Safeguarding

Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility The Teacher Standards 2012 state that teachers, including Head Teachers, should safeguard children’s wellbeing and maintain public trust in the teaching profession as part of their professional duties. (Keeping Children Safe in Education 2018) 
This Safeguarding Policy is an overarching policy which supports the vision and aims of the school. Policies which are included under the Safeguarding umbrella are; 
● Child Protection 
● Attendance and Punctuality 
● Behaviour Management 
● Anti-bullying, including Cyber bullying 
● Counselling 
● IT Acceptable usage 
● First Aid 
● Health and Safety 
● Safer Recruitment 
● Code of conduct 
● Whistle blowing 
● SEND 
● Missing Child Policy 
● Intimate Care Policy 
Introduction GEMs Wellington International School (WIS) is fully committed to promoting children’s rights, notably their right to be protected from harm, abuse and exploitation and to be involved in any decisions that directly affect them. WIS is committed to developing the children’s understanding of their rights and responsibilities as global citizens, in line with The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child to which the UAE is a signatory. 
The term ‘children’ includes everyone under the age of 18. 
Definition WIS adheres to the ‘Working Together to Safeguard Children’ (2015) definition, which states safeguarding and promoting welfare is; 
● Preventing impairment of children’s health or development; 
● Protecting children from maltreatment; 
● Supporting - Ensuring that children are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care and taking action to enable all children to have the best life chances. 
Rationale WIS believes that a child or young person should never experience abuse of any kind. We have a responsibility to promote the welfare of all children and young people and to keep them safe. We are committed to practice in a way that protects them. We recognise that 
● the welfare of the child is paramount, as enshrined in the Children Act 1989 
● all children, regardless of age, disability, gender, heritage, religious belief, sexual orientation or identity, have a right to equal protection from all types of harm or abuse 
● some children are additionally vulnerable because of the impact of previous experiences, their level of dependency, communication needs and other issues 
● working in partnership with children , young people, their parents, carers and other agencies is essential in promoting young people’s welfare 
Aims At Wellington International School, we believe we have a duty of care 
● to protect and support children and young people who are part of the GWIS community 
● to provide staff and volunteers with the overarching principles that guide our approach to safeguarding 
Legal Framework First and foremost we follow the guidance outlined in the UAE Children’s Rights Law (June 2016). WIS also endeavours to follow UK legislation and guidance as these are known to be some of the most robust in the world. Therefore we have based our safeguarding procedures on the following UK legislation: 
● The Children Act (1989) 
● 1998 – The Human Rights Act (1998) 
● The Education Act (2002) 
● The Children Act (2004) 
We have consulted the following UK guidance documents: 
● Keeping Children Safe in Education (2015) 
● Working Together to Safeguard Children – 2016 
We have also consulted the following worldwide legislation and guidance: 
● The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child 
● Investing in the children of the Islamic World (Unisef 2005) 
All staff have a responsibility to 
● provide a safe environment in which children can learn 
● be alert to the signs of child abuse 
● identify children who may be in need of extra help or who are suffering, or are likely to suffer, significant harm 
● know how to respond and what action to take by being familiar with the current child protection procedures in place at GWIS 
● take appropriate action, working with other services as needed 
● always act in the best interests of the child and ensure we take all reasonable steps to prevent harm to them 
We will seek to keep children safe by 
● placing the child at the centre of all practice 
● valuing, listening to and respecting them 
● adopting child protection practices through procedures and a code of conduct for staff and volunteers 
● developing and implementing an effective e-safety policy and related procedures 
● providing effective management for staff and volunteers through supervision, support and training 
● recruiting staff and volunteers safely, ensuring all necessary checks are made 
● sharing information about child protection and good practice with children, parents, staff and volunteers 
● sharing concerns with agencies who need to know and involving parents and children appropriately 
Date of Review – June 2020