Safeguarding

At Berkswell CE Primary School, we are totally committed to safeguarding children and promoting the welfare of children. It is our number one priority, and we expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

We make every effort to provide a safe and welcoming environment underpinned by a culture of openness where both children and adults feel secure, able to talk and believe that they are being listened to.

The school has a comprehensive policy so that we can provide staff, volunteers and governors with the framework they need to keep children safe and secure in our school and to inform parents and guardians how we will safeguard their children whilst they are in our care.

We actively support the Government's Prevent Agenda to counter radicalism and extremism as well as the British Values of respect and tolerance, rule of law, individual liberty and democracy.

We are an 'Operation Encompass’ school; a police-led initiative to support children who may have witnessed or been affected by domestic abuse. More information about Operation Encompass can be found by clicking on this link: Operation Encompass

At Berkswell, every member of our school community is responsible for safeguarding our every child. However, our core Safeguarding Team is shared below:

Mrs Tracy Drew	Mrs. Louise Stuart-Smith	Miss Kate Tyler
Designated Lead	Deputy Designated Lead	Deputy Designated Lead

Designated Safeguarding Governor: Mrs. Jackie Proctor
Senior Mental Health Leader:  Mrs. Tracy Drew
Community Family Mentor: Mrs. Sue Went

Do you have a concern about a child's safety? 

If you have a concern regarding the welfare of a child who attends Berkswell CE Primary School, please ask to speak to a member of the safeguarding team on 01676 532141.

Alternatively, you can also report a concern using the numbers below:

Solihull MASH Team: 0121 788 4300
Police (Emergency):  999
Police (Non-emergency):  101
NSPCC:  0808 800 5000

All staff, Governors, and volunteers in the school have a duty to report concerns about a child, whether this means the child may be in need of additional support or help of some kind or whether it is thought that a child may have been abused or be at risk of abuse.

There are four main categories of abuse: physical, sexual, emotional, neglect.

In some cases, the school is obliged to refer children to children’s social care staff, for children to be assessed for their needs or if an investigation into possible child abuse is required. In many cases, there will already have been discussions between school staff and the parents of the child, and the situation and concerns will not be a surprise to the parents.

However, parents may not be told that the school has referred their child to children’s social care if it is thought that this might put the child at risk.

If school staff need to express concerns about a child or refer a child to children’s social care, it is appreciated that this can cause distress or anger for the child’s parents/carers. It is important however that all parties – parents and school staff – try to discuss these matters as reasonably as possible so that the best interests of the child can be secured.

Child Line

Childline is there to help anyone under 19 in the UK with any issue they are going through. You can talk about anything. Whether if it’s something big or small, their trained counsellors are there to support you.

Childline: 0800 1111.

Information about reporting online abuse or a hate crime can be found on the  CEOPS Website or the Report Hate Website.

Information on how to keep your child safe online can be found on the NSPCC website and in our downloads section.

Berkswell CofE Primary School

Safeguarding

Do you have a concern about a child's safety?

Child Line

Diocese of Coventry