Safeguarding at The Emmbrook School

“The Emmbrook School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of young people”

As a school we have a team safeguarding email that is accessible by all: [email protected]

Mrs Ridsdale Message:

A key aspect of my role in school is being the designated safeguarding lead. This includes creating a culture where all members of staff at the Emmbrook School are committed to ensuring our students are safe and are promoting and supporting the welfare of all of our students. Alongside myself we have a specific safeguarding team who support in ensuring this happens day to day. All staff receive specific training at the start of the academic year and then this is supported weekly with key safeguarding topics or areas are being shared. This ensures are staff are fully equipped with the knowledge and skills to be able to identify concerns and have robust process and systems in place to support us to provide support for students where needed. We utilise both internal and external resources, strategies and interventions to implement the right support which will in turn positively impact our student’s welfare and well-being.

Just to share some examples of what we do to promote and support the safeguarding, welfare and positive well-being of our students include;

• Proactive work with primary school to ensure we have a clear and strong understanding of any needs of our students joining us in September
• Excellent and highly dedicated Safeguarding, Pastoral, Inclusion, and Behaviour Team who ensure every student receives the personalised support required at any point during their educational experience at the Emmbrook School
• SMHL and MHFA available on school site
• Small group/1:1 intervention in our student support unit
• The Lounge – which is available to all of our new joiners to ensure they have a safe space to access and have the opportunity to talk about any worries they have and make new friends whilst there
• External use of School Nurse/School Counsellor

It is important to add we continually reflect and review what we do and also identify what we can be doing more of to ensure we provide outstanding provisions to support all of our students.

Safeguarding is everybody’s responsibility and we are committed as a school to ensure we provide a school environment where all of our students feel safe and happy to enable them to thrive and flourish during their 7-year educational journey at The Emmbrook School.

here4you Launch -From September 2022

To enable us to continue to create and embed a culture of safeguarding where all members of our community feel safe and comfortable to report any concerns, we will be launching our new initiative:

Here4you

There is a reporting system through email, [email protected], that allows our students to contact the safeguarding team directly.  We recognise that some students find it easier to discuss through an electronic format primarily and then a face to face discussions can then be arranged through this communication whether that be with a member of the school staff, a peer mentor or an external organisation.

 

IF YOU HAVE A CONCERN ABOUT YOUR CHILD OR SOMEBODY ELSE IN THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY – WHAT TO DO?

If you have concerns about your child or somebody in the school community please do not hesitate to contact a member of the safeguarding team via main reception (01189784406) or on the automated email links above. As a school, we have a team safeguarding email that is accessible by all which is listed below:

[email protected]

If you wish, you can telephone Wokingham Children’s Services (0118 9088002) for advice without identifying the child.

 

IF WE HAVE A CONCERN ABOUT YOUR CHILD – WHAT WE DO?

If we are concerned that your child may be at risk of abuse or neglect, we must follow the procedures in our safeguarding policy. You can look at the policy on the school website. The procedures have been written to protect all students. They comply with our statutory responsibilities and are designed to support students, families and staff. The procedures are based on the principle that the welfare of the child is the most important consideration.

In almost all circumstances, we will talk to you about our concerns, and we will also tell you if we feel we must refer our concerns to children’s social care. We will ask your consent to make a referral, but in some circumstances, we may need to make the referral against your wishes. We will only do this if we genuinely believe that this is the best way to protect your child, and the fact that you did not consent to the referral will be recorded.

Child protection is a very sensitive issue, and it raises many questions as well as a range of strong emotions. We will do everything we can to support our students, and you can be assured that any action we take will be in the best interests of your child.

Policies and Documents                                                                           

Key staff: