Safeguarding encompasses all the things we do to protect our children.  All schools have a legal duty to protect children and at Priestmead our duty of care is to our children above everything else.  

Safeguarding includes child protection, health and safety, poor attendance or late punctuality, anti-bullying and preventing child-on-child abuse, preventing risk of radicalisation, e-safety, disclosure and barring checks on staff and adults in the school and behaviour including ensuring no discrimination based on race, cultural background, sexual identity/orientation, disability, religion or gender.

All staff have annual training including an assessment test as well as termly updates to ensure they are vigilant and keeping child safety at the forefront of what they do.  We support children in identifying 5 trusted adults they can always confide in.

Below is a summary of the ways in which children are kept safe in school:

• Children receive safeguarding lessons as part of the PSHE curriculum
• Assemblies supporting safety and SMSC development
• Every child is supported to name five trusted adults within the school and out of school that they can talk to about any issue
• Comprehensive safeguarding policy, procedure and record keeping
• Staff training beyond legal requirements
• Regular parent workshops on E-Safety to promote safer internet use
• NSPCC PANTS campaign taught at age appropriate level to ensure children are aware of Child Sexual Exploitation including FGM
• Staff share information on a need-to-know basis to ensure child safety
• Termly Safeguarding meeting with governance lead stakeholders

At Priestmead we have a team of staff trained to a Level 3 standard to ensure they can support children, staff and families with any safeguarding concerns.  They consist of:

Designated Safeguarding Lead:

Sachin Patel (Assistant Headteacher)

Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leaders:

Sash Hamidi, Andrea Callender, Amy Creamer, Bhamini Jadeja and Aliya Boghani-Shah

Premises & HR Safeguarding Leads:

Mark Alwyn, Mieschel McIntosh

Safeguarding Governors:

Mr English and Ms Morgan for The Pegasus Partnership Trust

Child Protection

If a child discloses something which has made them feel unsafe, we listen, note it down and pass the information on to Children's Services to ask for their assessment and instructions on the next steps.  

What if you have a concern?

• If you have a concern about your child's safety in school, never delay...speak to us straight away.