We co-operate with the published arrangements of the 3 local safeguarding partners.

Our governing board:

• Makes sure we have arrangements setting out clearly the process and principles for sharing information within our school, and with the 3 safeguarding partners and other organisations, agencies and practitioners as required
• Is prepared to supply specified information as requested by the 3 safeguarding partners
• Understands the local criteria for action and local protocol for assessment, and makes sure these are reflected in our school’s own policies and procedures

We:

• Contribute to multi-agency working in line with statutory guidance Working Together to Safeguarding Children
• Allow access to the school by children’s social care to conduct, or consider whether to conduct, statutory assessments under the Children Act 1989
• Inform the local authority of any pupil who fails to attend school regularly, or who has been absent without the school’s permission for 10 school days or more, at intervals agreed with the local authority

All staff:

• Are aware of the process for making referrals to children’s social care and for statutory assessments under the Children Act 1989, and the role they may play in such assessments, including:
  • When referring a child, the need to include any information they have on the child’s developmental needs, the capacity of the child’s parents or carers to meet those needs and any external factors that may be undermining their capacity to parent
  • Where they have concerns that a child may be a potential victim of modern slavery or human trafficking, the need to make a referral to the National Referral Mechanism as soon as possible
• If they have made a referral to children’s social care, follow up their concerns if they are not satisfied with the response, and escalate their concerns using local procedures if they remain dissatisfied
• Are proactive in sharing information as early as possible to help identify, assess and respond to risks or concerns about the safety and welfare of children, including information about any adults the child has contact with, which may affect their safety or welfare
• Are particularly alert to the importance of sharing information when a child moves from one local authority to another, due to the risk that knowledge pertinent to keeping a child safe could be lost
• Have due regard to the data protection principles which allow them to share personal information
• Are confident of the processing conditions which allow them to store and share information for safeguarding purposes
• Are aware that, if they need to share ‘special category personal data’, the DPA 2018 contains ‘safeguarding of children and individuals at risk’ as a processing condition that allows practitioners to share information
• When decisions are made to share or withhold information, record who has been given the information and why

Our DSL:

• Transfers child protection files as soon as possible to a child's new school/college where they leave the school (this is done securely and separately from the main pupil file, and they also obtain confirmation of receipt)
• Considers if it would be appropriate to share any information with the new school or college in advance of a child leaving, in addition to the child protection file (for example, information that would allow the new school or college to put safeguarding support in place for when the pupil arrives)