Safeguarding is everybody’s responsibility and all those directly connected (staff, volunteers, governors, leaders, parents, families and children) are an important part of the wider safeguarding system for children and have an essential role to play in making our community safe and secure.
All adults working with children at Highgate Primary School maintain an attitude of ‘it could happen here’ where safeguarding is concerned. We believe that the best interests of children always come first. All children have a right to be heard and to have their wishes and feelings taken into account and all children, regardless of age, gender, ability, culture, race, language, religion or sexual identity, have equal rights to protection.
The school recognises the importance of safeguarding and the promotion of children’s welfare at all times. Safeguarding is embedded in all the school’s processes and procedures and at the heart of our school to provide an ethos and environment that will help children to be safe and feel safe. In our school, children are respected and encouraged to talk openly. All our staff understand safe professional practice and adhere to our safeguarding policies.
Highgate Primary School expects that if any member of our community has a safeguarding concern about any child or adult, they should act immediately. This includes out of hours when the DSL may not be available to speak to, in which case a direct referral should be made to social services.
This school’s Safeguarding Policy is implemented in accordance with our compliance with the statutory guidance from the Department for Education, ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’ 2025 (KCSIE) which requires individual schools and colleges to have an effective child protection policy.
The procedures contained in the policy apply to all staff, including governors, temporary or third-party agency staff and volunteers and are consistent with those outlined within KCSIE 2025.
