SCHOOL POLICIES

HEALTH AND SAFETY POLICY

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Policy and Commitment……………………………………………………… 4

1.0 STATEMENT OF INTENT…………………………………………………………………………………… 4

2.0 RESPONSIBILITIES FOR HEALTH & SAFETY…………………………………………………………. 5

Chapter 2: Planning and Implementing………………………………………………. 11

Chapter 3: Measuring Performance…………………………………………………… 13

Chapter 4: Audit and Review……………………………………………………………. 14

Chapter 5: Arrangements / Sub-Policies…………………………………………….. 15

Chapter 1: Policy and Commitment

1.0 STATEMENT OF INTENT

The governors of Taunton School fully recognize their collective responsibility for providing, so far as is reasonably practicable, a safe and healthy School for pupils, employees, contractors, visitors (including parents) and others who could be affected by School activities. As employers, they attach a high priority to ensuring that all the operations within the School environment, both educational and support, are delivered in an appropriate manner. The governors are committed to promoting the welfare of all in the community so that effective learning can take place. They fulfil their responsibilities as governors of Taunton School by appointing a governor with responsibility for overseeing health, safety and security, Ian Moncrieff.

Day-to-day responsibility for the operation of health and safety at the School is vested with the CEO. However, the governors have specified that the School should adopt the following framework for managing health and safety:

Governors review the School’s Health and Safety policy
The governor overseeing health and safety, Ian Moncrieff, attends the meetings of the School’s termly Health and Safety Strategy He also receives copies of all relevant paperwork.
The School appoints a suitably qualified H & S Advisor and Fire Safety Officer, Ian
An external health and safety consultant will be employed when necessary to provide specific competent advice, review the overall arrangements for general health and safety and fire safety, the general state of the School, and reports on actions required with recommended timescales and an action
A termly health and safety report is produced by Ian Burgess for governors who also receive the minutes of all relevant H&S
The School manages its risks through a robust process of risk assessment and review with a clear policy on risk
The governing body hold ultimate responsibility for complying with the The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and delegate day to day responsibility to the CEO. The School has fire risk assessments, carried out by a competent person, that are reviewed every year for progress on completion of items in the action plan. They are updated every five years or more frequently if significant changes are made to the interior of buildings, new buildings are bought or added or there is any other change to the level of The Strategic Health and Safety Committee reviews these risk assessment every time they are updated.
The School has a comprehensive policy in place for the training and induction of new staff in health and safety related Health and safety training that is related to an individual member of staff’s functions, such as science technician, will be provided in addition to the ‘standard’ induction training.
All members of staff are responsible for taking reasonable care of their own safety, that of pupils, visitors, temporary staff, volunteers and contractors. They are responsible for co-operating with the heads, the COO and other members of the Senior Policy Committee and respective Senior Leadership Teams to enable the School to operate safely. All staff are responsible for reporting any significant risks or issues to management or the H&S

Signed: Chairman of Governors Date: 1 September 2022

2.0 Responsibilities for Health and Safety

This part of the Policy deals with the delegation of Health and Safety tasks within the Schools.

The Governing Body

The governors have ultimate responsibility for health, safety and security within the School. They ensure that there are satisfactory arrangements in place to implement this policy and that health and safety issues are considered and addressed. The governors will consider health and safety implications when making strategic decisions and will make adequate resources available so far as is reasonably practicable, to enable legal obligations in respect of health and safety to be met. They will ensure that this policy is reviewed annually to ensure its suitability. A governor with responsibility for oversight of Health and Safety matters is appointed.

The CEO

The CEO will assist the Board in directing the overall management and development of the policy, defining its aims and communicating the responsibilities associated with the management of H&S within the School. The CEO will also report to the Board on health and safety performance and assist in implementing changes in the policy which the Board have approved and will chair the School’s H&S committee and the Health and Safety Strategy Group. The governors retain responsibility for fire safety within the School, as defined in the 2005 Regulatory Reform Order (Fire Safety).

The COO

The COO will have day-to-day management responsibility for ensuring that, so far as is reasonably practicable, arrangements are in place for the management of health, safety and security for all members of the Support Staff. She will also act as line manager to the School H&S Advisor.

Heads of TS, TPS/TPPS and TSI/TSIMS

The CEO delegates the day-to-day responsibility for health, safety and security organisation to the three respective Heads of School, with the DCEO acting for TS. They are assisted by their heads of department and other staff who have responsibility for physical areas or responsibility for particular areas.

Health and Safety Advisor and Fire Safety Officer

The School appoints a Health and Safety Advisor and Fire Safety Officer. He advises School management and staff on how to carry out their H&S responsibilities. He is responsible for the overall coordination of the School’s risk assessment process by making sure that suitable and sufficient risk assessments are completed competently, authorised and in place. He monitors the associated risk register. He co- ordinates advice from specialist safety advisors and produces action plans in conjunction with the Head of Estates and Facilities. He advises management on H&S training needs and supports the HR department in the delivery of training.

As Fire Officer, he is the ‘Competent Person’ appointed by the CEO to advise him on all matters relating to fire safety. As such, his role is to ensure that the School has suitable and sufficient fire risk assessments that are reviewed annually for items in the action plan and updated every five years, or when significant changes are made to the interior of buildings, or new buildings are bought or added. He also ensures that in addition to the weekly fire alarm tests, the alarm system, together with all smoke detectors, emergency lighting, extinguishers and panic buttons are tested annually by a qualified contractor.

Head of HR

The Head of HR supports management and Heads of Department in identifying, organising and recording staff safety training as appropriate and issues all new staff with a copy of the Health and Safety policy. She arranges health and safety related induction training and makes sure staff are aware of their personal responsibilities as set out in this policy.

Heads of Department (Academic, Pastoral and Co-Curricular)

All Heads of Department are responsible for the health and safety of those affected by activities under their control and manage risks accordingly. As risk owners, they are responsible for maintaining up to date risk assessments for their areas and producing a departmental H&S policy when required. Specific risk assessments are required for the following departments and will be completed with support from the H&S Advisor when required:

Science – Head of Science TS, TPS/TPPS, TSI/TSIMS, in line with latest CLEAPS advice;
Sports Activities and PE – Director of Co-Curricular TS, Director of Sport TPS/TPPS, Principal TSI;
Drama – Head of Drama TS, TPS/TPPS;
Art – Head of Art TS, TPS/TPPS,TSI;
Music – Head of Music TS, TPS, TPPS;
Design & Technology – Head of Design & Technology TS, TPS/TPPS, TSI;
Trips and visits – Educational Visits Officer;
Catering and cleaning functions – Head of Home Economics / Food Technology;
Ammunition and firearms – Combined Cadet Force Commanding Officer;
Boarding – house staff;
Unsupervised activities – deputy heads TS/TPS/TSI.

Heads of Department must also ensure that Personal Protective Equipment is made available and used where appropriate, that equipment is maintained properly, normally in consultation with the Estates Manager, that hazardous waste is disposed of safely and that staff are aware of occupational health, for example noise and dust levels. They will also work with the Head of HR and identify, organise and record training that is relevant to their area of control.

The Sister in Charge of Health Centre

The Sister in Charge is responsible for the implementation of the Health and First Aid policy. She also provides advice and support to the HR department on First Aid training requirements, maintains the accident book and attends the weekly ‘safety cluster’ meeting. At this meeting it is decided whether to report notifiable accidents to the Health & Safety Executive. She prepares summary accident reports for the School Health and Safety Committee in conjunction with the H&S Advisor. The arrangements for recording and reporting accidents to staff, pupils and visitors including RIDDOR are included in the Health and First Aid policy.

Head of Estates and Facilities The Head of Estates and Facilities is responsible for his personal safety and that of all personnel under his area of control (Maintenance, Grounds and Facilities) and those affected by his areas of work including contractors. In particular, he will:

Understand and implement the School’s safety policy;
Appreciate his staff’s responsibilities and ensure that each employee knows his/her responsibility and are equipped to play their part;
Conduct Risk Assessments on activities within his departments ensuring that the methods and systems of work are safe. Also that the necessary procedures, rules and regulations designed to achieve this are formulated, published and applied;
Provide written instructions of work methods outlining potential hazards and precautions, and ensure they are complied with;
Ensure accident and near-miss reporting procedures are understood and complied with, and assist with accident investigations where appropriate;
Ensure all employees and sub-contractors are suitably trained/competent to carry out the prescribed task and that the necessary licenses/certificates of competence are in force and appropriate;
Ensure the Statutory Notices, the Safety Policy and Insurance Certificate are displayed and maintained in prominent locations;
Ensure maintenance and, where necessary examination and testing, of plant and equipment (such as electrical equipment, local exhaust ventilation, pressure systems, gas appliances, lifting equipment and glazing safety).

Facilities Manager

The Facilities Manager, with the Head of Estates and Facilities, is responsible for building security, site traffic movements, maintenance of School vehicles, pest control and all domestic services. He is responsible for risk management within this area and for ensuring all areas are risk assessed accordingly. He oversees the implementation of the School’s security policy and the onsite movement of vehicles.

General Manager

The General Manager is responsible for the safe operation of all areas for which he has management responsibility. These are:

Ø Catering Manager

The catering manager is responsible for the safe operation of the School’s catering facilities. As such, she must be familiar with the content of this policy and ensure that all catering staff are instructed and informed to work in accordance with the latest food safety guidelines. As the risk holder in this area, she carries out risk assessments for all catering related activities.

Ø Events and Residential Manager

The Events and Residential manager is responsible for ensuring that the premises are safe for the use of the hirer during residential lets and external functions and those hirers know their responsibilities. She is also responsible for the safe operation of the swimming pools and sports club facilities. Risk assessments are completed accordingly.

Ø Swim School and Sports Club

The Swim School and Sports Club manager is responsible for the safe operation of the swimming pools and sports club facilities and risk assessments are completed accordingly. The Pool Safety Operating Procedure is attached as an annex to this policy.

Radiation Protection Supervisor (RPS)

The School’s Radiation Protection Supervisor (RPS), Luke Waller the head of physics, is responsible for liaison with the appointed Radiation Protection Advisor to ensure compliance with the Ionising Radiation Regulations 1999 and local rules made to comply with these regulations.

The RPS is also responsible for ensuring compliance with the Radioactive Substances Act 1993 and exemption certificates granted under them.

The RPA will advise on potential issues arising from any materials and equipment, and will be consulted before the commissioning or movement of Ionising equipment.

A prior risk assessment and local rules will be completed in consultation with the RPA before commissioning of any equipment that applies to IRR17.

All Staff

All staff are regularly reminded of their responsibilities below:

taking reasonable care of their own health, safety and well-being. The School has an occupational health policy for staff;
familiarizing themselves with the detail of the H&S policy;
co-operating fully with the School on all matters relating to their health, safety and well-being at work;
not recklessly or intentionally interfering with, or misusing any equipment, safety devices etc. that have been provided in the interest of their health and safety at work;
reporting promptly, in the first instance to their manager and on Firefly, any accidents, injury, significant near miss, incident of violence and aggression, cases of work-related illness;
reporting to the relevant manager, any defect, hazard, damage or unsafe practices or other items that could give rise to an unsafe place of work or cause injury or ill health to others;
wearing any protective clothing or equipment and using any safety devices that have been provided for their health and safety while at work;
observing safety rules, policies and guidance, and adhering to safe working procedures at all times;
acquainting themselves with, and complying with, the procedure to follow in case of a fire or other emergency;
attending health and safety training as directed and undertaking their work activities in accordance with any health and safety training provided to them;

First Aiders

Full details of First Aid provision are provided in the Health and First Aid policy. The number and type of First Aiders is determined by a First Aid needs assessment. All staff receive first aid familiarisation training and others have more specific training as determined by risk assessment. The School’s First Aiders will administer first aid and will call for immediate support from the Health Centre nurses. They are required to keep their training up to date and if equipment is used, arrange for it to be replaced by contacting the Health Centre.

Visitors and Other Users of the Premises

This policy applies to all visitors to our School. Visitors are required to sign in and to wear a ‘visitors’ identification badge and where possible visitors will be accompanied by an appropriate staff member. Should a fire/emergency occur or the fire alarm be activated whilst visitors are on our premises, the person who is accompanying the visitor/s will take him/her to the fire assembly point. Should an incident/accident occur involving a visitor this must be reported using our standard accident reporting form. Where applicable, adequate consideration must be given to visitors, contractors and members of the public in risk assessments, including the provision of suitable and sufficient control measures.

Staff who host visitors issue them with the Visitors’ Safeguarding and Emergency Leaflet or alert them to the following:

visitors are alerted to our fire procedures;
visitors adhere to our ‘No Smoking’ policy;
visitors park their vehicles in such a way so as not to obstruct fire escape routes, roads, access or other vehicles;
visitors are normally accompanied or authorised to enter the premises;
visitors remain within authorised areas and not enter any restricted area unless permission is granted and the person is accompanied;
visitors do not take anything with them from the premises, or bring anything onto the premises that may create a hazard or risk unless authorised;
visitors report all accidents, incidents and near misses to the

Parents

Parents are seen as part of our community and are welcome therefore to visit the campus. We expect them to observe sensible safety and security procedures in order to ensure that they remain safe and that their actions do not endanger any other members of the community.

School Trips and Off Site Visits

School trips and visits, including residential visits, are the responsibility of the Head of each part of the School and each school has an Off Site Visits/Educational Visits policy. Permission is given by, or on behalf of, the relevant Head for staff to take pupils on a School trip and all trips with heightened risk are signed off by the CEO. It is then the responsibility of the member of staff concerned to comply with the School Trip Policy for their part of the School. The Health and Safety Coordinator is not normally concerned with School Trips.

Health and Safety Emergencies

Arrangements for dealing with H&S emergencies are contained in the Crisis and Emergency policy for each school.

The Pupils

Our pupils are expected to exercise personal responsibility for the health and safety of themselves and others, observe all the health and safety rules of the School and, in particular, the instructions of staff given in an emergency and to not wilfully misuse, neglect or interfere with things provided for their health and safety.

Pupil Access to Risky Areas

Areas of high risk are identified in a whole school risk assessment that is reviewed annually by the COO. Any near misses or incidents, which occur in this area, are investigated and reviewed by the H&S Committee. A copy of the risk assessment can be found in the List of Arrangements/sub-policies section.

Contractors

Contractors are managed by the Head of Estates and facilities who ensures that they are appropriately selected and competent in terms of health and safety. Contractors are made aware of and abide by this policy so as not to endanger pupils, staff or other visitors to the site. The Head of Estates and Facilities will ensure that any temporary rules, such as exclusion from parts of the premises, are made known to all contractors.

All contractors must report to reception and be signed in before any work takes place and prior to each working session.

Fire Marshals

All teaching staff and selected support staff are trained as Fire Marshalls; full details are in the Fire Safety policy. Training is provided by the H&S coordinator and a list of trained staff maintained by the HR department. Fire marshals are responsible for familiarising themselves with their areas of responsibility, the escape routes and any issues with particular pupils. Upon hearing the fire alarm, they are responsible for:

ensuring the safe evacuation of everyone in their area(s) of responsibility;
checking all rooms in their area(s) of responsibility; including toilets, rest rooms and store rooms; to ensure that everyone has safely left the building;
where possible, closing windows and doors as each room is checked;
reporting to the Incident Control Officer at the assembly point to inform them that everyone has safely evacuated the building, or to report any problems;
ensuring that nobody re-enters the building until the Incident Control Officer has stated it is safe to do so;
ensuring they are available, after the evacuation, to attend a debrief meeting to discuss the evacuation, identify any problems and share information;
monitoring to ensure that fire routes, fire extinguishers, luminaires and exits are kept clear at all

Asbestos Duty Holder

The governors act as Asbestos Duty Holder. They delegate authority for the day-to-day management of asbestos to the Head of Estates and Facilities who ensures that we have a written asbestos policy and management plan in place.

Health and Safety Governance and Management

The School has a governor responsible for overseeing Health and Safety matters. He attends the termly H&S Strategy Group Meeting and reports to governors on H&S related matters. There is a separate sub-committee, the Estates H&S and Security Group that meets termly and reports to the H&S Committee. The management structure is shown in Figure 1.

Ø Health and Safety Strategy Group

The Group meets once a term and sets the overall safety strategy for the short and medium term. It considers issues such as policy, audit, review, and resources, particularly financial, personnel and training. The group will review the register of risk assessments annually.

Ø School Health and Safety Committee

Each part of the School is represented on the H&S Committee and anyone wishing to raise a health and safety concern should contact one of its members. The Committee meets termly and is chaired by the CEO. Following each meeting, its Members are responsible for communication with relevant staff to take matters forward. Minutes are distributed to the Committee; they are held by the Secretary to the Health and Safety Committee and are available to all staff on request. Copies of the Minutes are sent to governors. The Governor who is responsible for overseeing health and

safety attends these meetings. The Committee members are listed on the organogram below. The role of the Committee is to:

discuss matters concerning health and safety, including any changes to legislation;
monitor the effectiveness of health and safety within the School;
review accident and near miss trends and discuss preventative measures;
discuss training requirements;
monitor the implementation of professional advice;
review and update safety policy guidance;
assist in the development of safety rules and safe systems of work;
monitor communication and publicity relating to health and safety in the work place;
Receive a termly report from the fire officer;
Take reports from the estates and security-working

Ø Health, Safety and Security Sub Committee

This group focuses on the management of infrastructure risks mainly related to management of buildings. It also provides a forum for the management of security issues. The group meets termly.

Ø Safety Cluster

This group meets weekly to review accidents and near misses and reports any significant issues to the COO.

Introduction

The Board of Governors requires mechanisms to be in place to provide assurance that policy requirements are being introduced, maintained and effectively implemented to provide high standards of environment and safety performance.

Consultation with Staff

Health and Safety is a regular item on the agenda at staff meetings and other meetings. Any points raised will be discussed, duly minuted and actioned accordingly.

Risk Assessments

Risk assessments are required by law. The responsibility for completing assessments and implementing controls falls to managers and teachers as part of their normal duties. Most risk assessments will be straightforward in nature. However, there will be instances of complex risk where it will be necessary to request assistance from the Health and Safety Coordinator or competent external advice. The outcome of the process shall be the identification and implementation of adequate control measures to minimise harm to people and the environment. Significant residual risks, or where adequate control cannot be achieved, shall be fed into the reporting system for action at the appropriate level.

The H&S Advisor maintains a list of all risk assessments and ensures that they are reviewed annually. The list is reviewed by the H&S strategy committee once a year. An action plan is generated from this list of risk assessments that is also reviewed by the committee. The H&S Advisor and the Head of HR are responsible for ensuring staff are trained in the School’s risk assessment process.

Objectives and Targets

Our School plan contains strategic objectives, including those for safety, together with targets for their implementation.

Action Plans

Governors are briefed on the School’s safety action plan. This plan is derived from H&S audits carried out internally or externally by competent third party advisors and augmented by output from the School’s risk assessment process. The H&S Advisor is responsible for producing the action plan.

Chapter 3: Measuring Performance

Reactive measurement techniques employed by our School include:

Accident and incident reporting and associated statistics;
Reporting the outcomes of accident and incident investigations conducted;
Ill health data where related to occupational causes;
Claims data, including claims settled with payment;
Details of enforcement action from external regulators, including improvement and prohibition notices and, where relevant,

Chapter 4: Audit and Review

Audit

Audit is an essential part of our safety management system. A useful definition of audit in this context is “the structured process of collecting independent information on the efficiency, effectiveness and reliability of the safety management system and drawing up plans for corrective action”. It, therefore, involves making judgements about adequacy of performance. Our periodic audit shall aim at establishing that:

Appropriate management arrangements are in place and effective;
Adequate risk control systems exist, are implemented, and consistent with the hazard profile of our School;
Appropriate precautions are in place and

Audits will be conducted by our Health and Safety Advisor, supported by competent advice as necessary and in accordance with the Competent Advice Policy.

Review

Reviewing is the process of making judgement about the adequacy of performance and taking decisions about the nature of the actions necessary to remedy deficiencies and maintain continuous improvement. Internal reviews of performance shall be undertaken at all levels within the School. Information to support reviews may be taken from the activities undertaken to measure performance including the outcomes of audits, inspections and more informal monitoring activities.

Chapter 5: Arrangements / Sub-Policies

Introduction

The School has a number of risk specific policies that provide instruction and guidance to staff on the arrangements for the maintenance of acceptable standards of health and safety. As a School, we are required to have a great many policies and some of them will contain useful safety-related information and these are listed in the table below.

List of Arrangements/ Sub-Policies

Listed below are specific policies that Taunton School has in place to manage safety. This list will be subject to review and additional policies added as the need for them becomes clear.

Name of Policy

Lead

Risk assessment

Process for the identification of hazards, assessment

of risk and implementation of control measures

James Johnson

Fire Safety, procedures and fire

risk assessment

Guidance on fire risk assessment requirements, the testing of fire protection systems and management

of evacuations; also the keeping of records

James Johnson

Health and First Aid Policy

List of First Aiders

Requirements for the provision and implementation of first aid for pupils and staff. (Covered in the

Health & First Aid Policy.)

Ed Burnett

Administering

Medication

Process and restrictions on administering medication

to pupils

Emily Kane

Asbestos

Requirements for managing asbestos within buildings, arranging for works and maintaining

records

Terry Harris

Catering Policy

Provide quality standards and outline the responsibilities of the catering department regarding the provision of food across the School.

