Safeguarding

 Townfield Primary School is committed to safeguarding and promoting children’s welfare.

Our Designated Safeguarding Leads are Mrs Loftus and Mrs Keenan

Our Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads are Mrs Durham and Mrs Kinnear

The Governor with responsibility for safeguarding in our school is Caroline Prosser

Wirral Safeguarding Children Partnership can be contacted via the Integrated Front Door on 0151 606 2008 0r out of hours on 0151 677 6557, email ifd@wirral.gov.uk

Our Safeguarding Pledge

We pledge to:-

• ensure that children are visible, their voices are heard and their needs, views and wishes are addressed.  
• recognise that some children may be more vulnerable to harm due to their age, specific needs or home circumstances 
• always act in the best interests of children 
• act without delay to protect children from harm and abuse
• share information promptly to support a collective and holistic assessment of children's needs
• meet all mandatory training requirements, regularly updated professional knowledge and applying any learning to our practice 

We have a number of policies and procedures in place that contribute to our safeguarding commitment, including our Child Protection policy which can be viewed in the policies section on our website.

We actively support the Government's Prevent Agenda to counter radicalisation and extremism. 

Our school is part of Operation Encompass.

Operation Encompass is a national police and education early intervention safeguarding partnership which supports children and young people who experience Domestic Violence and Abuse and which is in place in every police force in England and Wales.

Children were recognised as victims of domestic abuse in their own right in the 2021 Domestic Abuse Act.

Operation Encompass means that the police will share information with our school about all police attended Domestic Abuse incidents which involve any of our children PRIOR to the start of the next school day.

Working in partnership with other agencies

The school has a statutory responsibility to share any concerns it might have about a child in need of protection with other agencies and in particular police, health and children’s services. Schools are not able to investigate child protection concerns but have a legal duty to refer them. In most instances the school will be able to inform the parents/carers of its need to make a referral. However, sometimes the school can in certain circumstances share information without the consent of the family and may be advised by children’s services or police that the parent/carer cannot be informed whilst they investigate the matter or make enquires. We understand the anxiety parents/carers understandably feel when they are not told about any concerns from the outset. The school follows legislation that aims to act in the interests of the child.

The school will always seek to work in partnership with parents and other agencies to ensure the best possible outcomes for the child and family.

Safeguarding is Everyone’s Responsibility

If you have concerns about a child, contact the Integrated Front Door (Children’s Services) on 0151 606 2008, out of hours on 0151 677 6557, email ifd@wirral.gov.uk