Safeguarding

SAFEGUARDING AT GATEFORD PARK

Keeping children safe is everyone's responsibility.

At Gateford Park Primary School, the safety and wellbeing of our children is at the heart of everything we do.

We are committed to providing a safe, caring and supportive environment where every child feels known, valued and listened to. We work closely with children, families and other professionals to make sure that children receive the right help at the right time.

Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and we encourage children, parents, carers, staff and members of our community to speak to us if they have a concern – however small it may seem.

Worried about a child?

Our Safeguarding Team

We want children and families to know who they can talk to when they need help.

Mrs Joanna Green

Head Teacher and Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL)

Mr Jacob Boulton

SEND Lead and Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead

Mrs Sophie Gough

Key Stage 2 Lead and Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead

Mrs Alison Spencer

Deputy Headteacher and Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead

Our safeguarding team works together to respond to concerns, support children and families, liaise with other agencies when appropriate and make sure that safeguarding remains central to school life.

What is safeguarding?

Safeguarding is much broader than child protection. It means protecting children's right to be safe, healthy and well cared for and taking action when a child may need additional help or protection.

Safeguarding can include concerns relating to:

physical, emotional or sexual abuse
neglect
domestic abuse
child-on-child abuse
bullying and harmful behaviour
online safety and online harm
sexual harassment and harmful sexual behaviour
child sexual or criminal exploitation
children missing from education or patterns of absence
mental health and emotional wellbeing where this may indicate a safeguarding concern
radicalisation and extremism
female genital mutilation
forced marriage
modern slavery and trafficking
risks within the wider community
any situation in which a child may be unsafe or at risk of harm

We recognise that safeguarding concerns do not always present in obvious ways. Changes in a child's behaviour, appearance, attendance, friendships or emotional wellbeing can sometimes indicate that they need help.

Listening to our children

We want every child at Gateford Park to know:

You have the right to feel safe.

There are adults in school who will listen to you.

You can tell us if something is worrying you.

You will be taken seriously.

Through our curriculum, assemblies, relationships and everyday conversations, we help children understand how to keep themselves and others safe and how to seek help when they need it.

Our children are encouraged to identify trusted adults in school and to talk to us about worries – even when something feels difficult or embarrassing to share.

We will always listen carefully and act in the best interests of the child.

How we keep children safe

Safeguarding is woven through all aspects of life at Gateford Park.

This includes:

A well-trained staff team

All members of staff receive safeguarding training and regular updates so that they understand how to recognise and respond to concerns.

Safer recruitment

We follow statutory safer recruitment procedures when appointing adults to work or volunteer in our school.

A culture of listening

We work hard to create relationships in which children feel confident that adults will listen to them and help them.

Teaching children how to stay safe

Children learn about healthy relationships, personal safety, online safety, boundaries and where to find help through our curriculum and wider school life.

Online safety

We teach children how to use technology safely and responsibly and have appropriate filtering and monitoring arrangements in place across our school systems.

Attendance

Regular attendance is an important part of safeguarding. We monitor attendance carefully and work with families where attendance patterns give us cause for concern.

Early support

Sometimes families need additional help before difficulties become more serious. We work in partnership with parents, carers and other professionals to help families access appropriate support as early as possible.

Working with other agencies

Where necessary, we work with Children's Social Care, health professionals, police and other agencies to safeguard children and support families.

Online Safety

Technology provides wonderful opportunities for children to learn, communicate and explore, but it can also create risks.

At Gateford Park, online safety forms an important part of our safeguarding curriculum. We teach children about:

keeping personal information private
passwords and account security
appropriate online communication
cyberbullying
harmful or inappropriate content
online friendships and strangers
gaming and social media
sharing photographs and videos
misinformation and artificial intelligence
knowing when and how to ask an adult for help

We encourage parents and carers to talk regularly with their children about what they do online and to take an interest in the apps, games and platforms they use.

Useful support for parents:

CEOP – reporting online sexual abuse or concerns
Internet Matters – practical online safety advice for families
NSPCC – keeping children safe online
Childline – support and advice for children

If your concern is about an adult working with children

If you have a safeguarding concern about the behaviour of a member of staff, volunteer or another adult working with children at Gateford Park, please contact the Headteacher, Mrs Joanna Green, immediately.

If your concern relates to the Headteacher, please contact the Chair of Governors, Mr Geoff Young.

All allegations and concerns about adults working with children are taken seriously and will be managed in accordance with statutory safeguarding guidance and Nottinghamshire procedures.

Working in partnership with parents and carers

Safeguarding works best when school and families work together.

There may be times when we need to ask questions, seek further information or talk to other professionals because we are concerned about a child's welfare. We understand that these conversations can sometimes feel difficult.

Our responsibility is always to act in the best interests of the child.

Where it is safe and appropriate to do so, we will work openly with parents and carers and explain the actions we are taking. There are some circumstances where safeguarding information cannot be shared immediately if doing so could increase the risk to a child or compromise an investigation.

We ask parents and carers to talk to us if something happening at home may affect their child in school. Our aim is to support families, not judge them, and to work together to make sure children receive the help they need.

Safeguarding Policies and Information

The following documents provide further information about our safeguarding arrangements:

Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy 2026–27

Keeping Children Safe in Education 2026

Online Safety Policy

Behaviour and Relationships Policy

Anti-Bullying Policy

Child-on-Child Abuse Policy

Low-Level Concerns Policy

Attendance Policy

Whistleblowing / Confidential Reporting Policy

Safeguarding Information for Visitors and Volunteers

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Useful Safeguarding Contacts

Gateford Park Primary School

01909 478681
office@gateford.notts.sch.uk

Nottinghamshire Children's Services – concern about a child

0300 500 80 80

Emergency Duty Team – outside normal office hours

0300 456 4546

Emergency

999

Childline

0800 1111

NSPCC

0808 800 5000

Remember

If something doesn't feel right, tell someone.

You don't need to be certain that abuse or neglect has taken place before sharing a concern. If you are worried about a child, please speak to us.

Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility.