At Exton & Greetham CE Primary School we are committed to safer recruitment, safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all children and young people, and to equal opportunities. We expect all staff, governors, parents, carers and volunteers to share this commitment.   

Our school is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people regardless of age, ability, race, culture, religion, sexuality or class. Everyone who comes into contact with children and their families and careers has a role to play in safeguarding children.

Whether you are worried about your own child or another child, this page will give you all the information you need to be able to find and understand what we mean by safeguarding and how ensure we have the systems and processes in place to keep children safe. 

Protecting children is everyone's responsibility.

Our Five Guiding Principles for Safeguarding are:

1. Nothing is more important than keeping children safe.

2. Everyone has a part to play.

3. Everyone must be vigilant.

4. Everyone has an absolute duty to report concerns and ensure they are acted upon. 

5. Concerns must be reported immediately. 

If you wish to discuss the welfare of a child at our school, please contact one of our safeguarding leads. 

The Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) is Mrs Megan Davis (Headteacher), and the Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead (Deputy DSL) is Mrs Danielle Gould (EYFS/ Y1 teacher).

​​​​​​​Both staff can be contacted via the school office. You can leave a message and contact details and we will call you back. 

If you are concerned about the welfare of a child you can also contact the Children's Duty Team of the Local Authority directly. If you know the postal address of the child you should contact the local authority in which they live.

For Rutland County Council Safeguarding Team- call 01572 758407

You may decide to contact the NSPCC on 0808 800 5000.

If you believe a child is in immediate danger then don't delay and call the POLICE on 999.

What is Child Protection and Safeguarding?

​​​​​​​When we talk about safeguarding, womenthings which promote children's welfare and reduce the risk of them suffering harm. Our policies on our buildings, routines, curriculum planning, behaviour and attendance, to name but a few, are all designed to:

• ​​​​​​​Protect children from maltreatment
• Prevent impairment of children's health or development
• Ensure children grow up with safe and effective care
• ​​​​​​​Allow us to take action to enable all children to have the best outcomes

Child protection is part of this definition and refers to activities undertaken to prevent children suffering, or being likely to suffer, significant harm.

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Operation Encompass

Operation Encompass is a national scheme that operates jointly. between schools and all police forces. 

Children who live in homes where there is domestic abuse, or who experience domestic abuse in their own teenage relationships, can be negatively impacted by this experience. 

Children who experience domestic abuse are recognised as victims of domestic abuse in their own right. 

We have ensured that our DSL, also known as the Key Adult, has been trained about Operation Encompass procedures. This allows us to used information that has been confidentially shared with us by the police, to understand how a child may be impacted by domestic abuse and to then offer support to the child/ren in our care. This information means that we can understand a child's behaviour and support that child in whatever way they may need or want.

Operation Encompass means that our school will be told, prior to the start of the next school day, when police have attended an incident of domestic abuse where there is a child or young person who attends our school who is related to any of those involved in the incident. 

We are keen to offer the very best support possible to all our pupils and we believe that being part of Operation Encompass helps us to do this. 

Private Fostering

Have you agreed to have someone else's child stay with you? Are you a parent who has asked someone to take in your child? Do you think this arrangement may go on for 28 days or more, even with occasional breaks?

If the answer to these questions is 'yes' you may have made a private fostering arrangement. 

This applies to all young people aged under 16 and all disabled young people aged under 18. It applies to all children living in the UK no matter what country they come from - even if they plan to return home one day. It is NOT private fostering if a child goes to stay with a grandparent, an aunt or uncle, a brother or sister or a step-parent. It is NOT private fostering if the child is just going to be away for a one-off period of a few days or even a week or tow.

If you have made a private fostering arrangement, you must do the following:

• if you are the parent or carer then you must tell Children's Services six weeks before the child moves in
• if the child is already living with the carer or about to arrive then let them know immediately

If you are in any doubt whether or not what you are doing is private fostering, call for advice. 

If you work with young people and families and become aware of a private fostering arrangement you should advise the parent or carer to inform Children's Services and you should pass on their details.