Responding to safeguarding or child protection concerns

The designated Lead – Manager- Mrs Michelle Bowen, back-up designated lead – Deputy Manager – Mrs Heather Quinell, designated officer – Chair of Pre-School Committee- Mrs Suzanna Roberts.

Safeguarding roles

• All staff recognise and know how to respond to signs and symptoms that may indicate a child is suffering from or likely to be suffering from harm. They understand that they have a responsibility to act immediately by discussing their concerns with the designated lead or a named back-up designated lead.
• The manager and deputy are the designated lead and back-up designated lead, responsible for co-ordinating action taken by the setting to safeguard vulnerable children and adults.
• All concerns about the welfare of children in the setting should be reported to the designated lead or the back-up designated lead.
• The designated lead ensures that all educators are alert to the indicators of abuse and neglect and understand how to identify and respond to these.
• The setting should not operate without an identified designated lead at any time.
• The designated lead informs the designated officer about serious concerns as soon as they arise and agree the action to be taken, seeking further clarification if there are any doubts that the issue is safeguarding.
• If it is not possible to contact the designated officer, action to safeguard the child is taken first and the designated officer is informed later. If the designated officer is unavailable advice is sought from their line manager or equivalent.
• Issues which may require notifying to Ofsted are notified to the designated officer to make a decision regarding notification. The designated lead must remain up to date with Ofsted reporting and notification requirements.
• If there is an incident, which may require reporting to RIDDOR the designated officer immediately seeks guidance from the owners/directors/trustees. There continues to be a requirement that the designated officer follows legislative requirements in relation to reporting to RIDDOR. This is fully addressed in section 01 Health and Safety procedures.
• All settings follow procedures of their Local Safeguarding Partners (LSP) for safeguarding and any specific safeguarding procedures such as responding to radicalisation/extremism concerns. Procedures are followed for managing allegations against staff, as well as for responding to concerns and complaints raised about quality or practice issues, whistle-blowing and escalation.

Responding to marks or injuries observed

• If a member of staff observes or is informed by a parent/carer of a mark or injury to a child that happened at home or elsewhere, the member of staff makes a record of the information given to them by the parent/carer in the child’s personal file, which is signed by the parent/carer.
• The member of staff advises the designated lead as soon as possible if there are safeguarding concerns about the circumstance of the injury.
• If there are concerns about the circumstances or explanation given, by the parent/carer and/or child, the designated lead decides the course of action to be taken after reviewing 06.1a Child welfare and protection summary and completing 06.1b Safeguarding incident reporting form.
• If the mark or injury is noticed later in the day and the parent is not present, this is raised with the designated lead.
• If there are concerns about the nature of the injury, and it is unlikely to have occurred at the setting, the designated lead decides the course of action required and 06.1b Safeguarding incident reporting form is completed as above, taking into consideration any explanation given by the child.
• If there is a likelihood that the injury is recent and occurred at the setting, this is raised with the designated lead.
• If there is no cause for further concern, a record is made in the Accident Record, with a note that the circumstances of the injury are not known.
• If the injury is unlikely to have occurred at the setting, this is raised with the designated lead
• The parent/carer is advised at the earliest opportunity.
• If the parent believes that the injury was caused at the setting this is still recorded in the Accident

Record and an accurate record made of the discussion is made on the child’s personal file.

• Responding to the signs and symptoms of abuse
• Concerns about the welfare of a child are discussed with the designated lead without delay.
• A written record is made of the concern on 06.1b Safeguarding incident reporting form as soon as possible.
• Concerns that a child is in immediate danger or at risk of significant harm are responded to immediately and if a referral is necessary this is made on the same working day.

Responding to a disclosure by a child

When responding to a disclosure from a child, the aim is to get just enough information to take appropriate action.

• The educator listens carefully and calmly, allowing the child time to express what they want to say.
• Staff do not attempt to question the child but if they are not sure what the child said, or what they meant, they may prompt the child further by saying ‘tell me more about that’ or ‘show me again’.
• After the initial disclosure, staff speak immediately to the designated lead. They do not further question or attempt to interview a child.
• If a child shows visible signs of abuse such as bruising or injury to any part of the body and it is age appropriate to do so, the key person will ask the child how it happened.
• When recording a child’s disclosure on 06.1b Safeguarding incident reporting form, their exact words are used as well as the exact words with which the member of staff responded.
• If marks or injuries are observed, these are recorded on a body diagram.

Decision making (all categories of abuse)

• The designated lead makes a professional judgement about referring to other agencies, including Social Care using the Local Safeguarding Partnership (LSP) threshold document:
  • Level 1: Child’s needs are being met. Universal support.
  • Level 2: Universal Plus. Additional professional support is needed to meet child’s needs.
  • Level 3: Universal Partnership Plus. Targeted Early Help. Coordinated response needed to address multiple or complex problems.
  • Level 4: Specialist/Statutory intervention required. Children in acute need, likely to be experiencing, or at risk of experiencing significant harm.
• Staff are alert to indicators that a family may benefit from early help services and should discuss this with the designated lead, also completing 06.1b Safeguarding incident reporting form if they have not already done so.

