SAFEGUARDING CHILDREN POLICY

(Child Protection)

The schools Designated Child Protection Officer is: Mufti Mustafa

Ethos Statement:

· Children and young people are part of our community, entrusted upon us by Allah. It is therefore our duty, our responsibility and our privilege to nurture them in learning moral values and in obedience to Allah

· We aim to educate our children to participate effectively and constructively within society from within a spiritual, Quranic and Prophetic perspective through the means of example, dialogue and positive communication

Policy Statement:

Our Commitment: -

Children and young people are part of our community, entrusted upon us by Allah. It is therefore our duty, our responsibility and our privilege to nurture them in learning moral values and in obedience to Allah.

· Darul Uloom takes very seriously its duty towards all its pupils who have been entrusted to its care and seek to provide a school where all pupils are safe, secure, valued, respected, and listened to.

· Darul Uloom understands that our work in safeguarding and protecting children must always have regard for the national guidance issued by the Secretary of State and should be in line with local guidance and procedures.

· We understand the term safeguarding to mean that we will take all reasonable measures to ensure that the risk of harm to our pupil’s welfare is minimised. As staff and leaders of this school we commit ourselves to the nurturing, protection and safekeeping of all pupils in our care.

· It is the responsibility of all members of staff at Darul Uloom to prevent the physical, sexual or emotional abuse and/or neglect of our pupils and report any abuse in line with school procedures, which are detailed in this document.

· Our Safeguarding Children policy is written, with due regards to the national guidance “Safeguarding Children and Safer Recruitment in Education”.

· Our school procedures for safeguarding children will always be compliant with the Bromley Safeguarding Children Board.

· Our procedures will be followed by all staff working with or on behalf of the school.

· Our updated policy was adopted on 16/10/11 and its effectiveness and operational impact will be reviewed for any deficiencies or weaknesses yearly by the trustees of Darul Uloom, the Principal, Child Protection Officer and also the Head of Care.

· This policy is available to all parents as hard copy on request.

· We acknowledge our responsibility to care for and support all our staff in dealing with any Safeguarding issues. Therefore we take responsibility to send relevant personnel on a Basic and Level 3 Safeguarding Children course. Safeguarding Children training is now inclusive of all training days and induction of all new staff.

Transparency

Darul Uloom London prides itself on its respect and mutual tolerance. Parents/guardians have an important role in supporting our school. We hope that parents/guardians will always feel able to take up any issues or worries that they may have with the school. We will thoroughly investigate all allegations and concerns.

Safer Employment Practices

Darul Uloom will always follow safer recruitment procedures so that we can be confident that all adults working in our school are safe to do so. All members of the teaching and non-teaching staff at the school, including supply staff are subject to an enhanced CRB checks before they begin work.

Roles and Responsibilities

The Trustees ensure that;

· The school has a Safeguarding Children policy which is in accordance with Bromley Safeguarding Children Board, Safeguarding Children and Safer Recruitment in Educations.

· The policy is reviewed annually as required.

· The school has procedures for dealing with allegations of abuse against staff and supply staff that complies with guidance from the Bromley Safeguarding Children Board.

· The Principal is designated to take lead responsibility for ‘in-house’ Safeguarding Children training.

· All staff undertakes appropriate Safeguarding of Children training.

· Any deficiencies or weakness in the Safeguarding Children arrangements are remedied immediately.

· The Principal is nominated to be responsible for liaising with the appropriate authorities.

Child Protection Officer

The Principal is our Child Protection Officer. He has attended a Level 3 Safeguarding Children for Designated Persons Course. He is fully trained for the demands of this role in Safeguarding Children. The Principal has also attended training in the following areas: Safeguarding and recruitment, First Aid, and Fire.

