At Cathedral Primary School,  we are committed to providing a safe and secure environment for children, staff and visitors and promoting a climate where children and adults will feel confident about sharing any concerns which they may have about their own safety or the well-being of others. Cathedral Schools Trust (CST) believes that the welfare and safety of the children in their care is of paramount importance. It seeks to create and maintain a safe environment for children and young people, and manage situations where there are child welfare concerns by:

• ensuring there is a designated senior member of staff for  Safeguarding and Child Protection (Mrs Yarnold and Miss Bailey) at Cathedral Primary School
• ensuring that Cathedral Primary School has a designated Deputy Safeguarding Lead (Mrs Lewis)
• ensuring the Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy is reviewed regularly in response to changing legislation
• ensuring that all staff and volunteers are aware that they are responsible for being aware of these procedures and act upon them where necessary

If you have any concerns that you want to make the school aware of, please contact any of the designated persons above. The designated person will then monitor any concerns and report where appropriate to social care if a child is deemed at risk of significant harm. We follow the Bristol Child Protection Procedures and the Local Safeguarding Children’s Board local guidance and have systems in place to share concerns regarding children’s welfare, child sexual exploitation, PREVENT/radicalisation and female genital mutilation with our Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs), with parents and with relevant external agencies.

Safeguarding is not just about protecting children from deliberate harm and abuse.  It includes other issues such as:

• Internet safety
• Health and safety
• Meeting the needs of children with medical issues
• Bullying
• Physical intervention
• Radicalisation
• Racist abuse
• Harassment and discrimination
• Child sexual exploitation, forced marriage and FGM

Part of our legal duty to safeguard our children, may also include us needing to consult specifically with and take advice from, the Police or Children's Social Care, should the need arise. As in all schools, if there are concerns about the conduct of any members of staff then these should be shared with the Headteacher or Chair of Governors.

The following websites may be useful for providing support for you and your family:

• NSPCC website
• FGM information and support
• Bristol Against Violence and Abuse
• The Matthew Tree Project - Food Bank
• Next Link - Domestic Abuse Support
• The Rainbow Centre - helping children through bereavement

If you have concerns about a child please come and speak to us.  Alternatively, you can contact First Response.