Safeguarding

Concerned about a child?Safeguarding Policy

Safeguarding

at Bloxwich Academy Secondary

Bloxwich Academy is committed to promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We fully recognise our responsibilities for safeguarding and child protection. Our policy and procedures apply to all staff, governors and those visiting the school.

  • Ensuring we practice safer recruitment in checking the suitability of staff and volunteers to work with children.
  • Raising awareness of child protection issues and working on the prevention of abuse, through the teaching and pastoral support offered to students.
  • Following procedures for identifying and reporting cases, or suspected cases of abuse.
  • Supporting students who are at risk or may have been abused.
  • Establishing a safe environment in which children can learn and develop.
  • Maintaining a ‘child-centred’ approach and always act in the best interests of the child/
The designated senior leader for Safeguarding at Bloxwich Secondary is Mrs M Lockley (DSL).
 
If there are any concerns that a pupil may be at risk of abuse or neglect, in almost all circumstances we will talk to our parents/carers about our concerns and we will also explain if we need to refer our concerns to outside agencies. We will inform parents/carers if we need to make a referral, but in some circumstances we may need to make the referral without consulting. We will only do this if we genuinely believe that this is the best way to protect a pupil and the fact that we did not have consent from a parent/carer to the referral will be recorded.

Safeguarding through the Curriculum

In addition to ensuring our safeguarding procedures and training are of the highest standard and that staff remain vigilant, the academy also recognises the importance of safeguarding our pupils through education and the curriculum.

PSHE

The academy’s Citizenship/PSHE programme is our main vehicle for delivering safeguarding topics. Examples include: British and World cultures; British values; sexual health and healthy relationships; drug/alcohol education; human rights; exploitation; extremism and peer on peer abuse. This curriculum time also covers health and wellbeing with a focus on healthy lifestyles, diet, sleep, personal hygiene and the importance of vaccinations. Online safety is delivered via fortnightly bite-sized sessions by form tutor time.

External Help

To assist with the teaching of these topics we regularly work with organisations such as: local authority CASH nurses, Street Teams, Loudmouth and Tapestry Theatre Groups. Pupils also have access to a counsellor who offers advice and guidance on keeping safe.

Raising Awareness

The key emphasis is on raising awareness so our pupils are informed about how to keep themselves self in a range of situations and, over time, develop a good understanding of the challenges they face growing up in a modern Britain.

Safeguarding Poster - BA 2024