
This is based on the belief that:
•    Children, young people and families develop resilience if there are protective factors in place, such as a positive relationship with an adult, good literacy and communication skills, good school attendance, and parents in or actively seeking/ready for work
•    Children’s needs are best met when help is offered in a universal setting within a socially mixed group and early on when problems start to emerge
•    Children and young people’s needs are best met when addressed in the context of the whole family, meaning that parents/carers/siblings’ needs are addressed with consent as part of a holistic and integrated Early Help response
Early Help services should support and strengthen families so that they can thrive.

The Role of Schools
 
Day to Day Support
Most families can happily get on with their lives without outside help. If they need help, universal services, such as schools, usually provide it.
 
Focused Pastoral Support
However, all families can have times when difficulties arise, and they either may not recognise them or know how to start putting things right. Schools support families in addressing these difficulties through more focused pastoral support, including bringing in support via an external agency.
 
Early Help Assessment
For those children and families whose needs and circumstances make them more vulnerable or where schools need the support of other agencies to meet the needs of the family, a coordinated multi-agency approach is usually best. In Birmingham, this is achieved by undertaking an Early Help Assessment and assigning a Lead Practitioner to work closely with the family to ensure they receive the required support. Schools should be a key partner in any multi-agency work to support families
 
The following four commitments are the core elements of SS John and Monica Catholic Primary School’s Early Help Offer.
By implementing these commitments, SS John and Monica Catholic Primary School aims to ensure the following:
•    Pupils, parent/carers and staff are clear on the Early Help support available through the school
•    Clarity for partners, supporting improved multi-agency working
•    Delivery approaches of Early Help support for more vulnerable families are up to date with local offers
•    Commitment to the personal development and well-being strand of the Ofsted Framework

 

                                          

 

The following lists show what Early Help Support is available at SS John and Monica Catholic Primary School:

Safeguarding and Staying Safe

Primary Offer

Whole school safeguarding training for the first day of the academic year. Termly updated Safeguarding training for all Designated Safeguarding Lead and 4 Deputy DSL’s shows schools commitment to safeguarding Relevant policies and procedures e.g. Safeguarding, Child Protection, Special Educational Needs and Disability, Anti-Bullying,  GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) in place The Designated Safeguarding Lead and four Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads shows the school’s commitment to Safeguarding and child protection Advice points and Early Help response through Family Support Worker Safeguarding Curriculum Map developed PSHE safety curriculum map being developed Assemblies on themes around staying safe, e.g. 'Anti-bullying', Online Safety Care plans for vulnerable pupils and individual healthcare plans for pupils with medical needs regularly monitored and reviewed with SLT for Inclusion Recent, comprehensive Education Visits training PEEPs (Personal Evacuation Plans) and Risk assessments for vulnerable pupils School is a commitment partner school of Operation Encompass Domestic Abuse Support Access to support for families living with a range of issues, e.g. domestic violence, drugs Rigorous online safety policy and procedures and filtering system Home visits for families if deemed necessary Link PCSO (Police Community Support Officer) Parent workshops – Online Safety Dedicated Safeguarding section on Website to support parents PEP (Personal Education Plan) and LAC (Looked After Children) review meetings led by designated safeguarding teacher PSHE curriculum (through Cambridge PSHE scheme) Prevent issues awareness and training for concerns around radicalisation FGM (Female Genital Mutilation), CSE (Child Sexual exploitation), Forced marriages awareness and training School nurse drop-ins and referrals Tracking, recording and analysis of incidents, e.g. through CPOMS Bikeability’ programme for road safety Whole school safeguarding training

Measurable outcomes across key stages:

School responds to safeguarding issues and early help requests as a matter of priority to avoid situations escalating Trends in Safeguarding issues analysed and monitored Positive relationship and behaviour policy understanding means behaviour incidents are low Greater awareness of bullying within the community and a zero-tolerance approach to bullying incidents School responds to trends in safeguarding issues Increase in turn-over of families accessing Family Support Worker Welfare and neglect issues on Social Services caseload is reduced Quality displays evidence of pupils' new learning and promotes emotional resilience An increasing percentage of parental engagement Children’s health is seen as a priority area Pupils know how to keep themselves safe An up-to-date rolling programme of CPD (Continued Professional Development) in relation to Safeguarding / Training for all staff

