Platt Bridge Community School

Safeguarding and Inclusion

Platt Bridge Community School and Start Well Family Centre takes seriously its responsibility to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.

This includes:

• Responsibility to provide a safe environment in which children can learn.
• To identify children who may be in need of extra help or who are suffering, or are likely to suffer significant harm. All staff have a responsibility to take appropriate action, working with services as needed.

The responsibility to ensure that the school complies with safeguarding duties under legislation is overseen by Martin Haskayne in the role of Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL). 

The Roles and Responsibilities of the Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL)

The Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) is a senior member of staff who co-ordinates the schools safeguarding and child protection arrangements by providing advice and support to other staff on child welfare and child protection matters, to take part in strategy meetings and inter-agency meetings – and /or to support other staff to do so - and to contribute to the assessment of children.

Deputy DSL Nicola Wood n.wood@cfat.org.uk

At Platt Bridge Community School pastoral support of pupils is supported by our Pastoral Leads who each have a responsibility for a particular key stage.

School Security

Visitors are welcomed to Platt Bridge Community School.  However, access to teaching and pupil activity areas is carefully controlled.  Entrance to the school is restricted.  The only entrance available to visitors is the main reception door where visitors will sign in and out.  All the remaining doors to the school are secure.  Children are encouraged to not open doors.

All visitors to the school are asked to provide evidence of a DBS disclosure form if working with children.

Policies

For all our Safeguarding and Inclusion Policies please click here.

Inclusion

Platt Bridge Community School is a fully inclusive school. The key principle that our school adopts is that each child is a unique individual and has the right to education which develops their full potential. They have the right to a broad, balanced and differentiated curriculum and the right to access the whole curriculum. Every child has the right to expect to make progress.

The progress of pupils is monitored closely from their admission date by the class teacher, supported by Martin Haskayne the Deputy Head for inclusion / Senco. Parents are consulted where there is cause for concern at the earliest opportunity and a plan (known in school as an APDR – Assess, Plan, Do, Review) is designed for the pupil and to monitor their progress over time.

Where our level of concern increases, other agencies may become involved e.g. advisers to the Headteacher/DSL or Educational Psychology Service. This may sometimes be followed by formal assessment, the outcome of which may be an application for an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).

More able children are catered for in the differentiated planning of the class teacher and Gifted and Talented children are catered for through our own curriculum and through our work with other Partners.

Platt Bridge Community School is also a resourced school. This means that we have a number of additional places available to provide an opportunity for a short period of observation and assessment for other children in the borough to enable a thorough understanding to be gained of how the child learns best and how their full potential can be achieved at their own school.

The Autism Pathway and Service

The Autism Pathway and Service work with schools, teachers and parents to help support children with a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Condition (ASC), for further information, please click here.

Or if you prefer to speak to someone please call Wigan SENDS team on 01942 486136.

Key national contacts 

• NSPCC

• NSPCC helpline - helping adults protect children 24 hours a day. For help and support, including anyone needing advice about female genital mutilation, young people affected by gangs, concerns that someone may be a victim of modern slavery contact the NSPCC trained helpline counsellors on:

  • help@nspcc.org.uk
  • Text 88858
  • 0808 800 5000 

• NSPCC Whistleblowing Advice Line - free advice and support for professionals concerned about how child protection issues are being handled in their organisation.
  • 0800 028 0285
  • help@nspcc.org.uk

• UK Safer Internet Centre professional advice line - helpline for professionals working with children and young people in the UK with any online safety issues they may face themselves or with children in their care.
  • helpline@saferinternet.org.uk
  • 0844 381 4772 

• Police Anti-Terrorist Hot Line number 0800 789 321