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Safeguarding

Safeguarding Vision

Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is defined as: 

  • Protecting children from maltreatment 
  • Preventing the impairment of children's mental and physical health or development 
  • Ensuring that children grow up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care
  • Taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes 

Castlebridge School recognises the responsibility we have to safeguard and promote the welfare of young people in line with Keeping Children Safe in Education 2026.

Castlebridge School will establish an outstanding safeguarding culture where every pupil is safe, every voice is heard, and every adult takes responsibility for protecting and promoting the welfare of young people. We are committed to understanding experiences, environments and relationships that shape our pupils' lives ensuring that they feel safe, valued and empowered both within and beyond the school gates. Through effective multi-agency collaboration and a focus on wellbeing, we will equip our learners with confidence, resilience, self-regulation and life skills needed to thrive, make safe choices and achieve successful futures. 

Impact:

The impact of our safeguarding culture will be evident when pupils experience safety, belonging and success both within school and in the wider contexts of their lives. 

We will know our vision is being realised when: 

  • Pupils report that they feel safe, listened to, understood and supported
  • Pupils develop increased emotional literacy, self-awareness, resilience and self-regulation
  • Safeguarding concerns are identified early through strong relationships and effective professional practice 
  • Staff consistently understand and respond to behaviour through a trauma-informed and contextually informed lens
  • Risks associated with exploitation, peer influences, online harm, community-based harm and other contextual safeguarding concerns are recognised and addressed effectively
  • Pupils demonstrate improved engagement, attendance, wellbeing and readiness to learn
  • Families and external agencies work collaboratively with the school to support positive outcomes 
  • Pupils are equipped with confidence, knowledg e and skills to keep themselves safe, build healthy relationships and navigate challenges successfully. 
  • Vulnerability linked to Autism and SEMH are understood, supported and reduced through targeted intervention and effective multi-agency working 
  • Safeguarding is recognised as a strength of the school, with a culture where every adult takes responsibility and every young person is empowered to thrive. 
Our Safeguarding Team:

Our Safeguarding Policies: 

Click here for our safeguarding policies. 

Information for Pupils 

If you think you or someone you know is at risk of being harmed or have any safeguarding issues that you would like to report, or simply get some advice, you can speak to the DSL or any other member of staff. All our staff have relevant training and will know the steps they need to take to help 

Student Safeguarding Useful Links: 

Information for Parents & Carers

Castlebridge School works with many other organisations and agencies to support and safeguard the young people with whom we work. 

We use a system called CPOMS to log and record incidents or concerns relating to safeguarding. CPOMS supports out schools processes to monitor child protection, safeguarding, pastoral and welfare concerns for pupils. 

If you are worried about yourself or someone else, the following links my be useful in directing you to an organisation that can help: 

For more information on safeguarding please visit - Keeping children safe in education - GOV.UK or see below the Trust's Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy. 

Tips for helping children stay safe online - IWF / PIER

‘Self-generated’ child sexual abuse material (CSAM) has been the subject of research that PIER (Policing Institute for the Eastern Region) have just finished on behalf of the Internet Watch Foundation. ‘Self-generated’ CSAM are images and videos which are taken by children and then shared either: 

  • willingly, usually with a boyfriend/girlfriend, or  
  • unwillingly, through coercion, or 
  • shared by a third party without their consent.

Some of these images end up being distributed, sometimes sold, on the open and dark web by those with a sexual interest in children.

Just over 300 children took part in the research and talked about their experiences of growing up in a digital world, where they talk to their friends, game and do their schoolwork online. Many described receiving unwanted sexual images and some commented that it has become normalised and part of their lives. The apps they use, such as Snapchat and TikTok are also used by perpetrators to talk to children and groom them into sharing sexual images. This is a serious safeguarding issue, with wide-reaching consequences that we all need to learn more about. 

PIER and IWF have written a blog post for parents about how they can better understand their children's online world and its risks. The blog post can be found here: https://www.iwf.org.uk/news-media/blogs/tips-for-helping-children-stay-safe-online/

See below for more useful documents, websites and posters regarding keeping your child safe in the online world.

  • CEOP News and articles surrounding internet safety.

  • Think You Know Great advice to keep children safe whilst using the internet.

  • Parent Information Expert information to help children and young people stay safe online.

  • NSPCC Online Safety Helpful advice and tools you can use to help keep your child safe whenever and wherever they go online.

  • Online Safety App Keep up with the latest apps games and tech your children are using, with the worlds most comprehensive online safety app for parents

  • Internet Matters Internet and social media advice for parents

Report a Safeguarding Concern 

Worried about a child? 

If you are concerned about the safety, wellbeing or welfare of a pupil, please tell us. Safeguarding is everyon's responsibility, and sharing a concern could help keep a young person safe. 

During School Hours: 

Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL): Bridget Williams 

Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead: Laura Easterbrook 

☎ Telephone: 01822 851240

✉ Email: enquiries@castlebridge.org.uk

Alternatively, concerns can be reported in person via school reception. 

What should I report? 

You may wish to contact us if you are worried about: 

  • A pupils safety or welfare
  • Neglect or Abuse
  • Changes in behaviour, emotional wellbeing or mental health 
  • Bullying, peer conflict or exploitation 
  • Online safety concerns
  • Attendance concerns
  • Risks within the community, peer groups or family environment 

Outside School Hours

If your concern cannot wait until school reopens, please contact: 

Devon Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) 

☎ 0345 155 1071

Safeguarding (Out of Hours) 

☎ 0345 600 0388

Immediate Risk 

If a child or young person is in immediate danger, always call 999

  1. Safeguarding and CP Policy pdf
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