Safeguarding standards

Failure to maintain basic records and emergency contact details for the children in attendance puts those attending your school at risk

The completed registration forms are confidential and you should keep them safe in a locked cabinet. Copies must NOT be made or given to other agencies. A blank registration form should be included in your Management File.

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Failure to maintain basic records means that you are not properly protecting children in your care. An overview of attendance can help you identify bullying or other problems which are harmful to children's welfare.

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Giving a summary of your safeguarding policy to parents/carers demonstrates your commitment to keeping children safe and promoting their welfare. It also provides vital information to help everyone in your community be informed about what statutory support is available to protect children.

Contact your local safeguarding children board, your local authority safeguarding hub to make sure you have the latest information for your area.

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All groups working with children need to ensure there is agreement between parents, school management and staff about the way you expect people to behave.

Supplementary schools often function not only as a place for children to learn but also as a meeting place for adults, in addition the teachers are very often community members. It is important that adults are reminded that the supplementary school is a structured place of learning for children and that they can’t walk in and out of classes; must not have heated discussions with other community members within the venue; must read and respect the school’s safeguarding policy and complaints procedure; etc.

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Supplementary schools have long played an important role in easing the integration of communities, particularly those newly arrived in the UK. 
Community Cohesion policies, as defined by the government's Neighbourhood Renewal Unit in 2005, and reaffirmed in the DCLG's 2012 paper, ‘Creating the conditions for integration’, aim to build communities in which all people from different backgrounds and circumstances: have a common vision and a sense of belonging, value diversity, are offered similar life opportunities, experience strong and positive relationships - in workplaces, at schools 
and within neighbourhoods.

The DCLG presented this as :

• • a clear sense of shared aspirations and values and a strong sense of our mutual commitments and obligations;
• • people able to realise their potential to get on in life;
• • people of all backgrounds having opportunities to take part, be heard and take decisions in local and national life; and
• • a robust response to threats, whether discrimination, extremism or disorder, that deepen division and increase tensions.

We at NRCSE believe that, the work of supplementary schools presents a further opportunity to create links between communities and facilitate cross-community events and projects.

The Quality Framework for Supplementary Education requires supplementary schools to not just have an Equality and Diversity Policy, but to implement and review it regularly.

NRCSE runs training and provides advice and guidance such as: How to ensure you are promoting equality and respect for others and the law in your supplementary school: some DOs and DON’Ts

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Excellent, put a copy of this document should be included in your Staff and Volunteer Handbook. You are also required by law to provide all staff with copies of your grievance and disciplinary procedures.

Employees are protected by law if they make a disclosure about their employer in the public interest. You should include a Whistleblowing Procedure in your Staff and Volunteer Handbook with details of who to report malpractice to.

We advise trustees to ensure they are aware of the changes and updates in the area of staff recruitment and safeguarding through the DBS website. The legislation is complex and trustees should consider taking professional advice where necessary. It is also important to remember that disclosure and barring services are all part of a safer recruitment regime and do not remove the need for charities to develop and apply robust recruitment procedures, including checking identity, qualifications and references and enquiring into career history. https://www.gov.uk/disclosure-barring-service-check/overview

You are required by law to provide all employees with copies of your grievance and disciplinary procedures. Employees are protected by law if they make a disclosure about their employer in the public interest. You should include a Whistleblowing Procedure in your staff and volunteer handbook with details of who to report malpractice to.

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Health and safety law requires the employer to assess the risks to the health and safety of staff and others affected by their activities. The terms risk assessment and risk management are used to describe the process of thinking about the risks of any activity and the steps taken to counter them. Sensible management of risk does not mean that a separate written risk assessment is required for every activity. You should, however, do a risk assessment each time you plan an activity you haven't done before.

School employers should always take a common sense and proportionate approach, remembering that in schools risk assessment and risk management are tools to enable children to undertake activities safely, and not prevent activities from taking place.

For information on health and safety including employers liabilities, visit the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) website

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Go to the Health & Safety Executive HSE website for further information about how to assess risk in the workplace.

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You must provide clear guidelines on how to ensure children are safe. Offsite procedures will enable you to take advantage of the many educational opportunities - most of them free - that are offered by arts & heritage agencies across England.

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Excellent, a copy of your employers liability insurance must be visible to all staff in your office or included in your Staff and Volunteer Handbook.

Subscribers to NRCSE are eligible for discounted insurance with further discounts for quality assured schools NRCSE insurance sheet

If employing staff, Employers Liability Insurance is a legal requirement.

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This should be at the start of the document you use to govern your supplementary school. You might also include your aims and objectives in any publicity brochure or the ‘home page' of your school website

If you are unincorporated, or a project within a larger organisation, you should have rules that specifically relate to the education of children within the larger project and state what your supplementary school is set up to do.

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Excellent, provide a copy of this document to every member of staff in your Staff and Volunteer Handbook and keep a copy in your Management File. You must also have a named responsible person and s/he must attend child protection training with your Local Safeguarding Children Board.

This document must be reviewed annually. Get in touch with your local safeguarding children board or local authority safeguarding officer to check what they require from voluntary and community organisations working with children. Update your policy in line with their recommendations.

Your Child Protection Policy must include: name of designated/responsible person & deputy, local contact numbers incl. social services, police and NSPCC child protection emergency numbers.

It should cover outings and trips, safe recruitment (staff and volunteers), and include information on responding to allegations of abuse, recognising abuse and reporting forms.

It should also give guidance on vulnerability to recruitment into gangs or extremist groups, and information on where to report concerns.

Your Local Safeguarding Children Board must provide you with advice and training. They will also be able to provide you with a model safeguarding policy and set of child protection procedures.The Safe Network (NSPCC) has a set of core safeguarding standards. They are designed to help clubs or organisations working with children keep them safe. The standards cover four essential areas: safer staff and volunteers; child protection; preventing and responding to bullying; avoiding accidents and running safe activities and events. The standards can be accessed on the Safe Network website.

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These should cover the following key points: Bank account and signatories, authorisation of expenditure, cash expenditure, banking, budgets, reports accounts and records. Also include expenses and allowances. Your petty cash rules should match the actual procedures being followed. If all fees are paid by cheque and there is no petty cash, state this.

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