SCOIL BHRÍDE CHILD PROTECTION POLICY

Introductory Statement

The management and staff of Scoil Bhríde have developed and agreed this policy in line with the current recommendations and guidelines relating to child abuse prevention and child protection guidelines.

This policy addresses the responsibilities of the school in the following areas:

A)    Prevention – curriculum provision

B)    Procedures – procedures for dealing with concerns/disclosures

C)    Practice -  best practice in child protection

An individual copy of this policy and the appended guidelines is available to view and print on the websites of the Health Service Executive (www.hse.ie) and the Department of Children and Youth Affairs (www.dcya.gov.ie)

It is incumbent on all staff to familiarise themselves with ‘Children First’ and the DES child protection guidelines and procedures.

Aims

this policy aims to

• Create a safe, trusting, responsive and caring environment
• Provide a personal safety skills education which specifically addresses abuse  prevention for all children in the school
• Develop awareness and responsibility in the area of child protection amongst the whole school community
• Put in place procedures for good practice to protect all children an staff
• Ensure that all staff members are aware of and familiar with the ‘Children First’ and the DES guidelines and procedures in relation to reporting concerns and/or disclosures of child abuse.

Prevention

The Stay Safe programme is the primary resource used to provide education for children on abuse prevention. The programme is taught as part of the schools’ SPHE curriculum under the strand unit Safety and Protection.

On enrolment of their child parents will be informed that the Stay Safe Programme is in use in the school and a copy of the Stay Safe ‘A Parent’s Guide’ provided.

The formal lessons of the programme will be taught in their entirety every second year in accordance with the SPHE two–year cycle plan.

Procedures

All staff (teachers, special needs assistants, ancillary, secretarial, caretaking, cleaning, yard supervisors etc.) in this school will follow the recommendations for reporting concerns or disclosures as outlined in ‘Children First’ and  the Department of Education and Science document, ‘Child Protection, Guidelines and Procedures’.

(See Appendix 1)

The Board of Management of this school has appointed Síle Uí Mhurchú as the Designated Liaison Person (DLP) and Patricia O’Donovan as the deputy (DLP).

The staff and management of this school have agreed:

• All concerns /disclosures involving child protection /child welfare issues will be reported in the first instance to the DLP.
• Each report to the DLP will be dated and signed by the person making the report. A strict adherence to maintaining confidentiality – information regarding concerns or disclosures of abuse should only be given on a ‘need to know’ basis.

Practice

The following areas have been considered by the staff and Board of Management

• In the case of Special Needs Pupils who have difficulty understanding the programme, the Learning Support Teachers /Resource Teachers will help them to understand it.
• Special effort will be made to help non native speakers to comprehend the content. Language Support Teachers will play a role here if necessary.

a) Physical Contact

Physical contact between school personnel and the child should always be in response to the needs of the child and not the needs of the adult. While physical contact may be used to comfort, reassure or assist a child the following should be factors in determining its appropriateness:-

• It is acceptable to the child
• It is open and not secretive
• The age and developmental stage of the child

School personnel should avoid doing anything of a personal nature for children that they can do for themselves.

b) Visitors /Guest Speakers:

Visitors/Guest Speakers should never be left alone with pupils. The school (principal//teacher(s)) has a responsibility to check out the credentials of the visitor/guest speaker and to ensure that the material in use by guests is appropriate.

c) Children with Specific Toileting/Intimate Care Needs:

In all situations where a pupil needs assistance with toileting/intimate care a meting will be convened, after enrolment and before the child starts school, between parents/guardians, special needs assistant, principal and if deemed necessary the class teacher and the pupil. The purpose of the meeting will be to ascertain the specific needs of the child and to determine how the school can best meet those needs. The staff to be involved in this care will be identified and provision will be made for occasions when the particular staff involved are absent. A written copy of what has been agreed will be made and kept in the child’s file.

Two members of staff will be present when dealing with intimate care/ toileting needs. Any deviation from the agreed procedure will be recorded and notified to the DLP and the parents/guardians.

d) Toileting Accidents

Clean underwear and suitable clothing will be kept in the school so that if a pupil has an ‘accident’ of this nature they will in the first instance be offered fresh clothing into which they can change. If the pupil for whatever reason cannot clean of change him/herself and the parent/guardians cannot be contacted the child will be assisted by members of staff, familiar to the child. In all such situations two members of staff should be present.

e) One-to-One Teaching

It is the policy in this school that one-to-one teaching is often in the best interest of the child. Every effort will be made to ensure that this teaching takes place in an open environment. Parents of children who are to be involved in one-to-one teaching will be informed and their agreement sought. Work being carried out by special needs assistants will be carried out under the direction of the class teacher in an open environment.

f) Changing for Games/PE/ Swimming

Pupils may be expected to dress and undress themselves for games/ PE/swimming. Where assistance is needed this will be done in the communal areas and with the consent of parents. Under no circumstances will members of staff/ volunteers be expected to or allowed to dress/undress a child in a cubicle /private area. In such situations where privacy is required the parent/guardian of the child will be asked to assist the child.

At all times there must be adequate supervision of pupils.

While every effort will be made to adhere to best practice as agreed and outlined above. In the case of an emergency where this is not possible or practicable a full record of the incident should be made and reported to principal and parents.

Links to other policy/planning areas:

Prevention:      SPHE curriculum, Strand unit on ‘Safety and Protection’

The School Code of Behaviour

Procedures:     Anti-Bullying Policy

Health and Safety Statement

Practice:          Swimming Practice

School Tours/outings

Review and Monitoring

This policy will be monitored and reviewed by the Board of Management on an annual basis or when the need arises. The Board of Management will ensure that adequate training and support is provided for all staff.

Policy adopted by the BOM on    06.09.2010

Sr. Maryjohn Chairperson, B.O.M