Safeguarding Advice

Duchy of Lancaster Primary School understands the vital importance of safeguarding and child protection.

Safeguarding at Duchy of Lancaster




Keeping children safe and ensuring our systems, protocols and policies are robust is the number one priority at Duchy of Lancaster and across the Trinity Partnership. 

This means that we will be professionally curious about incidents we become aware of. This is part of our legal duty towards safeguarding children. The children of our school will always be at the centre of what we do and we will always act in best interests of the child/children. 

As part of safeguarding children we will discuss and explore incidents that children share with us or events that we are made aware of that could be a concern. In discussing these we may call you on the telephone, check-in with you after school or arrange a meeting. These discussions can be uncomfortable and we endeavour to approach these in a sensitive manner. We greatly appreciate your support and understanding with this should we need to discuss a concern with you.

Operation Encompass 

As a school and partnership we opt into Operation Encompass. This is a police and education early intervention partnership which aims to support children who may have been exposed to domestic abuse. The school Designated Safeguarding Lead will receive notifications of incidents of domestic abuse within the homes of children who are on our role. 

If you are worried about a child at our school or would like help and support please contact the school to arrange a telephone call or meeting with Mrs Julia Christou (DSL) or Mrs Kelly Cocksedge/ Miss Kelly Clucas (DDSL). 

The Norfolk Safeguarding Children Partnership (NSCP) offers some useful information, support and links to support parents and carers in safeguarding. Help and support for parents can carers can be found here. 


SAFEGUARDING AND CHILD PROTECTION STATEMENT

Under section 175 of the Education Act 2002 (as amended), *the Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014, the Non-Maintained Special Schools (England) Regulations 2015, and the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009 (as amended) to have arrangements in place to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.


We will endeavour to provide a safe and welcoming environment where children are respected and valued.


The school will therefore be alert to signs of abuse, neglect and exploitation and will follow the Norfolk Safeguarding Children Partnership Board’s procedures to ensure that children receive appropriate and effective support and protection. 


Parents/carers should know that the law requires all school staff to pass on information which gives rise to a concern about a child’s welfare, including risk from neglect, physical, emotional or sexual abuse and exploitation. Parents/carers should know that records of safeguarding concerns may be kept about their child.  They should be informed that school staff will seek, in general, to discuss any concerns with them including referrals to other agencies. 


Local procedures state that “Consent should always be sought from an adult with parental responsibility for the child/young person before passing information about them to Children’s Social Care, unless seeking consent would place the child at risk of significant harm or may lead to the loss of evidence for example destroying evidence of a crime or influencing a child about a disclosure made.”  This includes allowing them to share information without consent, if it is not possible to gain consent, if it cannot be reasonably expected that a professional gains consent, or if to gain consent would place a child at risk.


Where there is a need to share special category personal data, the Data Protection Act 2018 contains ‘safeguarding of children and individuals at risk’ as a processing condition that allows professionals to share information.


In accordance with legislation and local Information Sharing protocols, we will ensure that information is shared securely and sensitively.  Information will only be shared with other services where it is deemed necessary and proportionate to ensure that children and young people are safe and receive the right service. In all circumstances, the safety of the child will be the paramount concern.


Schools will contact Children’s Social Care when they have reasonable cause to suspect a child may be suffering or likely to suffer significant harm. Occasionally, concerns are passed on which are later shown to be unfounded.  Parents/carers will appreciate that the member of staff in the school with responsibility for child protection (known as the Designated Safeguarding Lead or Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead) was carrying out their responsibilities in accordance with the law and acting in the best interests of all children. 


Holding power


Under Section 3 (5) of the Children Act 1989, any person who has care of a child “may….do what is reasonable in all the circumstances of the case for the purpose of safeguarding promoting the child’s welfare”.  This means that on rare occasions, a school may need to “hold” a child in school whilst Social Care and the Police investigate any concerns further.


* The word ‘school’ is used throughout but this would include all educational settings e.g. Academies, Pupil Referral Units, Further Education establishments and Independent schools.