Safeguarding

Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is defined in guidance from Keeping Children Safe in Education (September 2020) as:

Protecting children from maltreatment
Preventing 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
Taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes

The full guidance can be found here

Safeguarding children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) is more complex than for the mainstream population. At Hedgewood we are aware of these additional challenges and ensure that all our staff receive regular safeguarding training and updates to provide them with relevant and current skills and knowledge to safeguard children effectively.

Safeguarding and Child Protection

At Hedgewood school, we put the best interests of the child at the heart of a child centered and coordinated approach to safeguarding.

Our commitment to safeguarding and the protection of children is demonstrated by:

· ensuring that there is a strong safeguarding culture within Hedgewood School

· ensuring that all necessary internal and inter-agency child protection procedures are in place as required

· being committed to identifying children and families who would benefit from Early Help

· giving all our staff training and regular updates to ensure best practice

· understanding our school’s responsibilities in the event of a concern about the conduct of a member of staff.

Our Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy can be found on our School Policies & Protocols page https://hedgewood.org/our-school/school-policies-protocols/

Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) Ayo Akinnola (Family Services Manager)

Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads John Goddard (Headteacher)

Diane Owens (Deputy Headteacher)

Senior Staff in DSL Team Pearl Greenwald (Assistant Headteacher) – also Designated Teacher for Looked After Children.

Bryony Smith (Assistant Headteacher)

Janet Pipe (Training and Outreach Manager)

Eleanor Penklis (Teacher at Hedgewood satellite provision at Deanesfield Primary School)

Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) Rob Wratten 01895 250975

Chair of Governors Michelle Doherty

Operation Encompass

We are part of a joint agency project with Hillingdon Council and the Metropolitan Police called Operation Encompass, to support our pupils and their families who have experienced a domestic incident.

Operation Encompass will ensure that our Designated Safeguarding Lead is informed of the incident, so that we can offer discrete support for you and your child. We aim to provide a secure and caring environment to help reduce the broader effects of domestic abuse.

Our Operation Encompass Lead, Ayo Akinnola, can be contacted via office@hedgewood.org or 0208 845 6756