Safeguarding

At St Margaret's Church of England Primary School, the safety, wellbeing, and dignity of every child are at the heart of everything we do. Our school is committed to safeguarding and promoting the wellbeing of all children and expects our staff to share this commitment as safeguarding is everyone's responsibility.

As a Church of England school, our Christian values guide us in creating a nurturing environment where all children can flourish, achieve and believe, and be confident to speak out.

Safeguarding is the action we take to promote the welfare of children and protect them from harm. This includes protecting children from abuse, neglect, and exploitation, as well as supporting their mental and emotional wellbeing. Every member of our staff team is trained in safeguarding and takes their responsibility seriously.

Mrs J Spencer, Deputy Headteacher, is our Designated Safeguarding Lead and Mrs R Maiden, Headteacher is our Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead. They are supported by  a team of  Designated Safeguarding Officers each specialising in key areas of our school. 

Our Safeguarding Curriculum

At St Margaret's C of E Primary School, safeguarding is not just about policies – it’s something we teach and reinforce every day. Our safeguarding curriculum is woven through our wider PSHE (Personal, Social, Health and Economic) curriculum and supported by our school’s Christian ethos. It includes learning such as water safety, road safety, Emergency Aid Training for our pupils in years five and six and Bikeability. 

Children learn how to keep themselves safe through lessons on topics such as healthy relationships, personal boundaries, online safety, road safety, and emotional resilience. These are delivered in an age-appropriate and sensitive way, helping children develop the knowledge, skills, and confidence to make safe choices and know when and how to ask for help.

We work in close partnership with parents, carers, and external agencies to ensure that every child is protected and supported. If you would like more information about our safeguarding procedures or curriculum, please contact the school office or speak with our Designated Safeguarding Lead.

What is the Prevent strategy?

Prevent is a government strategy designed to stop people becoming terrorists or supporting terrorist or extremist causes.
The Prevent strategy covers all types of terrorism and extremism, including the extreme right wing, violent Islamist groups and other causes.

 

How does the Prevent strategy apply to schools?

From July 2015 all schools (as well as other organisations) have a duty to safeguard children from radicalisation and extremism.
This means we have a responsibility to protect children from extremist and violent views the same way we protect them from any other harm.
Importantly, we can provide a safe place for pupils to discuss these issues, at an appropriate level so they better understand how to protect themselves.


 

What does this mean at St Margaret's?

Many of the things we already do in school to help children become positive, happy members of society also contribute to the Prevent strategy. These include:

• Having a strong Aims and Ethos which pervades our school.
• Focusing on core values.
• Exploring other cultures and religions and promoting diversity.
• Challenging prejudices and racist comments.
• Developing critical thinking skills and a strong, positive self-identity.
• Promoting the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils, as well as British values such as democracy.
• We will also protect children from the risk of radicalisation, for example by using filters on the internet to make sure they can’t access extremist and terrorist material, or by vetting visitors who come into school to work with pupils.

Isn’t my child too young to learn about extremism?

The Prevent strategy is not just about discussing extremism itself, which may not be appropriate for younger children. It is also about teaching children values such as tolerance and mutual respect. This is what we focus on in our daily interactions and teaching. The school will make sure any discussions are suitable for the age and maturity of the children involved.

 

Is extremism really a risk in our area?

Extremism can take many forms, including political, religious and misogynistic extremism. Some of these may be a bigger threat in our area than others. We will endeavour to give children the skills to protect them from any extremist views they may encounter, now or later in their lives.

 

Key terms:

• Extremism – vocal or active opposition to fundamental British values.
• Ideology – a set of beliefs
• Terrorism – a violent action against people or property, designed to create fear and advance a political, religious or ideological cause
• Radicalisation – the process by which a person comes to support extremism and terrorism

Further information:

Contact the school - If you have any questions or concerns about the Prevent Strategy and what it means for your child, please do not hesitate to contact the school.

See our policies - You will find more details about radicalisation in our safeguarding policy, available on our website. We also have information about spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and British values.


External sources:

The following sources may also be useful for further information-

Act Early

• Prevent Statement.pdf