Safeguarding for Woodlands Nursery & Preschool

Key contact personnel in Woodlands Nursery & Preschool.

Designated Safeguarding Lead: Clare Robinson

Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead(s): Sarah Ives and Stacey Leppenwell.

 Woodlands Nursery and Preschool’s Child Protection Policy has been developed in accordance with the principles established by the Children Acts 1989 and 2004 and related guidance. This includes.

  • The Early Years Foundation Stage (2017)
  • DfE guidance ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’ (2019)
  • Working Together to Safeguard Children (2018)
  • Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their Families (2000)
  • Kent and Medway Online Safeguarding Children Procedures
  • Ofsted: Education Inspection Framework’ (2019)

What is ‘Safeguarding’?

Working Together to Safeguard Children (2018) states that safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is defined as:

  • protecting children from maltreatment.
  • preventing impairment of children’s health or development.
  • ensuring that children grow up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care; and
  • taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes.

It also reminds us that safeguarding “is everyone’s responsibility” (WTSC). Everyone who encounters children and families has a role to play.  Everyone should consider wider environmental factors in a child’s life that may be a threat to their safety and/or welfare.

The setting acknowledges that this policy will incorporate a range of specific safeguarding issues including (but not limited to): • Bullying (including cyberbullying) • Children and the court system • Children Missing Education (CME) • Children with family members in prison • Child missing from home or care  • Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) • Child criminal exploitation (County Lines) • Domestic Abuse • Homelessness • Drugs and alcohol misuse • Fabricated or induced illness  • Faith abuse • Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) • Forced marriage • Gangs and youth violence • Gender based abuse and violence against women and girls • Hate  • Honour based abuse • Mental health • Missing children and adults • Online safety • Peer on Peer Abuse • Prevent duty (radicalisation and extremism) • Private fostering  • Relationship abuse  • Sexual violence and sexual harassment between children • Human trafficking and modern slavery • Sexual Violence and Sexual Harassment • ‘Up skirting’ • Youth produced sexual imagery or “Sexting.

Our Ethos

‘Every child deserves the best possible start in life and the support that enables them to fulfil their potential. Children develop quickly in the early years and a child’s experiences between birth and age five have a major impact on their future life chances. A secure, safe and happy childhood is important.’ (EYFS 2017)

The owners of Woodlands Nursery and Preschool believe that all those directly involved with our setting have an essential role to play in making it safe and secure. Our setting aims to create the safest environment within which every child can achieve their full potential and we take seriously our responsibility to promote the welfare and safeguard all the children and young people entrusted to our care.

As part of the safeguarding ethos of the setting we are committed to:

  • Maintaining children’s welfare as our paramount concern.
  • Providing an environment and culture in which children feel safe, secure, valued and respected, confident to talk openly and sure of being listened to.
  • Developing appropriate and positive relationships between children and the adults that care for them.
  • Providing suitable support and guidance so that children have a range of appropriate adults who they feel confident to approach if they are in difficulties.
  • Using learning opportunities to increase self-awareness, self-esteem, assertiveness and decision making. This is so that young children develop a range of contacts and strategies to ensure their own protection and understand the importance of protecting others.
  • Working with parents/carers to build an understanding of the setting’s responsibility to ensure the welfare of all children including the need for referral to other agencies in some situations.
  • Ensuring all staff have regular and appropriate training (including induction) to enable them to recognise the signs and symptoms of abuse and ensure they are aware of the setting’s procedures and reporting mechanisms.
  • Monitoring children who have been identified as ‘in need’ including the need for protection, keeping confidential records which are stored securely and shared appropriately with other professionals.
  • Developing effective and supportive liaison with other agencies.

Responsibilities for Staff and Designated Safeguarding Lead

The EYFS 2017 requires providers ‘to take all necessary steps to keep children safe and well’’ and accordingly, everyone involved in the care of young children has a role to play in their protection. All members of staff at Woodlands Nursery and Preschool are part of the wider safeguarding system for children and are in a unique position to observe any changes in a child’s behaviour or appearance.

All members of staff have a responsibility to identify children who may need extra help or who are suffering, or are likely to suffer, significant harm. All members of staff have a duty of care to take appropriate action and work with other services as needed.

The owners, whose responsibility it is to ensure all legal requirements are met, have appointed an appropriately qualified and experienced Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) to fulfil this role in our setting. They are committed to ensuring that the DSL is properly supported in being able to carry out this role fully, including providing them with appropriate time and resources away from other job commitments.

The DSL Clare Robinson has overall responsibility for the day to day safeguarding and child protection systems in the setting.  These responsibilities include.

  • Liaising with other professionals in all agencies, including social services, police and health colleagues.
  • Keeping appraised of any updates in policy and practice as agreed by Kent Safeguarding Children Board (via the Education Safeguarding Service).
  • Being a source of support, advice and guidance to any other setting staff, both paid and voluntary, on an ongoing basis and on any specific safeguarding issue as required.
  • Co-ordinating child protection action within the setting, including making referrals as necessary.
  • Maintaining a confidential recording system for safeguarding and child protection concerns.
  • Ensuring all staff, visitors and volunteers are aware of the setting’s policies and procedures and their responsibilities in relation to safeguarding children.
  • Ensuring all staff, both paid and voluntary, have received appropriate and up to date child protection training, at least every 3 years (as stipulated by the KSCB) and provide them with appropriate annual updates.
  • Ensuring their own training is kept up to date by attending appropriate Designated Safeguarding Lead training every 2 years (as stipulated by the KSCB) and accessing updates, at least annually, through a variety of methods (list how the setting will achieve this e.g. e-Bulletins, conferences, local meetings, other training etc.) to keep up with any developments relevant to their role;
  • Representing the setting at inter-agency meetings strategy discussions, child protection conferences and core groups.
  • Managing and monitoring the setting’s role in early help, child in need and child protection plans.

The welfare and safety of children are the responsibility of ALL staff in the setting and ANY concern for a child’s welfare MUST be reported to the DSL, Clare Robinson.

All our staff have undertaken Safeguarding Training, as well as Prevent and Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) training.