Safeguarding
Safeguarding Our Students
If you have a serious concern about your child or any other student at St John Fisher Catholic High School please contact the Safeguarding Team IMMEDIATELY by either telephoning school on 01942 510715, sending an email via the contact form or report anonymously via the Whisper button on our website. Alternatively, you could contact the NSPCC
Whisper
If you’d like to report an issue at St John Fisher Catholic High School, you can do so by clicking the image below. Anything you write will be sent anonymously:
If you have any concerns please use the single point of contact on 01942 828300.
All our Heads of Year are DSL trained and form an integral part of the safeguarding team. The school’s safeguarding governor is Mrs Janet Baron.
Keeping Children Safe in Education
Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) training is completed with all staff annually as part of the new academic year INSET day programme. School staff receive a comprehensive overview of the document, delivered by Mr Maw and Miss Melling, in addition to physical copies of the current KCSIE for the compulsory reading of Part 1 and Appendix A. Additional Child Protection and Safeguarding training is conducted at regular intervals throughout the school year to establish the strong culture of safeguarding that we have at St John Fisher Catholic High School.
Please see the copy of KCSIE document.
Wigan Encompass
What is Operation Encompass?
Operation Encompass is an initiative that follows in the footsteps of a successful programme in Plymouth to safeguard and support children and young people following a domestic abuse incident. It directly connects the Police (GMP) with a Key Adult (Mr Maw) in the child’s school to ensure an efficient, confidential channel of communication. The school will then be better able to support the child.
The psychological impact of living with domestic abuse is no smaller than the impact of being physically abused. Children often develop anxiety, depression, aggression and even post-traumatic stress disorder as a consequence of living with domestic abuse. Approximately two thirds of child witnesses show more emotional or behavioural problems than the average child. Although by no means inevitable, exposure to domestic abuse is one of the most powerful predictors of becoming a perpetrator and a victim as an adult.
Being aware of the trauma a child has experienced enables professionals to better understand and support the child. Operation Encompass aims to ensure that appropriate school staff are made aware early enough to support children and young people in a way that means they feel safe and included.
How does it work?
Following a domestic abuse incident, children will often arrive in school distressed, upset, worried and unprepared. Operation Encompass aims to ensure school staff (Mr Maw, Miss Melling) are made aware early enough to take appropriate action and so help and support children in a way that means they feel safe.
The purpose of, and procedures in, Operation Encompass has been shared with all parents and governors and forms a part of the school’s Safeguarding & Child Protection Policy.
For further information please use the link below.
https://www.operationencompass.org/
If you are worried about domestic abuse there are a number of organisations out there who want to help.
Concerned about a Child
CONCERNED ABOUT domestic Abuse
WORRIED ABOUT DRUGS OR ALCOHOL
WORRIED ABOUT ONLINE GROOMING
MENTAL HEALTH CONCERNS
Samaritans – 08457 90 90 90 / 01942 492222
Wigan Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service – 01942 775400
Radicalisation & extremism
Keeping Children Safe in Education (DfE, 2022) states that protecting children from the risk of radicalisation should be seen as part of schools’ wider safeguarding duties, and is similar in nature to protecting children from other forms of harm and abuse.
All staff have completed face-to-face and on-line training in radicalisation and extremism. Furthermore, safeguarding leads have completed enhanced training in this area.
The website “educate against hate” has been developed by the Department for Education and the Home Office as part of the drive against extremism. The anti-radicalisation website provides “practical advice to protect children from the dangers of extremism”, with information from the government and groups such as the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.
It includes information on:
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warning signs of danger
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how parents/carers should talk to children about extremism
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steps concerned parents/carers can take
Further information and resources can be found here: https://educateagainsthate.com/parents/
Advice for parents/carers on keeping children safe against radicalisation and extremism https://www.archbishopbeck.com/docs/Safeguarding/ExtremismAdviceForParents.pdf
Please also see the following websites for further guidance: