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Introduction

1.1 The health, safety and welfare of all the people who work or learn at our school are of fundamental importance. We aim to provide a safe, secure and pleasant working environment for everyone. The governing body, along with the LEA, takes responsibility for protecting the health and safety of all children and members of staff.

2 The school curriculum

2.1 We teach the children about health and safety in order to equip them with the skills, knowledge and understanding that will enable them to live positive, successful and healthy lives. Teachers take every opportunity to educate children in this regard as part of the normal school curriculum. Through the science curriculum we teach children about hazardous materials, and how to handle equipment safely.

2.2 We teach children respect for their bodies, and how to look after themselves. We discuss these issues with the children in PSHE lessons, and we reinforce these points in design and technology, where children learn about healthy eating and hygiene. We also show them how to move and play safely in PE lessons.

2.3 Health and safety issues also arise when we teach care for the environment, and awareness of the dangers of litter. Children in Key Stage 2 receive both drugs education and sex and relationship education (see the relevant policies).

2.4 We believe that everybody in our school can and should promote everybody else’s safety, so we teach children to spot hazards in the classroom or around the school, and inform their teacher.

2.5 Our school promotes the spiritual welfare and growth of the children through the RE curriculum, through special events, such as harvest festivals, and through the daily act of collective worship.

2.6 Each class has the opportunity to discuss problems or issues of concern with their teacher. Teachers use circle time to help children discuss and overcome any fears and worries that they may have. These concerns are handled with sensitivity.

3 School meals

3.1 Our school provides the opportunity for children to have a meal at lunchtimes. If parents are in receipt of Income Support, a Job Seeker’s Allowance, Support under the Immigration and Asylum Act of1999, or Child Tax Credit (with income below a certain limit) they may claim free school meals for their children. We do all we can to ensure that the meals provided have a suitable nutritional value, in line with the requirements of the School Standards and Framework Act of 1998.

3.2 If children choose to bring their own packed lunch, we provide them with a suitable place to eat it, and we supervise them during this time.

3.3 Our school promotes a healthy lifestyle. As sweets can damage children’s teeth, we do not allow sweets to be eaten in school.

4 School uniform

4.1 It is our policy that all children wear the school uniform when attending school, or when participating in a school-organised event, even if outside normal school hours. We agree the requirements for school uniform with parents, and we review these requirements regularly.

4.2 We always take a sensitive approach where regulations regarding uniform conflict with a child’s religious or cultural beliefs. We have drawn up regulations regarding the recognition of cultural diversity in this respect, and these stipulate that we do not discriminate on grounds of race, creed or gender.

4.3 It is the responsibility of the headteacher to ensure that the school uniform policy is enforced. It is however not our school policy to exclude children from the school if they, for whatever reason, do not have the proper school uniform.

4.4 We ask parents to equip their children with the necessary uniform and school equipment. We ask parents not to send their child to school with ‘extreme’ hairstyles, or the sort of appearance that is likely to draw attention. We ask parents to discuss their child’s appearance with us if there are any religious issues involved that we might be unaware of.

4.5 On grounds of health and safety we do not allow children to wear jewellery in our school. An exception is ear-ring studs in pierced ears. We ask children either to remove these during PE and games, or to cover them with a plaster.

5 Child protection

5.1 The named person with responsibility for child protection in our school is the headteacher, who liaises with a named governor. We will follow the procedures for child protection drawn up by the LEA and the Governing Body.

5.2 If any teacher suspects that a child in their class may be the victim of abuse, they should not try to investigate, but should immediately inform the person named in 5.1 about their concerns.

5.3 When investigating incidents or suspicions, the person responsible in the school for child protection works closely with social services, and with the Area Child Protection Committee (ACPC). We handle all such cases with sensitivity, and we attach paramount importance to the interests of the child.

5.4 We require all adults employed in school to have their application vetted by the police, in order to check that there is no evidence of offences involving children or abuse.

5.5 All the adults in our school share responsibility for keeping our children safe. We may on occasion report concerns which, on investigation, prove unfounded. It is better to be safe than sorry, and we trust that parents, while they will naturally be upset, will nevertheless accept that the school acted in the child’s best interests.

6 School security

6.1 While it is difficult to make the school site totally secure, we will do all we can to ensure that the school is a safe environment for all who work or learn here. We review security measures regularly, and draw upon the advice of experts (e.g. police officers, fire officers, architects and other consultants).

6.2 We require all adult visitors who arrive in normal school hours to sign the visitors’ book in the reception area, and to wear an identification badge at all times whilst on the school premises.