Attendance

Primary Offer

100% and other attendance and punctuality rewards Attendance Focus Week for whole school Attendance data is monitored by assigned staff (Head Teacher, School Attendance Officer, Family Support Worker FSW) Attendance Data analysed and compared with national statistics Rigorous updated Attendance and Punctuality Policy in line with current DFE documentation Regular reporting to Governors about attendance ‘Lates’ letters home treated as a measure of disadvantage Letters home at 95% attendance, followed up by warning letters Family Support worker/Head Teacher and Deputy Head Teacher work with families around attendance and punctuality concerns Meetings with HT and parents who wish to take a leave of absence Rigorous documentation for leave of absence requests Regular parent leaflets and promotion of what good attendance looks like Termly reporting to parents regarding their child’s attendance and punctuality 'Support First' to attendance followed for case management and  prosecution if required First day calling Home visits for attendance concerns requiring investigation Monitoring groups in high mobility or absence requests School nursing service referrals for medical conditions that affect attendance. Statistics for attendance and punctuality reported and celebrated in the fortnightly school newsletter

Measurable outcomes across key stages:

Overall and individual pupil attendance improves Improvement in PA (Persistent Absence) data No suspensions or permanent exclusions Reduction in the number of leave of absence requests Reduction in the number of penalty notices issues Lateness data shows a reduction in the number of interventions Whole school targets are met

Supporting Families

Primary Offer

School-based full-time Family Support Worker (1 day per week) Induction meeting with Family Support Worker Translation for main community languages Support for form completion, including financial support and housing Financial support if appropriate – e.g. uniform Home visits for families if required Parents evenings Pastoral support from Family Support Workers, Senior Leaders, SENCO, SEMH HLTA SENCO support for families of children with special educational needs or disability Access to SENDIASS (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Information Advice Support Service) Signposting to external agencies and training FSW, DSL, DDSL’s, SENCO Signposting to local services, e.g. foodbanks Family Support Workshops led by Family Support Worker Referral to School Nurse Support Referrals for external agency support, e.g. Communication and Autism, Pupil and School Support, Educational Psychologists

Measurable outcomes across key stages:

Pupil learning data improvement Very few social and emotional issues impacting on school life (pupils) Uptake of support services Attendance data in line with National Punctuality improving Reduction in the number of DNAs (Did Not Attend) appointments An increasing percentage of parental engagement

Social, Emotional and Mental Health Needs

Primary Offer

FSW trained in areas of Social and emotional health Qualified Mental Health First Aiders - M.Elliott HLTA takes the lead in social and emotional health School is a trained TIAAS School (Trauma Informed Attachment Awareness School) School on ELSA Programme and committed to this approach (Emotional Literacy Support Assistance) High focus on social, emotional and mental health needs, including staff training Referrals to Forward Thinking Birmingham (Children, Adolescent Mental Health Service) Referrals to Educational Psychology Service Signs of Safety Toolkit followed – Three Houses (Birmingham) Family Support worker support for a variety of mental health needs Lego, play and art therapy support from FSW Emotional literacy work done through the PSHE programme Staff training in dyslexia, ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), ASD (Autism) Access to Virtual School Team for Looked after Children Mental health days are recognised and marked with workshops, activities and assemblies Regular pupil and staff surveys regarding social, emotional and mental health Activities for mindfulness and relaxation Key adults to go to in school for emotional support Counselling service for school staff

Measurable outcomes across key stages:

Pupil learning data improvement Lower number of both high and low-level behaviour incidents Increase in pupils' self-help skills No suspensions or permanent exclusions Assessments show that social, emotional, and mental health needs are met

