Safeguarding Concerns

The safety, welfare and wellbeing of our pupils is our highest priority. We are committed to providing a safe, caring and supportive environment where every child is protected and able to thrive.

If you have any concerns about the safety or welfare of a child, please do not hesitate to contact the school’s Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) or a member of our safeguarding team. All concerns will be taken seriously and dealt with appropriately, in line with our safeguarding procedures and statutory guidance.

If you believe a child is at immediate risk of harm, please contact the appropriate emergency services or local safeguarding services without delay.

Designated Safeguarding Lead - Miss Leanne Savage

Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead - Miss Rowen Quarry

Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead - Miss Faye Watson

You can also seek advice or report concerns directly to the Cumbria Safeguarding Children Partnership (CSCP). They provide guidance and support on how to keep children safe.

For more information, please visit the CSCP website: Cumberland Safeguarding Children Partnership | Cumberland Safeguarding Children Partnership

Working together, we can ensure every child is safe, supported, and heard.

Allergies and Benedict’s Law

The safety and wellbeing of children with allergies is a priority at Distington Community School. Allergies can range from mild symptoms to severe, potentially life-threatening reactions known as anaphylaxis. We recognise the importance of understanding allergies, reducing the risk of exposure to known allergens and ensuring that appropriate procedures are in place to respond quickly and effectively in an emergency.

Our school follows the principles and requirements of Benedict’s Law, which was introduced to improve the support and protection provided to children with allergies in schools and early years settings. We are committed to ensuring that staff have the knowledge and confidence to recognise the signs and symptoms of an allergic reaction and understand the appropriate actions to take.

All staff are allergy trained, helping us to provide a safe and inclusive environment for pupils with allergies. Our Designated Allergy Lead is Miss Leanne Savage, and our Allergy Governor Lead is Mrs Lynn Carini. They support the school in overseeing our allergy arrangements and promoting good practice across the school community.

Please take a look at our Allergy Policy below for further information about how we manage allergies, reduce risks and support pupils with allergies within our school.

We are an Operation Encompass school. 

One of the principles of Operation Encompass is that all incidents of domestic abuse are shared with schools, not just those where an offence can be identified.

Operation Encompass is very simple and easy to implement within a school.

Every school appoints a trained Key Adult  – the Key Adult is the person who receives information about police attended Domestic Abuse incidents.

The Key Adult will be notified prior to the start of the next school day that the police have attended an incident of domestic abuse. This timely information sharing  enables appropriate support to be provided for that child so that all interactions, from when the child first arrives at the school gates, are of a positive nature.

We are also a Kidsafe UK registered school and we have several members of staff who are Kidsafe trained.

Kidsafe is a registered charity that delivers specialised child protection/safeguarding programmes to children and young people from Early Years Foundation Stage through to High School.

Our mission is to protect, educate and empower children without shattering their innocence. With the help of our puppet, KS, the Kidsafe programmes are uniquely designed to help children take an active role in deciding how they themselves can recognise and protect themselves from all forms of abuse. 

For more information about Kidsafe then please visit their website at http://kidsafeuk.co.uk/ or ask a member of staff.

Internet Safety

For important information about how to keep your children safe on the internet then visit these recommend sites.

Here you will find detailed information about the dangers of the internet and social media and how you can best protect your children from harm.

www.net-aware.org.uk 

www.nspcc.org.uk/preventing-abuse/keeping-children-safe/online-safety 

If you are ever concerned or have any questions regarding internet safety them please do not hesitate to contact school and we will be happy to help. 

Working together to safeguard children- a child friendly guide.