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Safeguarding - Parents

Ensuring the safety and well-being of students at Uxbridge High School is our top priority and therefore we have policies and procedures which surround the issue of safeguarding young people.

Safeguarding means that we aim to ensure the well-being of students both emotionally and physically, and will take steps in order to ensure that young people are not at risk, either from themselves or from others.  We continue to monitor vulnerable students and maintain contact with the relevant services.

At Uxbridge High School, we have a team approach to safeguarding and students with concerns should speak to one of the Safeguarding Team by emailing office@uhs.org.uk.

The steps that the school might take are:

  • meeting with the young person to explore the issue
  • meeting with the parent/s to explore the issue
  • liaising and meeting with other agencies or professionals
  • making a referral to Social Services and liaising with them.

Social Services are first and foremost a preventative agency – they seek to support families to get back on track and make change happen in their lives to ensure that young people are kept safe. It is with this in mind that the school might refer to Social Services: to seek support for the family and young person. Unless the risk is presented by a parent, the school will either consult with them about the referral or inform them that a referral is taking place.

Please click here for our child protection / safeguarding policy.

Please click here for Safeguarding Resources for Parents

"Inspectors reviewed the single central record, took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils, and considered the extent to which the school has created an open and inclusive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first."
Ofsted 2023

What to do if you feel that a young person is at risk:

As a parent:

 

Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE)

Please click here to access the free training course for parents regarding CSE.

Stop it now - child sexual abuse information

 

NSPCC

Whatever your worry, you can contact the NSPCC in one of the following ways:

 

Please see further support links below:

EARLY HELP

What do we mean by Early Help? 

Working Together to Safeguard Children (July 2018) explains that:

'Providing early help is more effective in promoting the welfare of children than reacting later. Early help means providing support as soon as a problem emerges, at any point in a child’s life, from the early years through to the teenage years. Early help can also prevent further problems arising, for example, if it is provided as part of a support plan where a child has returned home to their family from care, or in families where there are emerging parental mental health issues or drug and alcohol misuse.’  

Effective early help relies upon local agencies, including education working together to:

  • identify children and families who would benefit from early help;
  • undertake an assessment of the need for early help; and
  • provide targeted early help services to address the assessed needs of a student and their family, which focuses on activity to significantly improve the outcomes for the student.

How are children and families identified for early help? 

In our school, staff are alert to the fact that early signs of abuse and/or neglect can be indicators that support is needed. In addition, the following children are more likely to require some form of early help:

  • disabled children;
  • children with special educational needs;
  • young carers;
  • children displaying signs of anti-social or criminal behaviour;
  • in family circumstances presenting challenges, including family breakdown;
  • children who have returned home from care.

What support is provided as part of the school's early help offer? 

The school offers a dedicated house group (Wessex) to those students whose attendance has fallen below the threshold of 85%, for whatever reason.  Wessex house provides support via a learning mentor, breakfast club, regular phone calls home and period 6 catch up lessons to aid support with missed work.

The school also offers learning mentors and a counselling service for those students who would benefit from this type of support.

Private Fostering

Private fostering is when a child or young person under the age of 16 (or under 18 if disabled) is cared for, and provided with accommodation for 28 days or more, by an adult who is not a close relative. Close relatives include aunts, uncles, step-parents, grandparents, siblings and step-siblings.

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