Graeme Barclay

Competent Advice

Requirement for health and safety advice from

competent person (internal and external)

Nikki Miller

Covid-19 Pandemic

Guidance and procedures for Covid-19 Phased

Return to School

Nikki Miller

Construction at Work (CDM)

Guidance on the role of the client under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations

covering all construction work

Terry Harris

Contractor

Management Policy

Guidance on the selection and appointment of any

persons employed on contracting activities

Terry Harris

Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH)

Specific Ionising Radiation Contingency Plans for TS

Requirements for the usage, storage and generation of hazardous substances

Protocols for the handling and disposal of radioactive material

Ian Burgess

Luke Waller

Educational Visits (EYFS and non

EYFS)/Off Site visits

Guidance for each area on the process for assessing, approving and undertaking of educational visits

Ed Burnett/Chris Coleman/Camilla

Bryden

Electrical Safety

Guidance on usage maintenance of electrical

systems and portable appliance testing

Terry Harris

Crisis and Emergency

Plans

Guidance on areas for consideration when planning

for School contingency plans

Nikki Miller

Gas Safety

Guidance on the storage, usage and maintenance of

gas systems

Terry Harris

General workplace safety

Guidance on general requirements including lighting, temperature control, maintenance of workplace

conditions and welfare activities

Ian Burgess

Hot Works

Process for controlling all hot work activities such as

welding, brazing etc.

Terry Harris

Infection Control

Guidance on notification and control of infection

outbreaks. (Covered in the Health & First Aid Policy)

Emily Kane

Letting and hiring

Guidance on usage of School premises by third

parties

Graeme Barclay

Lightning Protection

Requirements for testing, maintenance and usage of

contractors on lightning protection equipment

Terry Harris

Manual Handling

Guidance on safe techniques and areas for

consideration when undertaking manual handling

Ian Burgess

Grey Fleet Policy	Guidance on the management and usage of vehicles including driver competence	Ian Almond
Lone Working	Guidance for the safety of individuals working alone	Terry Harris
New and Expectant Mothers	Requirements for the notification, assessment and monitoring of new and expectant mothers	Emily Chapple
Noise	Guidance on the assessment of noisy activities and the provision of noise control measures	Ian Burgess
Occupational Health	Guidance on the areas for consideration when assessing the needs of pupils and staff	Emily Chapple
Pupil Access to Risky Areas	Risk Assessment for student access to risky areas	Nikki Miller
Keeling Pool NOP Keeling Pool Emergency Action Plan TPS NOP TPS Emergency Action Plan	These procedures identify the processes designed to control swimming pool admission, supervision and usage. The procedures are used in conjunction with other operational procedures to manage the safety in swimming pools	Nikki Miller
Radon	Guidance on the identification, access to information and control of exposure to Radon	Terry Harris
Security Policy	Guidance on a template policy for schools to ensure the safety and security of their premises	Ed Burnett/Nikki Miller
Smoking and vaping	Guidance on smoking within School premises and on School activities	Ed Burnett
Stress	Guidance on the management of the workplace and activities to control stress	Emily Chapple
Sun Protection (currently being updated)	Guidance on protection of pupils and staff to UK exposure when undertaking outside activities	Emily Kane
Swimming Pools	Guidance on maintenance of pools and managing pool based activities	Nikki Miller
Training	Guidance on general training requirements and the need for record keeping
Vehicles and on-site movement of vehicles	Guidance on the control of School premises when dealing with all vehicle and pedestrian movements	Ian Almond
Water Quality (including Legionella)	Requirements for the testing and maintenance of water systems, including the use of third parties for specialist activities	Terry Harris
Wellbeing		Emily Kane
Working at Heights	Requirements for deciding on the management of activities at height, including access arrangements	Terry Harris

SEXUAL VIOLENCE & SEXUAL HARASSMENT POLICY

POLICY AIM

This whole school policy aims to provide a practical guide to ensure that all staff know how to support young people who are affected by sexual violence and sexual harassment between children.

Principles

The principles which underpin this policy are largely covered in this document. Any repetition simply reflects the spirit of the guidance and mandate the school has in Keeping Children safe in the school and are stated below;

The school has a whole school approach to safeguarding which means that all school policies practices should be underpinned by these core values (which are stated below)
Sexual violence and sexual harassment can occur between two children of any age and sex from primary through to secondary stage and into colleges.
It can occur through a group of children sexually assaulting or sexually harassing a single child or group of
It can occur between teachers to teachers and/or teachers to students.
Sexual violence and sexual harassment exist on a continuum and may overlap; they can occur online and face to face (both physically and verbally) and are never
‘It could happen here’. Gloryfield School makes reference to this statement but goes further to say ‘it does happen here’ and it is everyone’s responsibility to remain alert to the signs. Therefore, even if we do not have any reports of sexual harassment, violence or bullying we assume it is happening and we should consider and challenge the school culture
- Do children feel safe to report it?
- Do children understand how to report it?
- Do children have enough suitable student voice to explain how they feel?
A child abusing another child may be a sign they have been abused themselves or a sign of wider issues (domestic or not) that require addressing within the culture of the school or
The school has ‘zero tolerance’ approach to behaviour around sexual violence and sexual harassment i.e. it will be taken seriously, ‘banter’ will always be challenged and reported and it will not be

