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Schools and Early Years


If you have concerns about a child's wellbeing and suspect abuse, maltreatment or neglect, please contact Haringey's First Response Service immediately: 020 8489 4592 / 5652 / 5762 and follow up your call with filling in a First Response Referral Form (Word, 205Kb).

If you are calling between 5pm and 9am weekdays or at the weekend, call the Emergency Out-of-Hours Duty Team on: 020 8348 3148

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Role of Designated Child Protection Officer

The designated child protection officer (DCPO) takes the lead responsibility for child protection, including support for other staff and information sharing with other agencies, developing policies and staff training. Most settings have one DCPO although it is good practice for settings to have a Deputy DCPO. Usually, the DCPO is also the named person who responds to allegations made against members of staff.

The DCPO should be a senior member of staff with the authority and seniority to carry out the functions of the role.


DCPO Responsibilities


  • Refer suspected abuse and neglect to the First Response Service
  • Report allegations made against members of staff to the Local Authority Designated Officer or LADO (and Ofsted, if Early Years / Play Providers / Childminders)
  • Develop and update the Child Protection and other safeguarding policies, ensuring that staff and children/families/parents are aware of them
  • Provide support and advice to all members of staff within the setting regarding child protection concerns
  • Keep the Headteacher informed about any issues that arise
  • Ensure that cover is provided for the role when absent from the setting
  • Ensure that a child's child protection file is copied for the new educational establishment when a child moves educational settings, and that this file is transferred securely and separately from the main pupil file. For details of electronic transfers see Teachernet on S2S (external link)
  • Ensure that all staff receive appropriate Child Protection and Safeguarding Training, and maintain training records
  • Cooperate with any requests for information from the local authority, such as Child Protection training returns and self-evaluative forms for safeguarding and child protection, in compliance with Section 11, Children Act 2004


Updating Haringey LSCB


Please keep Haringey LSCB updated regarding your current DCPO and Deputy DCPO and their contact details.

Please use this DCPO Notification Form (Word, 155Kb) and return it to lscb@haringey.gov.uk to inform us of any changes in this post.


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Child Protection Policies and Statutory Safeguarding Policies

Child Protection Policy

See Haringey LSCB's Sample Child Protection Policy (Word, 172KB) for Education Settings.

When Ofsted evaluate a school's child protection policy, they look out for the following aspects to make a judgement about the quality of the policy:

  1. Sets out clear purpose and aims
  2. Is accessible and easy to understand
  3. Provides a secure framework for the workforce
  4. Links with other relevant safeguarding policies (eg., anti-bullying, physical intervention)
  5. Makes references to other elements of provision that enable pupils to feel safe and adopt safe practice (eg., via the curriculum)
  6. Sets out responsibilities and expectations of staff clearly, particularly in identifying and reporting possible or actual instances of abuse
  7. Distinguishes between the steps for addressing general safeguarding and child protection concerns, and those concerns that relate to an allegation against a member of staff
  8. Indicates training provided to staff
  9. Indicates steps taken to bring the policy and procedures to the attention of temporary staff
  10. Indicates steps taken to bring the policy and procedures to the attention of children / families / parents
  11. Sets out the role of the governors and the named governor for child protection
  12. Indicates how the policy will be implemented, monitored and evaluated

This is not a prescriptive list but it is helpful in developing child protection policies in schools and other education settings.

For more information, see the Ofsted Briefing for Section 5 Inspectors on Safeguarding Children (PDF, 120KB)

Also, see Child Protection Policy Templates.

Other Safeguarding Policies

Safeguarding is a wide remit and there are many policies that support safeguarding in education settings.

For a complete list of all the policies required by law in schools see A Guide to the Law for School Governors - Annex 2: Policies & other documents that Governing Bodies are required to have by law (Word, 65KB).

Statutory Safeguarding Policies in Schools include:

  • Allegations Against Staff
  • Central record of recruitment and vetting checks
  • Child Protection
  • Designated teachers
  • Disability Equality
  • Staff Discipline, Conduct & Grievance
  • Health & Safety, including Risk Assessments and Health & Safety Manual
  • Home School Agreement
  • Special Educational Needs

This list is not exhaustive - please see A Guide to the Law for School Governors - Annex 2: Policies & other documents that Governing Bodies are required to have by law (Word, 65KB) for all policies required by law.