Transition

Primary Offer

Close liaison with the preschool setting,  previous school or school transferring to via meetings/phone calls Close liaison with the preschool setting,  previous school or school transferring to via meetings/phone calls for all Looked-after children Nursery and pre-school visits Individual meetings with new Rec parents at the start of the academic year Family Support meetings with FSW for vulnerable pupils in the Early Years Foundation Stage before entry to school and Y6 pupils moving to secondary school Induction Days Safeguarding records passed to schools within a 5-day window. All children new to school - previous school called to check for safeguarding records. All children with safeguarding records leaving school – phone call to DSL of incoming school Inclusion Lead (SENCO) liaises with SENCOs from other schools to pass on records and information about pupils on the SEN Register Support for online school applications for parents Transition programme with attention given to pupils with special educational needs or disability Person-centred review completed for those who require it with external agencies, parents and new schools to provide effective transition

Outcomes across key stages:

School has as much information as impossible from the previous setting for effective transition School forwards any safeguarding and other information promptly for effective transition curriculum

Primary Offer

Access to one-to-one support, paired and group work where needed PSHE and Safeguarding curriculum mapped out across the school (see PSHE overview and Safeguarding Curriculum Map) Themed Assemblies and workshops covering a range of PSHE and Safeguarding opportunities (see PSHE overview and Safeguarding Curriculum Map) Interventions for vulnerable pupils Breakfast club and After-school club offer

Measurable outcomes across key stages:

Increase in percentage of children attending a school club Pupil learning data shows improvement

Safeguarding Curriculum

Great importance is placed on identifying opportunities in the taught curriculum for children to learn about safeguarding. Our broad curriculum allows pupils to experience life in all its diversity, acquire knowledge, understanding, and skills that significantly impact personal development, behaviour, and welfare, and equip every child with the knowledge and skills required for personal safeguarding.

 

Great importance is placed on identifying opportunities in the taught curriculum for children to learn about safeguarding. Our broad curriculum gives pupils opportunities to experience life in all its diversity, to acquire knowledge, understanding, and skills that significantly impact personal development, behaviour, and welfare, and to equip every child with the knowledge and skills required for personal safeguarding.

Safeguarding, child safety issues, and child protection will be addressed throughout the curriculum, especially through PSHE, Computing and Online Safety, Citizenship, Relationship, Sex and Health Education (RSHE), and British values.

We use various resources and approaches to teach children how to stay safe, build resilience, and manage risks.

The curriculum, particularly the PSHE and RSHE curriculum, emphasises relationships, building confidence and resilience in pupils and developing preventative strategies to ensure their protection and that of others. Opportunities are provided for pupils to develop the skills and strategies to stay safe from abuse, including age-appropriate discussions about healthy relationships. Clear advice and guidance are built into the curriculum to ensure that pupils understand that there is a range of contacts they can turn to for advice and support and that they know where and how to report abuse.

 

Safeguarding for Parents

The following is a list of useful websites offering free advice and support on a range of topics tailored to parents and carers:

 Child Accident Prevention Trust: Free child safety advice for parents and carers - https://capt.org.uk/pages/category/safety-advice-injury-types/

Family Lives: Offers core family support services, working in many different areas and providing tailored support around issues such as bullying, special educational needs, and support for specific communities - https://www.familylives.org.uk/

Get Safe Online: Advice for parents and carers on how to take a balanced approach to your children’s online safety - https://www.getsafeonline.org/personal/article-category/safeguarding-children/

Kooth: A digital mental health and wellbeing company working to provide a welcoming space for digital mental health care, available to all -https://www.kooth.com/ 

NSPCC: Support and tips to help you keep your children safe. From advice on children’s mental health to staying safe online, support for parents and what to do if you’re worried about a child - https://www.nspcc.org.uk/keeping-children-safe/

Thinkuknow: Thinkuknow aims to help protect children and young people from the threat of online child sexual abuse and exploitation - https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/parents/

YoungMinds: Lots of practical advice and tips on supporting your child – from how to encourage your child to open up about their feelings to dealing with mental health services - https://www.youngminds.org.uk/parent/

 

Online Safety

At SS John & Monica School, we recognise that technology and the internet play an important part in children’s learning, communication and everyday lives. While the online world offers many positive opportunities, it is also important that children understand how to stay safe, respectful and responsible online. We work closely with pupils, staff and parents to promote safe internet use, including online privacy, respectful communication, gaming, social media awareness and reporting concerns. We encourage parents and carers to have regular conversations with their children about their online activity and to make use of parental controls and privacy settings where appropriate. Useful guidance and support for families can be found through the UK Safer Internet Centre and NSPCC Online Safety resources. Further information is available at:

https://saferinternet.org.uk/parents-and-carers 

https://www.nspcc.org.uk/keeping-children-safe/online-safety/

 

Prevent Duty

What is the Prevent Strategy?

The Prevent strategy is a government strategy designed to prevent people from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorist or extremist causes. We have prepared a leaflet to explain our approach to this strategy, which can be found on our website or at our school reception.

Many things we already do in school to help children become positive, happy members of society also contribute to the Prevent strategy.

These include:

• Exploring other cultures and religions and promoting diversity

• Promoting the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils, as well as British values such as democracy
• Developing critical thinking skills and a strong, positive self-identity
• Challenging prejudices and racist comments
• We will also protect children from the risk of radicalisation, for example, by using filters on the Internet to make sure they can’t access extremist and terrorist material or by vetting visitors who come into school to work with pupils.

At Ss John and Monica Catholic Primary  School, we build pupils’ resilience to radicalisation by promoting fundamental British values. Please see our guidance on British values on our website.

The statutory guidance refers to the importance of Prevent awareness training, which equips staff to identify children at risk of being drawn into terrorism and challenge extremist ideas. At our school, all teaching and support staff have completed training.

 

SS John and Monica Catholic Primary School's Commitment to Safeguarding Children on All Recruitment Material

SS John and  Monica's must create a culture of safe recruitment and adopt recruitment procedures that help deter, reject or identify people who might harm children. As part of doing that, all recruitment material should indicate a commitment to the safeguarding and welfare of all children. These recruitment materials include:

• Job Advert
• Application form
• Job Description
• Person Specification
• Invitation to attend the interview
• Questions to ask in the interview

Job Advert

On the job advertisement, state commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. For example:

‘The School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. The successful candidate is subject to an enhanced DBS check and satisfactory references.

Job Description

As part of the job description, state that ‘everyone who works at … SS John and Monica Catholic Primary School is committed to promoting the safeguarding and welfare of children’. In practice, this means:

• Being aware of SS John and Monica's policies and procedures regarding Child Protection.
• Becoming aware of the signs and symptoms of abuse by attending relevant courses.
• Reporting all cause for concern to the Designated Safeguarding Lead
• Ensuring the safety of all pupils in the school learning environment, indoors and outdoors.
• Carrying out risk assessments in consultation with the teaching staff before activities.

Person Specification

The essential attributes highlighted on the Person Specification linked to the job should request:

• Commitment to developing awareness of Safeguarding procedures, such as partaking in child protection and E-Safety training
• Positive References
• Current DBS check
• Awareness of Safeguarding procedures

Application form  

• Ask for details of two senior referees who are unrelated to the applicant.
• Ask for ‘any convictions, cautions, reprimands or final warnings that are not “protected” as defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2013) by SI 2013 1198.

Invitation to Interview

Include request to bring proofs of identity, evidence of qualifications and right to work in the UK.

During the Interview

• Take copies of documents
• Ask specific questions and keep a record of questions and answers given. Look out for

– Give me an example of when you have had a safeguarding concern about a child. What happened?

– Tell us about a time when you took action to help protect a child. 

– Describe the procedures that need to be in place to protect children. 

– How in your work or life so far have you tried to ensure that children are protected?

– Give me an example of when you had safeguarding concerns over a child.

– Give me an example of how you dealt with bullying behaviour.

– Give me an example of how you have managed poor pupil behaviour.

– What do you think makes SS John and Monica's safe and supportive?

We look out for answers that show no or little understanding or appreciation of children’s needs or expectations, inappropriate language about children, unclear boundaries with children, and answers that imply adults and children are equal or that they are more concerned for personal gains than there is for the children’s interests.