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St Declans
N.S.
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Child Protection Policy for St
Declans N.S. {Sept
2013} {Please read carefully} Organisational
Implications School
procedures already in place and new procedures being put in place will be
examined with reference to the Children
First Guidelines {2011} and the Child Protection
Procedures for Primary and Post Primary Schools {2013}. Any Child
Protection issues that may arise will be addressed. The following
areas have been addressed in this review: ·
Accidents ·
Attendance ·
Behaviour ·
Bullying ·
Transportation ·
Communication ·
Induction of staff ·
Induction of pupils ·
Record keeping ·
Supervision ·
Swimming
·
Visitors Accidents Under our
Health and Safety Statement we try to ensure the safety of children, but
realise that accidents will happen. Accidents which are considered serious
will be noted in our First Aid and or Incident Books and will be addressed as
deemed necessary. Attendance School
attendance is governed by the Education Act 2000. With regards to child
protection we will pay particular attention to trends in non
attendance in accordance with the NEWB procedures.. Behaviour It is the aim
of our school to encourage co-operative learning and play at all times. Inappropriate behaviour will be addressed
under our Code of Behaviour. If an incident arises which is consider to be of
a sexual nature, the DLP should be notified. Bullying Bullying behaviour
will be addressed under our Anti-Bullying policy. If the behaviour involved
is of a sexual nature or regarded as being abusive then the matter will be
referred to the DLP. Transportation No person will
be permitted to carry a child in his/her car at any time in his/her capacity
as an employee of St Declans NS. Communication Every effort
should be made to facilitate good pupil/staff and parent/teacher
communication. The SPHE/Oral Language/RE programmes allow for open
pupil-teacher communication, which is hoped will aid the pupil-teacher
relationship. Staff communicating with pupils on a one to one basis should
always do so in a safe environment. Parents are invited to make an
appointment if they wish to discuss any issues with a member of staff. Induction of Staff The DLP will make a copy of
Children’s First {2011} and a copy of the Child Protection Procedures for
Primary and Post Primary Schools available to all staff. A pack containing 1. Circular 65/2011regading Child Protection 2. A copy of the list of Responsibilities of all school personnel {as per
Children’s First} 3. Monitoring page and guidelines 4. Body template page to note any signs of injury 5. Definition and recognition of Child abuse {as per Children’s First} 6. Signs and symptoms of child abuse {as per Child Protection Procedures
Book} 7. Organisational and Curricular Implications …will be presented to all staff members before the
end of June 2013. All teachers
are expected to teach the designated curricular areas for their class. All new staff
members will be provided with the above information prior to commencement of
employment. All temporary and substitute staff will be provided with the same
information pack. The DLP is
responsible for informing new teachers of personnel to be contacted regarding
record keeping. Induction of Parents and Pupils The following
policies will become available to parents through our school web site. 1. Child Protection Policy 2. Code of Behaviour Policy 3. Anti Bullying Policy 4. Attendance Policy Parents are
expected to familiarize themselves with the guidelines as stated in these
policies and to comply with them. Hard copies will be available from the
office. Some parents may need to translate these policies into their own
language. Record Keeping The following
records are required for each pupil attending St Declans
School 1.
Roll Book – attendance 2.
School Reports 3.
Absence notes 4.
Standardized Test Results It is the responsibility of the teacher to update
these as necessary and to ensure their safe keeping. Additional educational files such as
psychological reports will be sent directly to the Principal who will make
them available to the class teacher and support teachers as required. Further
information regarding any pupil may be recorded by the teacher and stored in
the class folder. Information which is considered sensitive will be reported
to the DLP or Deputy DLP who will record it for safe keeping and will be
shared on a need to know basis. Storage of records will be dealt with under our
record keeping policy. New pupils joining the school during the year
will be expected to hand previous school reports and standardised test
results prior to or on enrolment. Supervision The school’s supervision
procedures will be followed by all staff to ensure that there is adequate
supervision of children at all breaks. The class teacher/supervising teacher
have primary responsibility for the whereabouts of all pupils in his/her
care. Pupils are to remain in the yard during break times unless directed
otherwise by the teacher. Swimming Children will
be brought by bus to and from the swimming pool. All adults will act in ‘loco
parentis’ and as such will act as prudent parents in helping children to return
to school as comfortably and as safely as possible. Visitors Every effort
will be made to ensure the security of the school building during school
hours. All exit doors should be kept closed at all times. All reasonable
efforts will be made by teachers on playground duty to be aware of visitors
entering the school playground and may ascertain their intentions. In
general, all visitors will be directed to the front door where access can be
gained by ringing the bell. Visitors
{including parents, deliveries etc} are requested
to report to the secretary’s office before proceeding through the building. Curriculum
Implications Introduction
In
St Declans NS all children will be cherished and in
fulfilling the general aims of the Primary Curriculum we will ·
Enable the child to live a full life as a child
and to realise his or her potential ·
Enable the child to develop as a social being through
living and co-operating with others and so contribute to the good of society ·
Prepare the child for further education and
lifelong learning. In
endeavouring to realise these aims we will create a positive school climate
which is open, inclusive, respectful, fair, democratic and tolerant and which
seeks to support the holistic development of all children and all adults
working with our children. The strategies we will use to create this
environment are detailed in our SPHE Plan and will involve: ·
Creating a health-promoting and safe physical
environment ·
Enhancing self-esteem ·
Fostering respect for diversity ·
Building effective communication within the
school ·
Developing appropriate home-school communication ·
Catering for individual needs where possible ·
Developing democratic process ·
Fostering inclusive and respectful language. The Following programmes
will be used in our school to enable the aims of the Child Protection Policy
to be fulfilled:
Other programmes which are available in
the school are The Walk Tall programme, NWHB Materials, Prim Ed Anti Bullying
Materials, Be Safe Be Seen and the First Steps Health Programme. We strive to
ensure that our school will be physically and emotionally safe and we will
deliver the curricular content of our SPHE programme with a view to giving
our children the protective skills of self-esteem and assertiveness. The
Circle Time and Bubble Time methodologies will be used on a whole school
basis. Co-operative interpersonal skills can be developed through working in
pairs and working in groups. Older children can be encouraged to work
positively and skills in negotiation, building consensus and managing
conflict can be developed. Success
Criteria We will evaluate
the success of this policy using the following criteria:
Timeframe
for Implementation This policy is currently in practice and has been
ratified by the BOM. Timeframe
for Review At the first staff
meeting of every year the DLP will remind all teachers of the pack outlining
the Child protection procedures for the school. Packs will be given to those
staff members who require them. A review will be
conducted based on the criteria above, following any and all incidents when
the guidelines are used. Responsibility
for Review ·
DLP in conjunction with all staff members. ·
The BOM will review this policy annually. Ratification
and Communication This policy was ratified by the
Board of Management on Apr 9th 2013. It is our intention to make
this policy available on our school website. Hard copies will also available
in the office. At the beginning of each new year
parents will be informed about the availability of this policy. |
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