Education Roles and Responsibilities

2.121 Schools (including independent schools and non-maintained special
schools) and Further Education (FE) institutions should give effect to their
duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of their pupils (students under 18
years of age in the case of FE institutions) under the Education Act 2002 and
where appropriate under the Children Act 1989 (see paragraph 2.5) by:
" creating and maintaining a safe learning environment for children and
young people; and,
" identifying where there are child welfare concerns and taking action to
address them, in partnership with other organisations where
appropriate.
Schools also contribute through the curriculum by developing childrens
understanding, awareness, and resilience.

2.122 Creating a safe learning environment means having effective
arrangements in place to address a range of issues. Some are subject to
statutory requirements, including child protection arrangements, pupil health
and safety, and bullying. Others include arrangements for meeting the health
needs of children with medical conditions, providing first aid, school security,
tackling drugs and substance misuse, and having arrangements in place to
safeguard and promote the welfare of children on extended vocational
placements.
2.123 Education staff have a crucial role to play in helping identify welfare
concerns, and indicators of possible abuse or neglect, at an early stage:
referring those concerns to the appropriate organisation, normally LA
childrens social care, contributing to the assessment of a childs needs and
where appropriate to ongoing action to meet those needs. When a child has
special educational needs, or is disabled, the school will have important
information about the childs level of understanding and the most effective
means of communicating with the child. They will also be well placed to give a
view on the impact of treatment or intervention on the childs care or
behaviour.

2.124 In addition to the features common to organisations working with
children listed in paragraph 2.8 schools and FE institutions should have a
senior member of staff who is designated to take lead responsibility for
dealing with child protection issues, providing advice and support to other
staff, liasing with the authority, and working with other organisations as
necessary. A school or FE institution should remedy any deficiencies or
weaknesses in its arrangements for safeguarding and promoting welfare that
are brought to its attention without delay.
2.125 Staff in schools and FE institutions should not themselves investigate
possible abuse or neglect. They have a key role to play by referring concerns
about those issues to children's social care, providing information for police
investigations and/or enquiries under s.47 of the Children Act 1989, and by
contributing to assessments.
2.126 Where a child of school age is the subject of an inter-agency child
protection plan, the school should be involved in the preparation of the plan.
The schools role and responsibilities in contributing to actions to safeguard
the child, and promote his or her welfare, should be clearly identified.
2.127 Special schools, including non maintained special schools and
Independent schools, which provide medical and/or nursing care should
ensure that their medical and nursing staff have appropriate training and
access to advice on child protection and safeguarding and promoting the
welfare of children.
2.128 Schools play an important role in making children and young people
aware of behaviour towards them that is not acceptable and how they can
help keep themselves safe. The non-statutory framework for Personal, Social
and Health Education (PSHE) provides opportunities for children and young
people to learn about keeping safe. For example pupils should be taught to
recognise and manage risks in different situations and then decide how to
behave responsibly; to judge what kind of physical contact is acceptable and
unacceptable; to recognise when pressure from others (including people they
know) threatens their personal safety and well-being and develop effective
ways of resisting pressure
2.129 PSHE curriculum materials provide resources that enable schools to
tackle issues regarding healthy relationships including domestic violence,
bullying and abuse. Discussions about personal safety and keeping safe can
reinforce the message that any kind of violence is unacceptable; let children
and young people know that it is okay to talk about their own problems; and
signpost sources of help.
2.130 Corporal punishment is outlawed for all pupils in all schools, including
independent schools, and FE institutions. The law forbids a teacher or other
member of staff using any degree of physical contact which is deliberately
intended to punish a pupil, or which is primarily intended to cause pain or
injury or humiliation.

2.131 Teachers at a school are allowed to use reasonable force to control or
restrain pupils under certain circumstances. Other staff may also do so, in the
same way as teachers, provided they have been authorised by the head
teacher to have control or charge of pupils. All schools should have a policy
about the use of force to control or restrain pupils. Further guidance about
this is at:
http://www.dfes.gov.uk/publications/guidanceonthelaw/10_98/summary.htm
Childcare Services

Contact:  safeguardingchildrenboard@barnsley.gov.uk

This page was last updated on the 14th of December 2011 and is scheduled for review on or before the 10th of June 2012