At Western Elms Nursery we work with children, parents, external agencies and the community to ensure the welfare and safety of children and to give them the very best start in life. Children have the right to be treated with respect, be helped to thrive and to be safe from any abuse in whatever form.

We support the children within our care, protect them from maltreatment and have robust procedures in place to prevent the impairment of children’s health and development. In our setting we strive to protect the children from risks of radicalisation and we promote acceptance and tolerance of other beliefs and cultures. Safeguarding is a much wider subject than the elements covered within this single policy, therefore this document should be used in conjunction with the nursery’s other policies and procedures.

This policy works alongside these other specific policies to cover all aspects of child protection:

• • • Online safety
    • Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery
    • Prevent Duty and Radicalisation
    • Domestic Violence, Honour Based Violence (HBV) and Forced Marriages
    • Looked After Children

Legal framework and definition of safeguarding

• • • Children Act 1989 and 2004
    • Childcare Act 2016
    • Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006
    • Children and Social Work Act 2017
    • The Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) 2017 (updated 2021 to include coronavirus disapplications)
    • Working together to safeguard children, 2018
    • Keeping children safe in education 2020
    • Data Protection Act 2018
    • What to do if you’re worried a child is being abused 2015
    • Counter – Terrorism and Security Act 2015

Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, in relation to this policy is defined as:

• • • Protecting children from maltreatment
    • Preventing the impairment of children’s health or development
    • Ensuring that children are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care.
    • Taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes.

(Definition taken from the HM Government document ‘Working together to safeguard children 2018’)

The nursery is aware that abuse does occur in our society and we are vigilant in identifying signs of abuse and reporting concerns. Our practitioners have a duty to protect and promote the welfare of children. Due to the many hours of care we are providing, staff may often be the first people to identify that there may be a problem. They may well be the first people in whom children confide information that may suggest abuse or to spot changes in a child’s behaviour which may indicate abuse.

Our prime responsibility is the welfare and well-being of each child in our care. As such we believe we have a duty to the children, parents and staff to act quickly and responsibly in any instance that may come to our attention. This includes sharing information with any relevant agencies such as local authority services for children’s social care, health professionals or the police. All staff will work with other agencies in the best interest of the child, including as part of a multi-agency team, where needed.

Support to families

The nursery takes every step in its power to build up trusting and supportive relations among families, staff, students and volunteers within the nursery.

Confidential records kept on a child are shared with the child’s parents or those who have parental responsibility for the child, only if appropriate in line with guidance of the local authority with the proviso that the care and safety of the child is paramount. We will do all in our power to support and work with the child’s family.

Online Safety

We take the safety of our children very seriously and this includes their online safety. Please refer to the Online Safety policy for details on this.

We have named persons within the nursery who take lead responsibility for safeguarding and co-ordinate child protection and welfare issues, known as the Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSL), there is always at least one designated person on duty during all opening hours of the setting.

*Full policies are available to read at the nursery for all families attending, please ask a member of staff for access.