At Ashbourne Primary School, the safety and wellbeing of our children is our highest priority. We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all children and expect all staff, volunteers and visitors to share this responsibility. All staff, governors, and volunteers receive thorough training and a comprehensive induction to ensure they can play their full part in protecting our children.

Our safeguarding arrangements are in line with statutory guidance, including:

• Keeping Children Safe in Education

• Working Together to Safeguard Children

Safeguarding is not just about policies - it is about listening to children, acting quickly on concerns, and working closely with families and partner agencies. We actively seek feedback from pupils and parents about safeguarding and use this to strengthen our provision.

Our governing body provides strong oversight of safeguarding our practices. They regularly review our termly safeguarding reports and annual safeguarding audit to ensure our systems remain robust and effective.

How to Report a Safeguarding Concern:

If you are worried about the safety or wellbeing of a child, please do not hesitate to contact us.

• Speak directly to a member of the Safeguarding Team (see below)

• Email: safeguarding@ashbourneprimary.co.uk

• Telephone the school office and ask to speak to the DSL (01335 342891)

All concerns are taken seriously and acted upon promptly.

If your concern is about a member of staff, please contact the Headteacher or Safeguarding Governor. If you feel unable to do this, you may contact the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO). 

Our Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs) are:

• Paula Chisholm (Headteacher)

• Heather Davis (Co-Headteacher)

• Ali Blake / Jill Simpson (Child and Family Wellbeing Leaders)

Our safeguarding governor is: Ken Torr (Vice Chair of governors)

Information for Children: 

At Ashbourne Primary School, we listen to children, we take worries seriously, and we will always try to help. If you are worried, upset, or feel unsafe:

• Talk to your class teacher

• Talk to a trusted adult

• Speak to one of the safeguarding team

How We Keep Children Safe in School

We keep children safe by:

• Providing regular safeguarding training for all staff

• Carrying out safer recruitment checks on adults working in school

• Teaching safeguarding through PSHE, RSE, computing, assemblies and the wider curriculum

• Having clear behaviour, anti-bullying and online safety expectations

• Working closely with families and external agencies

• Completing risk assessments and maintaining site security

• Listening to children and acting on concerns quickly

Online Safety:

We recognise that keeping children safe online is an essential part of safeguarding. In school we:

• Teach children how to stay safe online

• Use appropriate filtering and monitoring systems

• Respond promptly to online safety concerns

We encourage parents to work with us to support safe internet use at home. Useful links for parents:

NSPCC Online Safety: www.nspcc.org.uk/keeping-children-safe/online-safety

CEOP: www.ceop.police.uk

Early Help and Support for Families:

We know that early support can make a big difference. Early Help may be offered when:

• A child needs additional support with wellbeing, behaviour or attendance

• A family would benefit from advice or guidance

• Concerns can be addressed before they become more serious

We work in partnership with parents and other professionals to ensure children get the right support at the right time. Please see our Early Help Offer below. 

Safeguarding Policies:

Our key safeguarding-related policies include:

• Safeguarding & Child Protection Policy

• Behaviour Policy

• Anti-Bullying Policy

• Online Safety Policy

• Attendance Policy

• Staff Code of Conduct

• Whistleblowing Policy

All policies are reviewed regularly and can be found on our Policies page.

Domestic Abuse

Ashbourne Primary works in partnership with Derbyshire Police through Operation Encompass. This means we may receive confidential notifications when police attend a domestic abuse incident involving a child from our school, so we can provide appropriate support. Operation Encompass information is shared with the Designated Safeguarding Lead.

Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility and this is to help schools with responses to domestic abuse by helping them support children and their families exposed to or involved in domestic abuse.

This may mean talking to pupils about their experiences, raising awareness through classroom discussion and schools activities, helping victims and families by providing to them signposting information.

We are committed to protecting children and young people and working with partners to stop domestic abuse.