The school’s role

To create a safe environment in which young people feel comfortable and know how to disclose issues which worry them including sexual violence and sexual harassment
To ensure all staff know how to manage a disclosure around sexual violence and sexual harassment
To ensure all staff are trained to be aware of the signs of abuse and neglect (including sexual violence and sexual harassment)
To provide education around safeguarding (including sexual violence and sexual harassment) which challenges everyday sexism and other protected characteristics.
To ensure children understand that the law is in place to protect rather than to criminalise them
To be proactive so that the school can work with statutory safeguarding partner

Definitions

Victim	The person who has disclosed that they have suffered sexual violence or sexual harassment either on-line, off line or a combination of both
Perpetrator	The person who is likely to have committed sexual violence or sexual harassment
Between children (sometimes referred to as ‘Child on child’)	Legally a child is anyone under the age of 18. However, Gloryfield School may have children who are over the age of 18. If sexual violence or sexual assault happens between peers but one is over the age of 18 and one is under the age of 18 (they could still be ‘peers’, in the same year group).
Outside school	Sexual violence and sexual harassment between children and/or staff could happen outside school. However, the victim and perpetrator could still be subject to support, intervention and possible disciplinary action because of the impact it will have within school
Rape	A person (A) commits an offence of rape if: he intentionally penetrates the vagina, anus or mouth of another person (B) with his penis, B does not consent to the penetration and A does not reasonably believe that B consents
Assault by Penetration	A person (A) commits an offence if: s/he intentionally penetrates the vagina or anus of another person (B) with a part of her/his body or anything else, the penetration is sexual and B does not consent to the penetration and A does not reasonably believe that B Consents.

	,
Sexual Assault	A person (A) commits an offence of sexual assault if: s/he intentionally touches another person (B), the touching is sexual, B does not consent to the touching and A does not reasonably believe that B consents. (Schools should be aware that sexual assault covers a very wide range of behaviour so a single act of kissing someone without consent or touching someone’s bottom/breasts/genitalia without consent, can still constitute sexual assault.)
Causing someone to engage in sexual activity without consent	A person (A) commits an offence if: s/he intentionally causes another person (B) to engage in an activity, the activity is sexual, B does not consent to engaging in the activity, and A does not reasonably believe that B consents. (This could include forcing someone to strip, touch themselves sexually, or to engage in sexual activity with a third party.)
Consent	Consent is about having the freedom and capacity to choose. Consent to sexual activity may be given to one sort of sexual activity but not another, e.g.to vaginal but not anal sex or penetration with conditions, such as wearing a condom. Consent can be withdrawn at any time during sexual activity and each time activity occurs. Someone consents to vaginal, anal or oral penetration only if s/he agrees by choice to that penetration and has the freedom and capacity to make that choice. *Note:* · *a child under the age of 18 can never consent to any sexual activity* *• the age of consent is 18* *• Sexual intercourse without consent is rape.*
Sexual harassment	Unwanted conduct of a *“sexual nature”* that can occur online and offline and both inside and outside of the school/college. Sexual harassment is likely to: violate a child’s dignity, and/or make them feel intimidated, degraded or humiliated and/or create a hostile, offensive or sexualised environment. can include: • sexual comments, such as: telling sexual stories, making lewd comments, making sexual remarks about clothes and appearance and calling someone sexualised names; • sexual “jokes” or taunting; • physical behaviour, such as: deliberately brushing against someone, interfering with someone’s clothes (schools and colleges should be considering when any of this crosses a line into sexual violence – it is important to talk to and consider the experience of the victim) and displaying pictures, photos or drawings of a sexual nature; and • online sexual harassment. This may be standalone, or part of a wider pattern of sexual harassment and/or sexual violence

Harmful sexual behaviour	Children’s sexual behaviour exists on a wide continuum, from normal and developmentally expected to inappropriate, problematic, abusive and violent. HSB can occur online and/or face to face and can also occur simultaneously between the two.
Whole school approach to safeguarding	Systems should be in place (and they should be well promoted, easily understood and easily accessible) for children and staff to confidently report abuse, sexual violence and sexual harassment, knowing their concerns will be treated seriously, and that they can safely express their views and give feedback.
Zero tolerance	All staff must have a zero tolerance to any behaviour which could downplay behaviour between peers (and indeed, between staff or between staff and pupils) which could lead to a culture in which sexual violence or sexual harassment is condoned as ‘banter’, ‘just having a laugh’
Extra familial harms	It is possible that someone affected by sexual violence or harassment could be suffering extra-familial harms. These take a variety of different forms and children can be vulnerable to multiple harms including (but not limited to), sexual exploitation, criminal exploitation, sexual abuse, serious youth violence and county lines
On-line and off- line	The school recognises a) The impact of on-line life on the attitudes of children and young people towards other children and how this can impact healthy relationships b) How successive lockdowns have exacerbated the influence of on-line life on children and young people c) On-line life impacts on the cultural norms in children and young person’s off- line life.

Staff should be aware it is more likely that girls will be the victims of sexual violence and sexual harassment and more likely it will be

Perpetrated by boys.

Almost a quarter (24%) of female students and 4% of male students at mixed-sex schools have been subjected to unwanted physical touching of a sexual nature while at school.