Responsibilities

Dealing with the Safeguarding of Children issues in accordance with this policy.
Briefing the school staff on the relevant contents of the guidance and procedures the school follows as specified in this policy - including the briefing of new staff as part of their induction at the school.
Ensuring that appropriate training and support are given to all staff. A number of our staff has also received Level 3 Safeguarding Children training.
Developing effective working relationships with other agencies and services.
Sufficient resources and time are allocated to enable the designated person and other staff to discharge their responsibilities.
Receiving reports of alleged or suspected abuse within the school, or reported by a pupil relating to incidents at home and/or outside the school.
Liaising with Bromley Safeguarding Children Board.
Ensuring that accurate records relating to individuals are kept in a secure place and marked "Strictly Confidential"
Ensuring the school effectively monitors, if any, children who have been identified as "at risk"
Providing guidance to parents, children and staff about obtaining suitable help.

Induction and Training

Every new member of staff, including part-timers and temporary working in Boarding and other teaching and non teaching staff will receive Basic training every three years on their responsibilities in being alert to the signs of abuse and bullying and on the procedures for recording and referring any concerns to the Child Protection Officer. Safeguarding Children training is also given to Trustees at Level 3 every 2 years. Everyone attends refresher training at least every three years. .

Interaction with Pupils: Code of Conduct for Staff

New members of staff, Trustees and supply staff are given copies of the Darul Uloom’s Staff handbook. Discussion of the procedures set out in our staff handbook forms a vital part of our induction procedures. It provides guidance for teachers and other members of staff, to ensure that their behaviour and actions do not place pupils or themselves at risk of harm or of allegations of harm to a pupil. It also provides guidance for staff when faced with handling any issue relating to child abuse.

The staff handbook is also reviewed and updated as required. This code also contains guidance in the event that a child, a member of staff or a parent has reason for concern about a member of staff.

Raising Awareness with Pupils

Darul Uloom prides itself on its culture of open and effective communication between staff and pupils, and on its excellent pastoral support structures. We prepare all of our pupils to make reasoned, informed choices, judgements and decisions.

Time is allocated in Anjuman (Saturday evenings) for discussion around Safeguarding Children issues and developing pupils with the confidence which they require to recognise abuse and to stay safe. This includes advice on how to deal with abuse by one or more pupils against another pupil.

Assemblies and RE are used to promote tolerance, mutual respect and understanding. We use opportunities, such as the annual National Anti-Bullying week and the annual Safer Internet Day to teach about the unacceptability of bullying and abusive behaviour and to promote the safe use of the internet and mobile phones, inside and outside of school

All pupils know that there are staff members and senior students to whom they can turn to if they are worried.

All pupils have access to a telephone enabling them to call for support in private
Two independent listeners
Information display board with relevant numbers for support

Bullying

Bullying, harassment and victimisation and discrimination will not be tolerated. We treat all our pupils, parents and staff fairly and with consideration and we expect them to reciprocate towards each other, the staff and the school. Any kind of bullying is unacceptable.

See our Anti Bullying Policy for more information.

WHAT IS CHILD ABUSE?

"Child abuse is the term used when an adult harms a child or a young person under the age of 18 .Child abuse can take four forms, all of which can cause long term damage to a child: physical abuse, emotional abuse, neglect and child sexual abuse. Bullying and domestic violence are also forms of child abuse.”

A child may be experiencing abuse if he:

Frequently is dirty, hungry or inadequately dressed
Left in unsafe situations, or without medical attention
Constantly "put down," insulted, sworn at or humiliated
Seems afraid of parents or carers
Severely bruised or injured
Displays sexual behaviour which doesn't seem appropriate for their age
Growing up in a home where there is domestic violence

These examples do not necessarily cover every aspect of child abuse.

SIGNS

Some of the signs and behaviours which may indicate that a child is being abused:

· repeated minor injuries

· children who are dirty, smelly, poorly clothed or who appear underfed

· children who have lingering illnesses which are not attended to, deterioration in school work, or significant changes in behaviour, aggressive behaviour, severe tantrums

· an air of 'detachment' or 'don't care' attitude

· overly compliant behaviour

· a 'watchful attitude'

· does not trust adults, particularly those who are close

· 'tummy pains' with no medical reason

· eating problems, including over-eating, loss of appetite

· disturbed sleep, nightmares, bed wetting

· running away from home, suicide attempts

· self inflicted wounds

· reverting to younger behaviour

· depression, withdrawal

· Relationships between child and adults which are secretive and exclude others.

These signs are not evidence themselves; but may be a warning, particularly if a child exhibits several of them or a pattern emerges. It is important to remember that there may be other explanations for a child showing such signs. Abuse is not easy to diagnose, even for experts.

There are four main forms of child abuse:

Physical abuse:

Displeasure shown by physical assault
Loss of temper or control leading to assault
Restraint that leads to bruising or injury
Idiosyncratic punishments that cause injury
Bullying that leads to physical assault
Over-chastisement/excessive discipline
Corporal punishment causing actual bodily harm

Emotional Abuse:

This is where children are harmed by lack of love and affection, or threats, verbal attacks, taunting or shouting. Refusing or failing to give adequately love and affection is a case of emotional neglect.

Emotional abuse includes:

Terrorising, teasing, tormenting a child
Withdrawing/withholding attention, affection, emotional care
Persistently blaming, rejecting and isolating a child
Derogatory remarks about a person's race, gender, physical characteristics, names and academic or sporting abilities or lack of ability
Breaking confidentiality/using pupils' problems as gossip or humour
Systematically denying a child privacy or access to needed emotional support
Ascribing nicknames that are offensive or derogatory and unwanted by the child
Shunning, rubbishing or publicising concerns of the child
Persistently ignoring the child.

Sexual Abuse

This may be by having sexual intercourse or anal intercourse, engaging with the child in fondling, masturbation or oral sex and includes encouraging children to watch sexually explicit behaviour or pornographic material including videos.

Sexual abuse includes:

Genital and sexual contact between a child and an adult/another person
Genital exposure
Exposing children to pornographic materials
Any act where the child is the object of another's sexual gratification

Note; It is well recognised that children find it hard to tell, and that adults find it hard to hear and believe allegations of sexual abuse.

Neglect

Neglect is where parents (or others) fail to meet the basic essential needs of the children, like adequate food, clothes, warmth and medical care. Leaving young children alone and unsupervised is an example of neglect.

Neglect includes:

Children who are left alone inappropriately
Children who are abandoned
Children who are inappropriately supervised
Children who are left with inappropriate carers
Children who are punitively or carelessly deprived of food
Children from whom necessary medical attention is withheld or omitted.

Any member of staff or volunteer, who learns that a child has been physically or sexually assaulted, should immediately inform the designated Child Protection Officer.

Safer Practice

In order to ensure that our staff remain safe and aware of any behaviour that should be avoided to ensure the prevention of risk of allegation they must;

· Be responsible for their own actions and behaviour and should avoid and conduct which would lead any reasonable person to question their motivation and intentions;

· Work in an open and transparent way.

· Take advice from school management over any incident which may give rise to concern.

· Record any incidents or decisions made.

· Apply the same professional standards regardless.

· Be aware that breaches of the law and other professional guidelines could result in criminal or disciplinary action being taken against them.

Dealing with abuse against another pupil;

The pupil needs to:

· Be aware of the kind of behaviour towards them that is not acceptable.

· Know how they can keep themselves safe.

· Know that there is a designated member of staff who is responsible for Safeguarding Children.

· Know that there are many trusted people to whom they can talk.

· Know that they will be listened to and heard.

· Know what steps can be taken to keep them safe.

Physical Restraint

Any physical restraint is only permissible when a child is in imminent danger of inflicting an injury on herself or on another, and then only as a last resort, when all efforts to diffuse the situation have failed. Another member of staff should, if possible, be present to act as a witness. All incidents of the use of physical restraint should be recorded in writing and reported immediately to the Child Protection Officer or in his absence the Head of Care who will decide what to do next.

Confidentiality

Confidentiality is covered by Data Protection Act and all records of confidential or personal nature are kept securely with the Principal’s office.

Record Keeping and Monitoring

Record keeping is essential for the monitoring of pupils and is a good safeguarding practice. Safeguarding Children records are kept securely and are separate from progress and administration records.

