Safeguarding Policy

At MyFutureChoice we safeguard and promote the welfare of our children and young people through all aspects of their school life, through our teaching, our curriculum and through our relationships and pastoral support.

We believe effective safeguarding policies, procedures and practice should focus on the needs of the child.

The safeguarding policies, procedures and practice determined in this guidance are adhered to by all in our organisation.

‘The welfare of the child is paramount ’(Children Act 1989)
Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is defined:

Protecting children from maltreatment

Preventing the impairment of children’s mental and physical health or development ensuring that children grow up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care, and taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes.

Section 11 of the Children Act 2004, places duties to ensure our functions, are discharged having regard to the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.

At MyFutureChoice we adhere to S175 and S157 of the Education Act 2002 responsibilities to make arrangements to ensure that their functions are carried out with a view to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children.

At MyFutureChoice we believe effective safeguarding policies, procedures and practice should focus on the needs of the child. Too often failings in safeguarding are the result of losing sight of the needs and views of children or placing the needs of adults ahead of the needs of children.

The Equality Act 2010 makes it is unlawful to discriminate against children because of their protected characteristics. At MyFutureChoice we take positive action to support them and deal with disadvantages, such as adjustments for disabled children and specific support for children who are subjected to sexual violence or harassment.

Our approach is under pinned by the UNITED Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

At MyFutureChoice we put children’s best interests at the heart of everything we do.

Children are heard and listened to. Children have stable relationships with our staff and built on trust, and provision of consistent support based on the child’s needs.

We are alert and vigilant, we are aware that some children may not feel ready or know how to tell someone they are being abused.

Our policy is reviewed and updated on an annual basis and is in accordance with:

Working Together to Safeguard Children 2018 is statutory guidance issued by the DFE for all organisations working with children. We adhere to this guidance and also to policies, procedures and guidance of the schools we work with.

At MyFutureChoice our Designated Safeguarding Lead is Georgia Wilkinson. Georgia Wilkinson is our Senior Officer responsible for Safeguarding. 
She is supported in this by Tom Crosswell our Strategic Lead and Paul Fillis our Safeguarding Consultant.

Paul Fillis provides strategic oversight and safeguarding supervision at MyFutureChoice.
At MyFutureChoice all our directors are members of our Safeguarding Team.
At MyFutureChoice everyone is responsible for safeguarding.
At MyFutureChoice we take seriously our requirement that everyone understand our safeguarding responsibilities.

At MyFutureChoice our directors ensure our safeguarding procedures are effective:

At MyFutureChoice:

Working in partnership: we share information appropriately with staff and partner agencies to safeguard and promote the welfare of the child.

Our staff are vigilant and understand the importance of their position:

Where we are engaging with a child and their family, staff ensure that their functions are discharged having regard to the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. The focus on the child’s safety and welfare should not be lost in the wider work with the family.

When working together to meet the needs of our children and their families, all staff (whether working with children or adults within the family) have a duty to refer to our Designated Safeguarding Lead, and to the Designated Safeguarding Lead of the school they are working in, when they have concerns about a child’s welfare (and in particular when they suspect that a child is, or may be at risk, of suffering significant harm).

A referral and any subsequent action to safeguard and promote a child’s welfare will be undertaken in accordance with the schools safeguarding procedures and the Local Safeguarding Children Partnership policies and procedures. As part of the multi-agency process, we work in partnership with schools, social care and other agencies.

These procedures are consistent with the statutory guidance Working Together to Safeguard Children (2018).

At MyFutureChoice this process of accountability ensures the implementation of effective practice with regard to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of our children.

We have safeguarding as a standing item on meetings of our board of directors and our team meetings, staff meetings and planning meetings to ensure that any concerns can be raised and that procedures are followed as required.

At MyFutureChoice we ensure all staff, volunteers, and directors are trained in the use of our safeguarding procedures. Safeguarding updates are provided, and whole organisation safeguarding training is undertaken on an annual basis.

We ensure that referrals are made to children’s services on each occasion when there are concerns about a child’s welfare including that the child may, or is likely to, be suffering significant harm.

This safeguarding and child protection policy is be put into practice using all other MyFutureChoice policies, proceduresand guidance.

At MyFutureChoice there is a zero-tolerance approach to child on child  abuse.

Our staff understand the importance of challenging inappropriate behaviour between children. Our staff recognise that downplaying certain behaviours as “just banter” or “boys being boys” can lead to a culture of unacceptable behaviour, an unsafe environment for children and a culture that normalises abuse.

If staff have any concerns about child on child abuse, they should speak to our Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL).

At MyFutureChoice staff are alert and vigilant:

At MyFutureChoice:

At MyFutureChoice our e-safety policies and procedures  mitigate risk and we respond to concerns:

A curriculum vitae (CV) will only be accepted alongside a full application form and is not sufficient on its own.

At MyFutureChoice we will consider online searches as part of our due diligence checks on shortlisted candidates.

For further details see: MyFutureChoice Safer Recruitment Procedures 2022.

Allegations are made when an adult who works with children has:

If you have any concerns, please contact Georgia Wilkinson our Designated Safeguarding Lead or any member of our Safeguarding Team.

If you have concerns about our Designated Safeguarding Lead please contact Tom Crosswell, Director and Board-level member of staff who takes leadership responsibility for safeguarding arrangements.

At MyFutureChoice we have policies and processes in place to deal with low-level concerns and allegations that don’t meet the harm threshold.

At MyFutureChoice we have a clear procedure for confidentially sharing concerns. A low-level concern is any concern that an adult has acted in a way that:

At MyFutureChoice low level concerns about supply staff and contractors are shared with their employers, following consultation with the LADO.

At MyFutureChoice our DSL (and Safeguarding Team) records all low-level concerns. Records include the details of the concern, how the concern arose, and the actions taken.

Records are reviewed in safeguarding supervision so that patterns of concerning behaviour can be recognised and appropriate action can be taken.

At MyFutureChoice learning lessons applies to all cases, not just those which are concluded and found to be substantiated. This learning is discussed in safeguarding supervision and disseminated to staff as appropriate.

This policy was reviewed in August 2022 in accordance with legislation and statutory guidance Keeping Children Safe in Education 2022 and Working Together to Safeguard Children 2018.
Paul Fillis
Safeguarding Consultant