Springwell Learning Community is committed to ensuring the welfare and safety of all pupils in both schools. Everyone working in or for our community shares an objective to help keep pupils safe by contributing to providing a safe environment for children and young people to learn and develop, and identifying children and young people who are suffering or likely to suffer significant harm, and taking appropriate action with the aim of making sure they are kept safe both at home and at school.
Springwell follows Barnsley’s Safeguarding Children Board procedures and pays full regard to the DfE statutory guidance Working Together to Safeguard Children and Keeping Children Safe in Education.
We work hard to form positive relationships with parents and carers. This is a continual process that begins with parents' very first visit when we share initial safeguarding information. Our schools will, in most circumstances, endeavour to discuss all concerns with parents about their children. However, there may be exceptional circumstances when the school will discuss concerns with Duty and Assessment and/or the Police without parental knowledge (in accordance with Local Authority Safeguarding Children Procedures).
Our schools hold the Wellspring Gold Standard Award for Safeguarding. This is assessed annually by a trust safeguarding lead.
Our Designated Safeguarding Leads are Faye Cooke (Special) and Rowen Peacock (Alternative). If you have any questions or concerns regarding safeguarding, please contact the school and ask to speak to one of them.
Our Safeguarding Policy can be found here.
If you have a concern about a member of staff or an adult’s behaviour towards a child please ask to speak to the head of school. At the Special School this is Lydia Harrison. At the Alternative Academy, this is David Fallis,
If you have a concern about a member of the leadership team please ask to speak to Sarah Wilson (Executive Principal) or George Wild (Chair of Governors) as appropriate.
Anyone should feel able to raise concerns about poor or unsafe practice or potential failures in the school’s safeguarding regime and should feel confident that such concerns will be taken seriously by the senior leadership team. Appropriate whistleblowing procedures are in place within the school and can be read in further detail by accessing our Whistleblowing Policy.
Here is a link to our policies page.
Please click here to see the NSPCC help and advice on Safeguarding and Whistleblowing.
OPERATION ENCOMPASS
Our school has been given the opportunity to take part in a project that will run jointly between schools, Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council and South Yorkshire Police. This project is known as Operation Encompass.
Operation Encompass is the notification to schools when a child under 18 may have been affected by a domestic incident. This will be done by the start of the next school day.
Operation Encompass will ensure that a specifically trained member of the school staff, known as a Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL), is informed. The DSL can then use the information, in confidence, to ensure the wellbeing of the child. The school may be able to make provisions or adjustments to assist the young person.
Our school is keen to offer the best support possible to all of our young people and we believe this will be extremely beneficial for all those involved.
Operation Encompass is a national initiative, already in place in many local authority areas across England. We are confident that the initiative will further strengthen our ability to safeguard and emotionally support those children and young people affected by domestic violence.
If you would like to know more, please speak with the Designated Safeguarding Lead or click here.
The Prevent Duty
Springwell Learning Community recognises and responds to its duty to protect our learners from the risk of radicalisation under the Prevent duty. The Designated Safeguarding Lead and their Deputy have undertaken Prevent training in line with the Prevent duty to protect children and vulnerable adults from radicalisation. All staff at Springwell Learning Community are required to attend a workshop to raise awareness of Prevent. This forms part of a rolling programme of staff training associated with safeguarding. Please click on the link below regarding the Government’s publication on preventing children from radicalisation – The Prevent duty.
Please click on this link for A Guide for Parents
Other Information and Advice
Please also see links below for further information and advice regarding;
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)
Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE)
Forced Marriage
Keeping Children Safe in Education
