Developing a “Safeguarding Children” Policy and Procedure



Developing a Child Protection Policy and Procedure

Providers must have and implement a policy, and procedures, to safeguard children. These should be in line with the guidance and procedures of the relevant Local Safeguarding Children Partnership (LSCP) – Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (2017:16).

The Safeguarding Children policy and procedure: based on the government guidance Working Together to Safeguard Children (2018), Keeping Children Safe in Education (2019), Inspecting Safeguarding in Early Years, Education and Skills Settings (2019) and Local Safeguarding Children Partnership’s policy and procedures.

Providers should follow the guidelines set out in the booklet ‘What to do if you’re worried a child is being abused’ 2015.

The policy & procedure must include:

➢ The roles and responsibilities of individual practitioners and managers in safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children.

➢ How practitioners’ knowledge of safeguarding children will be kept up to date, for instance by including issues in induction training and providing regular access to training in safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. How all staff and leaders receive regular updates on safeguarding at least annually. (Refer to updated document ‘Inspecting safeguarding in early years, education and skills settings’ – Sept 2019.).

➢ All practitioners must have an up to date understanding of safeguarding children issues and are able to implement the safeguarding children policy and procedure appropriately. They must be able to respond appropriately to:

1. Significant changes in children’s behaviour.

2. Deterioration in children’s general well being.

3. Unexplained bruising, marks or signs of possible abuse or neglect.

4. Children’s comments which give cause for concern

5. Any reasons to suspect neglect or abuse outside the setting, for example in the child’s home

6. Inappropriate behaviour displayed by other members of staff, or any other person working with the children. For e.g. inappropriate sexual comments; excessive one-to-one attention beyond the requirements of their usual role and responsibilities; or inappropriate sharing of images

➢ The name of the practitioner who has lead responsibility for safeguarding children plus their role and responsibilities (Designated Person) This practitioner is designated to take lead responsibility for safeguarding children within the setting, and to liaise with local statutory children’s services agencies. The designated person should consider attending the Level 3 Safeguarding training through the DSCP, and there should be a designated member of staff for safeguarding available at all times.

➢ The policy and procedure categorises the areas of abuse and includes the wider safeguarding responsibilities

➢ How staff are made aware of the signs and indicators around Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and their role and responsibility within this. The referral process when FGM is identified and the records that will be created and how these will be confidentially stored

Female Genital Mutilation

From Saturday 31 October 2015, new statutory duty for all practitioners to report cases of Female Genital mutilation (FGM) in under 18 year olds to the police.

The FGM mandatory reporting is a legal duty provided for the FGM Act 2003 (amended by the Serious Crime Act 2015)

Complying with the duty does not breach any confidentiality requirement or other restriction on disclosure which might otherwise apply. Where FGM is evident a referral must be made directly to the police on 101, by the person who has witnessed the abuse, this is not a responsibility that can be transferred. Where it is a probability that FGM is to be carried out (not witnessed) then normal safeguarding referral procedures must be followed.

➢ All practitioners must have an awareness of the Prevent Duty 2011 and 2014, the safeguarding policy must reflect how this is implemented within the setting to ensure that all children are safeguarded, this needs to include how a referral will be made when the setting suspect that a child may be a victim of terrorism/extremism and/or radicalisation. A reference must be made within the policy to the ‘Prevent duty guidance for schools and colleges. A critical incident policy and procedure should be implemented and include contingency plans for evacuations as well as ‘lock down’ procedures.

➢ The responsibility of all staff if they feel a child is being or is at risk of being sexually exploited. How a referral is made and to whom, how staff are aware of the information sharing process and the records that will be created following a concern and how these will be confidentially stored (please see below for the contact details of the Child Sexual Exploitation team – CSE Where you can seek additional support)

➢ How the setting ensure children are kept safe whilst online, the filters the setting have in place and how the setting work with parents with regards to safety in the home

➢ The settings understanding of private fostering. The responsibility the setting or individual staff members hold if private fostering is brought to their attention, who a referral should be made to and by whom and the records that will be created and how these will be confidentially stored

➢ The settings understanding of children affected by domestic violence, whether directly or indirectly and the referral procedures that are followed

➢ The understanding of staff in relation to Fabricated Illness and the referral process should this become apparent and/or possible

➢ How the setting identify issues around peer to peer abuse, the steps taken to prevent this and how this is managed should a case be identified

➢ The policy for protecting children against dangerous dogs, for e.g. parents collecting with an identified dangerous dog or being in the vicinity of any dangerous dogs whilst out on outings. Risk assessments for outing should now include this aspect

➢ The settings understanding of honour based abuse

➢ The settings understanding of Child Criminal Exploitation and County Lines

➢ References should now be made to safeguarding children with special educational needs and/or disabilities

➢ The procedure for referring concerns about a child’s welfare to Multi Agency Access Point (MAAP), OFSTED and/or the police, where a child may be or is at risk of significant harm (section 47 of the Children Act), including telephone numbers and timescales

➢ The procedure to follow when it is highlighted that a child may be in the vulnerable section of the Continuum of Need (Child in Need, section 17 Children Act), and how the safeguarding policy will be followed should the thresholds identify that a child be in the acute section of the continuum of need (section 47 Children Act), how the Early Help Assessment (EHA – Formally CAF) will be followed, by whom and the importance of multi-agency working.

➢ The policy identifies the EH process and the reasons for carrying out an EHA and the process to follow. To include the first port of call, the Early Help Hub and their responsibility in completing the early help enquiry form

➢ Procedures to be followed in the event of an allegation being made against a member of staff or volunteer. The procedures should include contact details for the LA designated officer responsible for providing advice and liaison and monitoring the progress of cases, to ensure that cases are dealt with as quickly as possible, consistent with a fair thorough process. Timescales for referring to the LADO need including, a referral must be made within 24 hours

← Local Authority Designated Officer – 01302 737748 – This person now sits in the safeguarding children’s partnership team

← LADO Referral Form to be completed and returned to:-

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The LADO, Doncaster Children’s Services Trust, Mary Woollett Centre, Danum Road, Doncaster, DN4 5HF

Or email: LADO@dcstrust.co.uk or LADO@doncaster..uk

← When putting together this section of your procedure please refer to page 58 of the document Working together to safeguard children (March 2018 version).

← Ofsted must be informed of any allegations of serious harm or abuse by any person living, working or looking after children at the premises, this needs to include relevant timescales

← If an individual (paid worker or volunteer) is removed from work which involves children or vulnerable adults (or would have been removed if the person had not left first) then a referral is made to the Disclosure and Barring Service

Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) was established under the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 and merges the functions previously carried out by the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA). .uk

➢ The procedure to follow to enable staff to whistle blow where they have concerns about a fellow colleagues behaviour (refer to whistle blowing procedure)

➢ The appropriate use of mobile phones and cameras within the setting (see reproduction of images of children).

➢ How the setting share safeguarding children procedures with parents prior to their child joining the setting.

➢ How concerns about a child’s welfare will be recorded and stored confidentially

➢ How and under what circumstances parents will be informed about concerns and any actions taken.

➢ The setting (including childminders) must be registered with the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) – this is a requirement when photographs are being taken of children, the setting/childminder has CCTV in operation or the setting/childminder is keeping electronic records on children. Posters must be displayed where CCTV is in operation

➢ How consent, confidentiality and information sharing will be managed in line with the new GDPR requirements.

➢ Time scales for retaining documents with information about children and families related to safeguarding and child protection. To include the information you will need to record and retain.

➢ The procedure to follow should a child be absent from the setting, how these are recorded and who holds the responsibility for monitoring any child absences (Refer to the admissions procedure). These should include the process to follow should a child have an unexpected absence

➢ The suitability checks that take place during the recruitment process, how these are recorded and the risk assessments that are in place in order to safeguard children prior to receipt of a clear enhanced DBS check. How this process is strengthened when recruiting individuals who have lived or worked outside the UK. Refer to document – Home Office – ‘Application process for obtaining criminality information to provide to employers in the UK or to meet the requirements of the UK immigration rules to provide an overseas criminal record certificate in support of visa application’, FAQ – October 2015) for further advice. This section of the policy and procedure should include additional criminal record checks that are carried out in respect of a person who has lived or worked abroad (EYFS 2017:18: point 3.10) for additional support please go to: .uk/government/publications/criminal-records-checks-for-overseas-applicants (Refer to safer recruitment procedure).

➢ Where professionals disagree about the best course of action to take in order to safeguard children the ‘resolving professional difference’ protocol, available on the DSCP website, should be used

Local and National Contact Information 

( Multi Agency Access Point  (formally Referral and Response) - 01302 737777

( Professional number – 01302 737033 (not to be shared with parents)

( Early Help Enquiry ‘One Front Door’ or  

( Urgent out of office referrals – 01302 796000

( Early Help Hub – 01302 734110

( Police - 101 (Non-emergency) 999 (Emergency)  112 (Emergency European)

( Local Authority Designated Officer – LADO – 01302 737748

( Doncaster Safeguarding Children Partnership - dscp@dcstrust.co.uk  - 01302 734214

( Child Sexual Exploitation Team – 01302 737200

( Domestic Violence Helpline – 0800 4701 505

( Private Fostering – 01302 737789

( PREVENT Officer – Inspector Brendan Packenham - 0114 2961374 or 07769 131474

( Prevent Helpline - Tel: 02073407264

( Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) Tel: 0300 0200 190 or 0870 909 0811

( Information Commissioners Office (ICO) Tel: 0303 123 1113

( Early Years’ Service – Jayne Bloodworth – 01302 734434 or 07790390369

( Early Years’ Service – Tracey Fry - 01302 736973 or 07917052235

( Ofsted 0300 123 1231 - The National Business Unit, Ofsted,  Piccadilly Gate, Store Street, MANCHESTER, M1 2WD

The policy should be reviewed:

➢ Following any occasion when any part of the procedure has been implemented.

➢ Whenever changes to legislation are produced.

➢ At least annually.

➢ The policy and procedure needs to be signed by the registered person, include reviewed date and next review due date.

➢ If any changes are made to the policy when reviewed the staff and parents need to be informed.

Links to other policies & procedures:

➢ Whistle blowing

➢ Staff Training and Development

➢ Supervision & Appraisal

➢ Grievance

➢ Disciplinary

➢ Recording of Information

➢ Illness, Injury and Accident

➢ Inclusion

➢ Health and Safety (Emergency Evacuation)

➢ The Reproduction of Images of Children

➢ Use of Internet

➢ Behaviour (Use of Physical Intervention)

➢ Parents as Partners

➢ Security and Supervision

➢ Recruitment

➢ GDPR – Privacy Notice

➢ Safe recruiment

This information is provided for guidance only. It is your responsibility to ensure that all statutory legal guidance is adhered to. Consideration needs to be given to any changes in legislation subsequent to the production of this information.

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