6.3 Teachers will not allow any adult to enter their classroom if the school visitor’s badge does not identify them.

6.4 If any adult working in the school has suspicions that a person may be trespassing on the school site, they must inform the headteacher immediately. The headteacher will warn any intruder that they must leave the school site straight away. If the headteacher has any concerns that an intruder may cause harm to anyone on the school site, s/he will contact the police.

7 Safety of children

7.1 It is the responsibility of each teacher to ensure that all curriculum activities are safe. Similarly, curriculum coordinators will always be vigilant for hazards concerning equipment or activities related to their area of responsibility. If a teacher or curriculum coordinator has any concerns about pupil safety, they should bring them to the attention of the headteacher before that particular activity next takes place.

7.2 We do not take any child off the school site without the prior permission of the parent.

7.3 If an accident does happen, and it results in an injury to a child, the teacher will do all s/he can to aid the child concerned. We keep a first aid box in the main school office. The following staff at the school have been trained in first aid:

Miss Ardley & Mrs Walsh

7.4 Should any incident involving injury to a child take place, one of the above-mentioned members of staff will be called to assist. If necessary, the school secretary will telephone for emergency assistance.

7.5 We record in the school logbook all incidents involving injury, and in all cases we inform parents. Should a child be quite seriously hurt, we contact the parents through the emergency telephone number that we keep on file. We update these numbers annually, but it is essential that parents inform us when contact details change.

7.6 There may be rare occasions where it is necessary for staff to restrain a pupil physically, to prevent them from inflicting injury to others, causing self-injury, damaging property, or being disruptive. In such cases only the minimum force necessary may be used, and any action taken must be only to restrain the pupil. If restraint has been required, a written report will be made.

8 Fire and other emergency procedures

8.1 Procedures for fire and other emergency evacuation are displayed prominently in all rooms. Fire drills are held twice each term. Arrangements are made to monitor the condition of all fire prevention equipment regularly. This includes the visual inspection of fire extinguishers, and the testing of the fire alarm system.

9 Educational visits

9.1 The school takes very seriously its responsibilities for ensuring the safety of children whilst on school trips (see also the policy for educational visits).

10 Seat belts

10.1 We use coaches and mini-buses only when seat belts are provided. We instruct the children to use seat belts at all times when the bus is moving.

11 Medicines

11.1 Most pupils will at some time have a condition requiring medication. For many the condition will be short-term – perhaps the duration of a short absence from school. However, although a child may soon be well enough to be back at school, medication may perhaps still be required during the school day for a short period. In such cases parents will be expected to visit, perhaps during the lunch break, to administer the medication themselves (after first reporting to the office).

11.2 Where on the other hand children have long-term medical needs, we will do everything we can to enable them to attend school regularly. Parents must give us details of the child’s condition and medication, and bring the medication to school in a secure, labelled container. Records will be kept of all medication received and administered by the school.

11.3 Staff involved in administering the medication will receive training, usually from the school nurse.

12 Internet safety

(see separate policy)

12.1 We regularly use the Internet in school, because it has many educational benefits. In order to minimise the risk of children coming across unsuitable material, we provide constant supervision, and we use only a filtered service, selected links, and child-friendly search engines. Parents are asked to sign authorisation for their child to use the Internet. We also seek parental permission before using photographs of children or their work on the school’s website, or in newsletters and other publications.

13 Theft or other criminal acts

13.1 The teacher or headteacher will investigate any incidents of theft involving children. If there are serious incidents of theft from the school site, the headteacher will inform the police, and record the incident in the incident book.

13.2 Should any incident involve physical violence against a teacher, we will report this to the Health and Safety Executive, and support the teacher in question if he or she wishes the matter to be reported to the police.

14 The health and welfare of staff

14.1 The school takes very seriously the need to safeguard the health and welfare of all our staff. This includes their professional development, which we address in our CPD policy. We also pay particular attention to the assessment and prevention of work-related stress, thus complying with health and safety law. If a member of staff is experiencing stress at work, s/he should inform the headteacher without delay.

14.2 The school will not tolerate violence, threatening behaviour or abuse directed against school staff. If such incidents do occur, the school will take the matter very seriously, and take action in line with the LEA’s protocol on school and the police.

15 Monitoring and review

15.1 The governing body has a named governor with responsibility for health and safety matters. It is this governor’s responsibility to keep the governing body informed of new regulations regarding health and safety, and to ensure that the school regularly reviews its procedures with regard to health and safety matters. The governor in question also liaises with the LEA and other external agencies, to ensure that the school’s procedures are in line with those of the LEA.

15.2 The governing body, in consultation with professional advisors, carries out regular risk assessments, with the object of keeping the school environment safe.

15.3 The headteacher implements the school’s health, safety and welfare policy on a day-to-day basis, and ensures that all staff are aware of the details of the policy as it applies to them.The headteacher also reports to governors annually on health and safety issues.

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