Recommended Policies include:

See the pages on key legislation, national guidance and London guidance for support in developing your policies.

See Teachernet's Model Policies (external link) and the law, policy & guidance pages for more information.


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Child Protection and Safeguarding Training

The DCPO must ensure that all staff have induction training in child protection and are able to recognise and report concerns when they arise.

The DCPO is responsible for maintaining records of ongoing staff training in child protection, ensuring that all members of staff are trained at least every three years.

All staff basic awareness training should include:

  1. Recognition of abuse indicators
  2. Awareness of when referrals should be made
  3. Recording and information sharing skills

DCPOs themselves should undergo refresher training at least every two years. DCPO training should develop the following skills:

  1. Appropriate and timely referral-making
  2. Understanding of information sharing and multi-agency working in safeguarding and child protection
  3. Ability to keep detailed and secure written records of concerns
  4. Ability to  participate in and contribute to child protection case conferences and core groups
  5. Understanding of the key complex child protection and safeguarding issues that affect the children and young people in the setting

The DCPO may deliver in-setting basic awareness training in child protection. Haringey LSCB offers a Training for Trainers course to support DCPOs in this role.

For LSCB multi-agency training, see the LSCB Training page.

All Haringey schools, early years and education settings are asked to complete a Schools Training Return for Haringey LSCB at the end of each financial year in compliance with Section 11, Children Act 2004.


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School Attendance & Safeguarding

School attendance represents a protective factor for children. Low school attendance and lateness both factor highly in cases where children are being abused and neglected.  

Improving attendance is a core way in which schools and local authorities can promote children's wellbeing. It also ensures better outcomes for children.

For more information on attendance, see the Teachernet website (external link).


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School Exclusions & Safeguarding

Short-term and permanent exclusions are part of a school's disciplinary measures. Children who are exhibiting difficult and challenging behaviour often have problems in their home life. These are factors that should be considered in the decision-making process surrounding exclusions as it is more difficult to safeguard children and young people who are excluded from school, and children and young people who face exclusions have poorer outcomes.

For more information on exclusions, see the Teachernet website (external link).



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Safeguarding Children in Care in Schools

Children in the care of the local authority are some of the most vulnerable children and young people in schools.

Things must have gone badly wrong at home for children to be taken into care, and the majority of children who remain in care are there because they have suffered abuse or neglect. This means that these children are likely to have experienced significant levels of trauma. Leaving home and the family, and going into care can also be a very frightening and disruptive experience for a child or young person.  

Contact the Haringey Virtual School (external link) on 020 8489 3767 to complete the online course Education & Trauma.


The Haringey Virtual School (HVS)


Haringey Virtual School (external link) is a multi-disciplinary education team that monitors and tracks the attainment of children in the care of Haringey  and of children in the care of other authorities, being educated in Haringey. The HVS offers advice to those supporting Haringey Child and provides training. It also delivers a programme of activities outside of school hours, to raise educational attainment levels for Haringey children in care.

Haringey Virtual School is not a funding body for alternative provisions.

The Designated Teacher contacts the Hackney Virtual School (external link):

  • To provide current attainment levels of children in care each term
  • If you have any concerns about attendance or punctuality
  • If you have any concerns about behaviour
  • If you are completing a CAF, and would like to discuss it
  • If you are considering initiating formal assessment of a child’s special educational needs
  • At times of transition for the child, especially if there are concerns about vulnerability and resilience
  • If you are experiencing difficulty setting a PEP date
  • If you do not know the name of the Social Worker of children in the care of Haringey
  • If you would like information on Designated Teacher for children in care training
  • If there is a change of person, or contact details of the DT in your school

The child or young person's allocated Social Worker contacts the Haringey Virtual School (external link):

  • If you have any concerns about school attendance or punctuality
  • If a child / young person is not making rapid progress
  • If a child / young person has on-going and unresolved difficulties forming friendships, or is being bullied
  • If there are concerns about behaviour
  • If you are experiencing difficulties setting a PEP date
  • If you do not know the name of the Designated Teacher for children in care
  • If there are on-going and unresolved concerns (which you have raised with the school)  about the child / young person’s ability to manage their timetable / equipment / social relationships with adults and/or children at school


Designated Teachers for Children in Care

The following is taken from: The role and responsibilities of the designated teacher for looked after children: Statutory guidance for school governing bodies (external link).

The designated teacher should have lead responsibility for helping school staff understand the things which affect how looked after children learn and achieve.

The designated teacher should:

  • promote a culture of high expectations and aspirations for how looked after children learn
  • make sure the young person has a voice in setting learning targets
  • be a source of advice for staff about differentiated teaching strategies
  • appropriate for individual children and in making full use of Assessment for Learning
  • make sure that looked after children are prioritised in one-to-one tuition
  • arrangements and that carers understand the importance of supporting learning at home
  • have lead responsibility for the development and implementation of the child’s personal education plan (PEP) within the school.

The designated teacher has a key role in helping looked after children make a smooth transition to their new school or college, including making sure there are effective arrangements in place for the speedy transfer of information.

The designated teacher for children in care will be key in forming relationships with other professionals outside the school in order to support the child in care. The designated teacher for children in care has a key role in making sure there is a central point of initial contact within the school who can manage the process of how the school engages with others (eg. social workers, virtual school heads), works in a joined up way and minimises disruption to the child’s education.

The designated teacher should make sure that:

  • there is an agreed process in place for how the school works with others
  • in focusing on how everyone contributes to promoting the child’s educational achievement;
  • school policies (eg. around Home School Agreements) are communicated to social workers and carers; the school does everything possible to maximise educational stability for the child, especially by finding ways of sharing information through the PEP and in providing advice to the local authority about the impact of disrupting education.

More resources for designated teachers include:


Personal Education Plan (PEP)

Many looked-after children have also suffered disrupted learning and may have missed extended periods of school. The gaps in their learning — and in many cases the emotional impact of their experiences — are likely to have become significant barriers to progress.

The complexity of this fragmented educational experience means that careful assessment and planning is required. Excellent practice in supporting looked-after children already exists in many schools. For example, schools must complete a personal education plan (PEP) for all children in care, and there is a designated teacher for children in care in every school.

The designated teacher has the following responsibilities in developing the personal education plan (PEP):

  • All looked after children must have a PEP as part of their overall care plan.
  • The PEP should be sent to the designated teacher when the child becomes looked after or joins the school.
  • The PEP is a shared document which includes the information that everyone needs to help their conversations, planning and the delivery of strategies required to make sure the child gets the support and provision needed to succeed.
  • The designated teacher leads on how the PEP is used as a tool in school to make sure the child’s progress towards education targets is monitored.
  • S/he makes sure that it is updated and available in time for the local authority review of the child’s wider care plan. For each statutory review of the care plan

the PEP must include any new information about progress towards education targets since the last PEP review and information about what has not been taken forward.


Governors

For more information about children in care in schools, see the Teachernet website (external link).  


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Common Assessment Framework (CAF)

If a child or young person has additional needs, they may require a CAF assessment.

Downloads


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Making a Child Protection Referral

In schools and early years settings, the Child Protection Referral is usually made by the Designated Child Protection Officer (DCPO), even if the concern is picked up by another member of staff. The DCPO may have further relevant information about the child or family that is unknown to others.

Any concerns within education settings must be reported immediately to the DCPO or, in their absence, the deputy DCPO. The DCPO must ensure that their position is covered when they are off-site.

In the unlikely event that the DCPO, deputy DCPO, and senior members of staff are all unavailable, a member of staff may need to make the child protection referral directly by calling the First Response Service.

All referrals should be made to the First Response Service by telephone in the first instance and followed up within 48 hours in writing using the First Response Referral Form (Word, 205KB).

First Response Service: 020 8489 4592 / 5652 / 5762.
If you are calling between 5pm and 9am weekdays or at the weekend, call the Emergency Out-of-Hours Duty Team on: 020 8348 3148

Get tips for making a good referral to social care.

Download


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Allegations Made Against Staff

Schools usually nominate the DCPO in the Allegations Policy to respond to allegations made against staff. The procedures are similar but not the same as responding to a straight-forward child protection concern.

