Safeguarding
Safeguarding at The Bishop’s Stortford High School
The Bishop’s Stortford High School recognise the welfare of the child is paramount and understands the importance of working in partnership with children, their parents/carers and other agencies to safeguard children. We believe that all children and young people have the right to grow up in a safe and caring environment, which includes the right to protection from all types of abuse. The children and young people in our care have the right to expect adults in positions of responsibility to do everything possible to foster these rights. Children and young people have the right to be safeguarded from harm or exploitation whatever their:
- race, religion, first language or ethnicity
- gender or sexuality
- age
- health or disability
- political or immigration status
We will endeavour to safeguard children and young people by:
- valuing them, listening to and respecting them
- involving them in decisions which affect them
- making sure all staff, volunteers and contractors are aware of and committed to the TBSHS Child Protection policy and safeguarding procedures
- sharing information about concerns with agencies who need to know, and involving children and their parents/carers appropriately
- recruiting staff, volunteers and contractors safely, ensuring all necessary checks are made
- adopting a code of conduct for all staff and volunteers
- providing effective management through induction, support and training
- Ensuring staff and volunteers understand about ‘whistle blowing’
- dealing appropriately with allegations/concerns about staff, volunteers or contractors, in accordance with Government guidance
We also believe that if this commitment is to be put into practice then the school’s safeguarding policies and procedures must be adhered to, communicated, and fully understood and applied by everybody associated with the school.
To fulfil this commitment, a number of safeguarding arrangements are in place.
Designated Safeguarding Leads
The school has a team of trained Designated Safeguarding Leads who support children and young people across the whole school. This safeguarding team and their contact details can be found here.
Child Protection Policy
Our Child Protection Policy is reviewed annually in line with updates from Keeping children Safe in Education, a statutory government document. The TBSHS Child Protection Document can be found here.
Government Documents relating to Safeguarding
There are a number of documents which relate to safeguarding procedures that schools must adhere to. These include:
Keeping Children Safe in Education (Part 1)
Keeping Children Safe in Education (Full document)
Working Together to Safeguard Children
There are also a number of documents which provide schools with guidance, such as the Prevent Strategy. The aim of this guidance is to ensure we are all aware of the ‘Prevent Strategy’ and our key responsibilities in trying to ensure we protect our young people who may be in danger of being radicalised. The TBSHS Prevent Guidance for Parents can be found here.
Disclosure & Barring Checks
The Bishop’s Stortford High School meets statutory requirements in relation to Disclosure & Barring Service – all staff and volunteers who work with the school are required to undergo an enhanced DBS check prior to employment. information for Visitors can be found here
The Governor with responsibility for child protection is Mr. Stephen Taylor.
