Safeguarding Awareness

What is Safeguarding:

Protecting children from abuse or neglect, preventing impairment of their health and development, and ensuring they are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care that enables children to have optimum life chances and enter adulthood successfully.

WHG aims to provide the highest level of care to students.

Principles of Safeguarding:

• Empowerment
• Prevention
• Risk
• Protection
• Partnership
• Accountability
• Welfare of the child is paramount
• Children to thrive and have a positive experience in the UK

Responsibility/Accountability:

It is everyone’s responsibility to play a part in safeguarding our students.

1. Recognise the signs
2. Understand
3. Act

What is Abuse:

This covers; physical, emotional, sexual, neglect, exploitation, radicalisation, cyber-bullying, financial, modern slavery, forced marriage, female genital mutilation (FGM), child sexual exploitation, child criminal exploitation and drug trafficking. 

Signs of Abuse and how to detect:

1. Showing signs of being withdrawn and low self esteem
2. Bruises, Burns and injuries
3. Signs of self-harm – cutting
4. Violent/poor behaviour, coercion and control
5. Craving for love, affection and having lots of gifts/new items but no money to purchase them
6. Poor hygiene
7. Malnutrition
8. Drug and alcohol use
9. Appearing ill regularly with no symptoms

10. Concerns about the people they are meeting up with, sometimes older.

How to respond to a disclosure:

All concerns or disclosures of abuse should be acted upon and all should know the 5 R’s:

• Recognise signs of vulnerability
• Respond to student concerns
• Record student concerns
• Report student concerns
• Refer student concerns

Host families are to remain calm. Issues raised can be complex.

The Local Guardian (LG) and the WHG Head Office support all host families.

If a student discloses – follow these steps:

1. Listen carefully to what you are told, do not interview them, but ask open questions: Tell me… Describe… Explain… – obtain the facts. Do not make assumptions. 
2. Reassure the student that they have done the right thinking telling you.
3. Make notes.
4. Advise that the information given to you by the student will be reported.
5. Contact WHG Head Office 0345868688 immediately (even during the night) if you are concerned.
6. Report the disclosure to the LG/WHG Head Office.

Recording the disclosure:

Host families must report to their LG, who will then speak to our DSL (Designated Safeguarding Lead) at Head Office. Do not confront any person against whom an allegation has been made.

In case of a disclosure, the LG will then contact the student’s Social Worker to report it and speak with the WHG Head Office DSL. They will also speak to the School Child Protection Officer.

The DSL will guide the host family and the LG.

The LG, after seeking advice and reporting to the DSL, will contact their local LADO (Local Area Designated Officer) at the local authority Children’s Services.

State Students:

Students that are resident in the UK and staying with a host family for more than 27 nights/28 days and are under the age of 16, will be allocated a Private Fostering Worker with their local authority Private Fostering team.

The LG will have completed a referral to the Private Fostering team prior to the student’s arrival.

All students under the age of 18 years attending any private school in the UK, all disclosure must be reported to the Local Guardian and the school Houseparent, who will then speak to the School Child Protection Officer.

Over the age of 16 years, the LG must be advised and WHG DSL.

For Contacts:

White House Guardianships has a 24/7 emergency helpline, to access this, please call our office on +44 3458 686 688. Out of office hours, the call is directed to a mobile, which is answered by a member of Head Office to assist in the emergency; this is also a Designated Safeguarding Officer (DSL).