A comprehensive guide to Safer Recruitment and the management of allegations is available in Safeguarding Children & Safer Recruitment in Education 2007 (PDF, 1MB).

A number of allegations against professionals are made as a consequence of school staff attempting to restrain pupils without following safe procedures. If your school has not had training on physical restraint we recommend Team Teach (external link).

For more information, see the Allegations and the Safer Recruitment pages.


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Strategy Meetings, Child Protection Conferences & Core Groups

The DCPO may be requested to attend various meetings designed to protect the child or young person and to promote the child or young person's wellbeing. These include:

Schools Reports to Conference

DCPOs must prioritise attendance at these meetings, and should be prepared for the meetings they attend, bringing any relevant information with them.

DCPOs should use this format to record their comments and views and submit it to Conference at least two days prior to the conference date: Schools Report to Conference (Word, 448KB).


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Ofsted Inspections

Safeguarding has been a limiting judgement for schools since September 2009. Ofsted inspectors will evaluate the impact of the school's safeguarding arrangements, including:

  • Outcomes for pupils
  • How well safeguarding is prioritised
  • Whether child welfare concerns are identified and responded to appropriately by the school
  • The extent to which the school discharges its responsibility to work together with key agencies to safeguard and promote the welfare of children

For more information, see the Ofsted Briefing for Section 5 Inspectors on Safeguarding Children (PDF, 120KB)

All Haringey schools, early years and education settings are asked to complete a Child Protection and Safeguarding Self-evaluative Form (SEF) for Haringey LSCB at the end of each financial year in compliance with Section 11, Children Act 2004. This SEF enables settings to identify blindspots in their provision that might need development and helps prepare settings for Ofsted inspections.


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Talking with Children & Dealing with Disclosures of Abuse

Children do not often make direct disclosures to professionals that they are being abused or neglected, so if a child chooses to confide in you, it is important that you make the experience as safe as possible for them and reassure them that they have done the right thing.

Give the child the space to be heard and reassure them that they have done the right thing. Never promise to keep anything the child has told you a secret as you cannot do this.

Helpful responses if a child confides in you:

  • Remain calm
  • Take what the child / young person says seriously
  • Listen carefully without interrupting or prompting
  • Reassure the child / young person that they are not to blame
  • Validate the child / young person's feelings (eg, 'I imagine that would make you feel really sad')
  • If necessary to clarify what you have heard, ask the child / young person open questions (beginning, 'Why', 'What', 'How', 'When', etc)
  • Let the child / young person know what you are going to do to help (eg, 'I need to speak to someone else who can help me keep you safe')
  • Afterwards, immediately report what you have been told to the DCPO
  • Afterwards, record what was said and who was present, using the child’s words

What to avoid if a child confides in you:

  • Avoid showing your shock or disgust
  • Avoid making assumptions
  • Avoid criticising the abuser - this could make the child feel unsafe
  • Do not make promises you cannot keep (eg, 'Everything's going to be fine')
  • Never agree to keep information secret
  • Never delay emergency action to protect a child
  • Never express disbelief in what the child is saying
  • Do not try to investigate and avoid intrusive and leading questioning


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Haringey Contacts & Support Services

Children's Social Care

Education, Schools & Children's Centres

Click here for more useful local contact details.



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Social & Emotional Aspects of Learning (SEAL)

Children who are experiencing difficult home situations will find it difficult to access learning. Some children are not given the ideal amount of emotional and social 'coaching' that parents ordinarily provide and therefore never acquire the skills that enable children to become effective in their lives. Schools can go some way to supplement social and emotional learning.

Developing good social and emotional skills in children can promote more resilience and coping skills in children and young people as it can help them with strong feelings, develop support networks by helping them make friendships, help them resolve conflicts and develop empathy for others.

SEAL is a comprehensive, whole-school approach to promoting the social and emotional skills that underpin effective learning, positive behaviour, regular attendance, staff effectiveness and the emotional health and wellbeing of all who learn and work in schools.

For more information, see the SEAL on the Teachernet website (external link).


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Specific Concerns

Children may experience a range of concerns that cause professionals to be worried about their wellbeing:



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