Seeking consent from parents/carers to share information before making a referral for early help (Tier 2/3*)

Parents are made aware of the setting’s Privacy Notice which explains the circumstances under which information about their child will be shared with other agencies. When a referral for early help is necessary, the designated person must always seek consent from the child’s parents to share information with the relevant agency.

• If consent is sought and withheld and there are concerns that a child may become at risk of significant harm without early intervention, there may be sufficient grounds to over-ride a parental decision to withhold consent.
• If a parent withholds consent, this information is included on any referral that is made to the local authority. In these circumstances a parent should still be told that the referral is being made beforehand (unless to do so may place a child at risk of harm).

*Tier 2: Children with additional needs, who may be vulnerable and showing early signs of abuse and/or neglect; their needs are not clear, not known or not being met. Tier 3: Children with complex multiple needs, requiring specialist services in order to achieve or maintain a satisfactory level of health or development or to prevent significant impairment of their health and development and/or who are disabled.

Informing parents when making a child protection referral

In most circumstances consent will not be required to make a child protection referral, because even if consent is refused, there is still a professional duty to act upon concerns and make a referral. When a child protection referral has been made, the designated person contacts the parents (only if agreed with social care) to inform them that a referral has been made, indicating the concerns that have been raised, unless social care advises that the parent should not be contacted until such time as their investigation, or the police investigation, is concluded. Parents are not informed prior to making a referral if:

• there is a possibility that a child may be put at risk of harm by discussion with a parent/carer, or if a serious offence may have been committed, as it is important that any potential police investigation is not jeopardised
• there are potential concerns about sexual abuse, fabricated illness, FGM or forced marriage
• contacting the parent puts another person at risk; situations where one parent may be at risk of harm, e.g. abuse; situations where it has not been possible to contact parents to seek their consent may cause delay to the referral being made

The designated lead makes a professional judgment regarding whether consent (from a parent) should be sought before making a child protection referral as described above. They record their decision about informing or not informing parents along with an explanation for this decision. Advice will be sought from the appropriate children’s social work team if there is any doubt. Advice can also be sought from the designated officer.

Referring

• The designated lead or back-up follows their LSP procedures for making a referral.
• If the designated lead or their back-up is not on site, the most senior member of staff present takes responsibility for making the referral to social care.
• If a child is believed to be in immediate danger, or an incident occurs at the end of the session and staff are concerned about the child going home that day, then the Police and/or social care are contacted immediately.
• If the child is ‘safe’ because they are still in the setting, and there is time to do so, the senior member of staff contacts the setting’s designated officer for support.

Further recording

• Information is recorded using 06.1b Safeguarding incident reporting form, and a short summary entered on 06.1a Child welfare and protection summary. Discussion with parents and any further discussion with social care is recorded. If recording a conversation with parents that is significant, regarding the incident or a related issue, parents are asked to sign and date it a record of the conversation. It should be clearly recorded what action was taken, what the outcome was and any follow-up.
• If a referral was made, copies of all documents are kept and stored securely and confidentially (including copies in the child’s safeguarding file.
• Each member of staff/volunteer who has witnessed an incident or disclosure should also make a written statement on 06.1b Safeguarding incident reporting form, as above.
• The referral is recorded on 06.1a Child welfare and protection summary.
• Follow up phone calls to or from social care are recorded in the child’s file; with date, time, the name of the social care worker and what was said.
• Safeguarding records are kept up to date and made available for confidential access by the designated officer to allow continuity of support during closures or holiday periods.

Reporting a serious child protection incident using 06.1c Confidential safeguarding incident report form

• • The designated lead is responsible for reporting to the designated officer and seeking advice if required prior to making a referral as described above.
• • For child protection concerns at Tier 3 and 4** it will be necessary for the designated lead to complete 06.1c Confidential safeguarding incident report form and send it to the designated officer.
• • Further briefings are sent to the designated officer when updates are received until the issue is concluded.

** Tier 3: Children with complex multiple needs, requiring specialist services in order to achieve or maintain a satisfactory level of health or development or to prevent significant impairment of their health and development and/or who are disabled. Tier 4: Children in acute need, who are suffering or are likely to suffer significant harm.

Professional disagreement/escalation process

• If an educator disagrees with a decision made by the designated lead not to make a referral to social care they must initially discuss and try to resolve it with them.
• If the disagreement cannot be resolved with the designated lead and the educator continues to feel a safeguarding referral is required then they discuss this with the designated officer.
• If issues cannot be resolved the whistle-blowing policy should be used, as set out below.
• Supervision sessions are also used to discuss concerns but this must not delay making safeguarding referrals.