What staff should be aware of

They should ensure their behaviours in school set the right example so that they stand out as good role models. This means not only challenging and reporting inappropriate behaviour with pupils but also challenging and reporting inappropriate behaviour between staff (or staff to pupils). This is also explained in the staff code of
They should be aware of the principles behind the school behaviour policies and what role they play in enacting these
They should be aware of reasonable force, what it is, how it can be used to keep children and young people
They should have a zero tolerance approach towards sexual violence and sexual harassment and should never see ‘banter’ or ‘just having a laugh’ as
They should be aware of what child on child abuse is, causing someone to engage in sexual activity without consent, such as forcing to strip, touch themselves sexually or to engage in sexual activity with a third party is also abuse.
Children subjected to sexual violence and sexual harassment are likely to
1. Be less motivated and therefore attainment in class will suffer
2. Change in mood
3. Change in physical appearance
4. Change in friendship groups
5. Change in attendance at school
6. Change in possessions

Children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) are three times more likely to be abused than their peers.
1. Additional barriers can sometimes exist when recognising abuse in SEND
2. These can include: • assumptions that indicators of possible abuse such as behaviour, mood and injury relate to the child’s disability without further exploration; • the potential for children with SEND being disproportionately impacted by behaviours such as bullying and harassment, without outwardly showing any signs; and • communication barriers and difficulties overcoming these
All staff are responsible for being alert to any safeguarding concerns (including sexual violence and sexual harassment), to act on these concerns appropriately depending on the level of need eg if a pupil is at risk of immediate then the member of staff should act in their best interests.
All staff should be aware that effective record keeping is essential in supporting the child and therefore in each part of the school they should understand their role and how they support this. There is a broader element to this – ‘a whole school approach to preventing child on child sexual violence and sexual harassment’ – by which the school has in place suitable systems to ensure that staff can report abuse. This is covered in training.
Technology: staff should be aware that technology plays a significant role in many safeguarding and wellbeing
Older pupils: should be aware of the role they have in being good role models and in caring for others, intervening and reporting behaviour which falls below the standard expected within our behaviour and safeguarding policies.
How to manage a disclosure: see Appendices below

how staff deal with a disclosure around sexual violence or sexual harassment

•Staff may observe behaviour / hear a rumour which suggests a safeguarding concern

•they should immediately talk to the DSL or one of the deputies*

•Report it by the end of the school day**

•agreement made about the best way to talk to the young person

•All staff are trained to take it seriously

•The victim is re-assured: they will be supported and kept safe

•abuse online or outside the school will not be downplayed and will be taken equally seriously

•the victim will never be given the impression that they are creating a problem by reporting sexual violence or sexual harassment

•Staff should not promise confidentiality during the disclosure

•The member of staff should ask open questions -where, when, what – and create a time line of events. This should be written up.

•If the victim has ‘evidence’ on a mobile phone then it may be appropriate to let the DSL or the police deal with any on-line evidence. Staff should not view or forward illegal images of a child.

•check the written record with the young person and explain what will happen next including re-assurance about them being in control

•If the member of staff has concerns that the pupil is at risk of immediate harm then they should engage mutli-agency partners (most likely, the police in this instance)

•Otherwise, make sure the young person is safe (health centre is an obvious place) and see the DSL immediately

•ensure the young person understands that their voice will be heard throughout the process

Staff have any concerns

Young person makes a

disclosure

Confidentiality

Record keeping

ADMISSIONS POLICY

GLORYFIELD SCHOOL ADMISSIONS POLICY AND PROCEDURE

Authority and Circulation

This policy has been authorised by the Board of Gloryfield Schools. Its status is advisory only. It is addressed to prospective parents students and pupils and to all members of the teaching and administrative staff.

Policy

The Aims of the policy are

To ensure compliance with the School’s purposes of delivering high and quality educational services. Gloryfield School is an independent school for girls and boys from 0 – 18 with boarding facilities for pupils and students in all classes.
To identify and admit those who will benefit from the academic education and who will contribute to, and benefit from, the ethos and activities of the school community.

Key principles

Equal Treatment

We welcome children from many different ethnic groups, backgrounds and creeds. Human rights and freedoms are respected, but must be balanced with the lawful needs and rules of our school community and the rights and freedom of others. All candidates for admission will be treated equally, irrespective of their or their parents’ race, colour, gender, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority, orientation, property, birth or other status. We expect all of our students and pupils to attend our church services and school assemblies, which are of a Christian nature and fundamental to our Christian ethics.

Public Benefit & Provision of Financial Support

The Board of Gloryfield School are committed to broadening access to the school. The School offers Scholarship entrance for students and pupils of all ages based on their ability and potential in academics, sports, music and IT. In addition to the recognition associated with a scholarship offer, an award in the form of a tuition free discount may be offered to members of staff and few students with outstanding academic performance. Our scholarship programme follows the guidelines of the school policy on scholarship. More information can be found in our Scholarship Policy.

In addition to Scholarships which are based on the merit of the candidate, the School may offer to eligible parents means-tested financial support to help with the payment of school fees. These Bursary awards may be offered in conjunction with Scholarship awards or independently subject to the limitations of the Assisted Places budget. Awards may be made for the full term of the pupil’s time in the School or for a defined period due to short-term financial difficulties on the part of the parent and/or the school who is offering such scholarship. The School requires those parents who request bursarial support to fill in a Statement of Financial Circumstances. This information. Extending the terms over which fees may not be paid are subject to annual review.

Special Needs

We do not discriminate regarding entry. We welcome pupils and students with special educational needs, providing that our Educational Progress Staff can offer them the support that they require to be able to thrive in our educational environment. We welcome pupils who have physical disabilities provided that such conditions have been made known from the start.

We require parents of children with special educational needs or physical disabilities to declare their child’s requirements with us in the registration forms.