Actions to be taken to ensure that children are safe at school

All staff has a duty to recognise concerns and abuse. Therefore all concerns regarding the welfare of students will be recorded and discussed with the designated Child Protection officer. In his absence all concerns should be raised with the Head of Care who is also equally qualified in level 3 Safeguarding of Children.

Staff will immediately report to the Child Protection Officer if there is:

· Any suspicion that a child is injured marked or bruised in any way which is not readily attributed to the normal knocks or scrapes received in play.

· Any explanation which appears suspicious.

· Any concerns that a child may be suffering from inadequate care, ill treatment or emotional maltreatment.

· Any behaviour which give rise to suspicions that a child may have suffered harm (e.g. worrying drawings or play).

· Any hint or disclosure of abuse from any person.

· Any concerns that a child is presenting signs or symptoms of abuse or neglect.

· Any significant changes in a child’s presentation, including non-attendance.

Considerations

The designated Child Protection officer will consider the following:

· Any urgent medical needs of the child.

· Making an enquiry to the Child Protection register.

· Discussing the matter with other agencies involved with the family.

· Consulting with appropriate persons e.g., Social Services, Children & Young people’s Services

Then Decide

· Wherever possible, to talk to parents (unless to do so may place a child at risk of significant harm, impede any police investigation and/or place a member of staff at risk).

· Whether to make a Child Protection referral to Social Services because a child is suffering or is likely to suffer significant harm and if this needs to be undertaken immediately

· Not to make a referral at this stage.

· If further monitoring is necessary.

· If it would be appropriate to undertaken an assessment and/ or make a referral for other services.

NOTE: All information and action taken, including the decision made will be fully documented and all referrals to Social Services will be accompanied by a standard referral form.

Action following a Child Protection referral

The designated Child Protection officer will:

· Make a regular contact with the Safeguarding Officer in Bromley Council

· Wherever possible, contribute to the strategy discussion.

· If the child or children are placed on the Child Protection Register, contribute to the Safeguarding Children Plan and attend Board of trustee meetings and Review the Safeguarding of Children.

· Where there is disagreement with a decision made, discuss this with the Education Safeguarding and Safeguarding Children Manager

· Where a child at risk has moved to another school, the Child Protection Officer will forward the details of this change to the Safeguarding Officer at Bromley Safeguarding Children Board and other relevant stakeholders.

Allegation Concerning a Member of Staff

Allegations that a member of staff has abused a pupil or pupils either inside the school premises or during a school trip or visit could be made if the member of staff has:

· Behaved in a way that has harmed a child or may have harmed a child.

· Possibly committed a criminal offence against or related to child.

· Behaved towards a child in a way that indicates that he is unsuitable to work with the children.

Initial Action once allegation made against member of staff

· Whoever receives the allegation, or witness an event will immediately inform the Principal and make a record of the event.

· The principal will take steps, where necessary, to secure the immediate safety of children.

· If the allegation is made against the Principal, then the matter will be reported to the designated trustee who will proceed further as Head of the school.

· The member of staff will not be approached at this stage unless it is necessary to ensure the immediate safety of children

· The principal may need to clarify any information regarding the allegation; however no person will be interviewed at this stage.

· The principal will consult the senior Education Welfare Officer/ Safeguarding in order to determine if it is appropriate for the allegation to be dealt with by school or if there needs to be a referral to Social Services and or police for further investigation.

· Consideration will be given throughout to the staff and the information needs of pupils, parents and staff.

· The principal will inform the board of Trustees of any allegation.

· If there is an allegation, the Child Protection Officer will contact the Safeguarding Officer in the Bromley Safeguarding Children Board within 24hours of the allegation. If the allegation is about a member of staff, Darul Uloom will take advice from the social services and then the Child Protection Officer/Principal will contact the parents. Ofsted will also be notified within 14 days of the allegation against a member of staff.

· The independent Safeguarding Authority will be notified within one month of leaving the school of any person whose services are no longer used because they are considered unsuitable to work with pupils.

Next review date 17 September 2012