Whistleblowing

The whistle blowing procedure must be followed in the first instance if:

• a criminal offence has been committed, is being committed or is likely to be committed
• a person has failed, is failing or is likely to fail to comply with any legal obligation to which he or she is subject. This includes non-compliance with policies and procedures, breaches of EYFS and/or registration requirements
• a miscarriage of justice has occurred, is occurring or is likely to occur
• the health and safety of any individual has been, is being or is likely to be endangered
• the working environment has been, is being or is likely to be damaged;
• that information tending to show any matter falling within any one of the preceding clauses has been, is being or is likely to be deliberately concealed

There are 3 stages to raising concerns as follows:

• If staff wish to raise or discuss any issues which might fall into the above categories, they should normally raise this issue with their manager/Designated lead.
• Staff who are unable to raise the issue with their manager/Designated lead should raise the issue with their line manager’s manager/Designated Officer.
• If staff are still concerned after the investigation, or the matter is so serious that they cannot discuss it with a line manager, they should raise the matter with the Chair of Pre-School Committee.

Ultimately, if an issue cannot be resolved and the member of staff believes a child remains at risk because the setting or the local authority have not responded appropriately, the NSPCC have introduced a whistle-blowing helpline 0800 028 0285 for professionals who believe that:

• their own or another employer will cover up the concern
• they will be treated unfairly by their own employer for complaining
• if they have already told their own employer and they have not responded

Female genital mutilation (FGM)

Educators should be alert to symptoms that would indicate that FGM has occurred, or may be about to occur, and take appropriate safeguarding action. Designated persons should contact the police immediately as well as refer to children’s services local authority social work if they believe that FGM may be about to occur.

It is illegal to undertake FGM or to assist anyone to enable them to practice FGM under the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003, it is an offence for a UK national or permanent UK resident to perform FGM in the UK or overseas. The practice is medically unnecessary and poses serious health risks to girls. FGM is mostly carried out on girls between the ages of 0-15, statistics indicate that in half of countries who practise FGM girls were cut before the age of 5. LSCB guidance must be followed in relation to FGM, and the designated person is informed regarding specific risks relating to the culture and ethnicity of children who may be attending their setting and shares this knowledge with staff.

Symptoms of FGM in very young girls may include difficulty walking, sitting or standing; painful urination and/or urinary tract infection; urinary retention; evidence of surgery; changes to nappy changing or toileting routines; injury to adjacent tissues; spends longer than normal in the bathroom or toilet; unusual and /or changed behaviour after an absence from the setting (including increased anxiety around adults or unwillingness to talk about home experiences or family holidays); parents are reluctant to allow child to undergo normal medical examinations; if an older sibling has undergone the procedure a younger sibling may be at risk; discussion about plans for an extended family holiday

Further guidance

NSPCC 24-hour FGM helpline: 0800 028 3550 or email fgmhelp@nspcc.org.uk
Government help and advice: www.gov.uk/female-genital-mutilation
Children and young people vulnerable to extremism or radicalisation
Early years settings, schools and local authorities have a duty to identify and respond appropriately to concerns of any child or adult at risk of being drawn into terrorism. LSP’s have procedures which cover how professionals should respond to concerns that children or young people may be at risk of being influenced by or being made vulnerable by the risks of extremism.
There are potential safeguarding implications for children and young people who have close or extended family or friendship networks linked to involvement in extremism or terrorism.

The designated Lead is required to familiarise themselves with LSP procedures, as well as online guidance including:

• Channel Duty guidance: Protecting people vulnerable to being drawn into terrorism www.gov.uk/government/publications/channel-and-prevent-multi-agency-panel-pmap-guidance
• Prevent Strategy (HMG 2011) www.gov.uk/government/publications/prevent-strategy-2011
• The prevent duty: for schools and childcare providers www.gov.uk/government/publications/protecting-children-from-radicalisation-the-prevent-duty
• The designated Lead should follow LSP guidance in relation to how to respond to concerns regarding extremism and ensure that staff know how to identify and raise any concerns in relation to this with them.
• The designated Lead must know how to refer concerns about risks of extremism/radicalisation to their LSP safeguarding team or the Channel panel, as appropriate.
• The designated Lead should also ensure that they and all other staff working with children and young people understand how to recognise that someone may be at risk of violent extremism.
• The designated Lead also ensures that all staff complete The Prevent Duty in an Early Years Environment and Understanding Children’s Rights and Equality and Inclusion in Early Years Settings online EduCare courses.
• The designated person should understand the perceived terrorism risks in relation to the area that they deliver services in.

Helpful Numbers

Children’s services – hants direct 03305551384
Emergency services out of hours – 0300 5551373
Professional line – 0300 5551381
LADO – 01962876364

THIS POLICY WAS ADOPTED AT A NORTHERN PRE-SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETING

HELD ON:

Signed by:

Chair of Committee

REVIEWED ON:

Policies & Procedures for the EYFS 2021 (Early Years Alliance 2022)