Procedures

Entry Points

The usual ages for entry are:

Students and pupils of all eligible ages and classes
With the exception of the terminal classes in the senior secondary school where new students are not allowed to enroll or just register for their final exams.

Entry Requirements

Pre-Preparatory entry is by key skills assessment during a day spent in the department. Reports from previous schools may also be sought, if applicable.

Preparatory school the admissions policy for all Preparatory school Candidates entering all year groups starts with parent/guardian providing a most recent school report from the candidate’s current school, candidate’s birth certificate and a completed registration form. Parent/guardians are requested to submit details of any additional learning needs. Finally, candidates will often spend a minimum of 1 full day in school before a place is offered.

Senior School places for pupils from Gloryfield Junior School into the Senior School are guaranteed in the vast majority of cases (except for extreme poor performances in the entrance exams conducted by the school).

All Candidates seeking admissions will be required to sit for an assessment/entrance exams in English, Mathematics and General Paper if appropriate in other subject papers (especially for students seeking entrance into our science classes).

Reports and References

All candidates will need to provide reports and references from their current or most recent school. The Head of the candidate’s current school will be required to write a reference commenting on the candidate’s academic ability, attitude and behaviour, involvement in the school community, talents and interests, and any special circumstances including any known child protection issues or concerns.

The School reserves the right to (May be) establish from any previous school that all outstanding fees have been paid. The Board and Management of Gloryfield School owe a duty to the school to ensure they are not taking on a risk of bad debts unnecessarily.

Disclosures

Parents must as soon as possible disclose any known or suspected circumstances relating to their child’s social, emotional and mental health, development, behaviour, allergies, disabilities or learning difficulties. Any child protection issues or reports should also be fully disclosed. Should an undisclosed condition or issue subsequently become apparent, and the school cannot fully meet the needs of the pupil, or current pupils may be at risk as a result, parents may be required to withdraw the child from school.

School Fees/Tuition Discount Policy

Purpose of the policy

Gloryfield Group of Schools believes in recruiting and retaining the best possible individuals for each position at the School. The purpose of this policy is to encourage the recruitment and retention of such individuals by enabling their children to be educated at the School.

Overview of Policy

The School maintains a policy of encouraging the children of Employees to attend the School.

Fees Discount: The School maintains a policy of granting a discount on School Fees to all Employees whose children are admitted to the School in accordance with the set standard.

Status: The Fees Discount does not form part of the contract of employment nor does it amount to any other contractual right.

Admission to the School: The admission of any child to the School is subject to the School’s admissions procedure. No special privilege or waiver shall be granted for this purpose.

Standard terms and conditions: The standard terms and conditions for pupils or students at the School and its other policies, procedures and rules will apply in respect of each child attending the School. If a conflict arises between the terms of this policy and any other document, this policy shall prevail.

Withdrawal: The Fees Discount may be amended or withdrawn at the absolute discretion of the School including if it becomes no longer economically viable for the School to maintain it due to changes in economic conditions and legislation without recourse to the beneficiary.

Commencement: The fees discount policy shall take effect from Second term 2022/2023 academic session i.e January 2023.

Conditions of the Fees Discount

Eligibility: All Employees who have a Child occupying a place at the School, or whose Child has been allocated a place at the School, are permitted to benefit from the Fees Discount.
Current rate:
The current rate of the Fees Discount is 100% tuition free for the first child and 50% discount on two other children both full time and part-time Employees.
This discount is applicable to “DIRECT” child (ren) of the employee only. Foster children or other family relations who resides with the employees are not entitled to the discount
This discount is limited to three(3) children only
The 100% and 50% covers the full value of tuition only in the school fees
Best and brightest pupils or students shall enjoy full tuition discount and ICT charge free (100% of tuition and ICT charges) while other bills in the school fees will have to be paid for.
The list of pupils and students to be considered for the “Best & Brightest” shall be submitted by the Head Master and Head of School to the Management Board for scrutiny and approval.
In the case that an employee has more than three children in both primary and secondary school section, the limit for consideration still remains three children per employee from whichever of both schools.
Students considered for the Best and Brightest must also be students crossing over from the primary section to the secondary section and must have been adjudged to be the best or have performed wonderfully well in external exams that were not conducted by the school itself.
The outright condition for a student to continue to enjoy full value of Tuition and ICT is that such student must continually be academically sound. As such, periodic review shall be done on the performance of these students to justify this discount.
Calculation: The Fees Discount will be calculated by reference to net tuition fees and/ICT fee where applicable.
Limit: The Fees Discount is limited to three children per Employee.
Application to both parents: In circumstances where both parents are employed by the School and eligible for the Fees Discount, it will only be applied to both employees as “one entity”.
Termination of employment: Eligibility for the Fees Discount will automatically cease if employment with the School comes to an end for any reason.
Continuing School Fees: If your employment terminates for any reason and your child continues to be educated at the School, you will be required to pay for your child’s place at the School at the full rate of the School’s published tuition fees from time to time, for the remaining duration of your child’s education at the School.
Application process: The school bursar shall submit all the names of students/pupils eligible for both full and part discount at resumption of each academic session.

ADDENDUM

Starting from third term 2022/2023 academic session ALL parents who have more than one child in Gloryfield International College or Gloryfield Junior School shall henceforth enjoy a 10% school fees discount on the second child and on every other subsequent child.
This policy is only applicable to “BIOLOGICAL CHILDREN” as investigation will be carried out on every child enjoying this privilege.

Thank you,

Ibimidu David.