Safeguarding

At Our Lady & St. Swithin's Catholic Primary School we are committed to safeguarding children and promoting children's welfare and expects all staff, governors, volunteers and visitors share this commitment and maintain a vigilant and safe environment. Everyone is expected to abide by the School's guidance to work appropriately with young people.

Our Lady & St. Swithin's Primary School ensures children learn in a safe, caring and enriching environment. Children are taught how to identify risky, unsafe or problematic situations, how and when to seek help, how to develop positive and healthy relationships and how to avoid situations where they might be at risk including by being exploited.

Our Lady & St. Swithin's Primary School also has a statutory responsibility to share any concerns it might have about a child in need of protection with other agencies and in particular police, health and children’s services. Schools are not able to investigate child protection concerns but have a legal duty to refer them. In most instances the school will be able to inform the parents/carers of its need to make a referral. However, sometimes the school can in certain circumstances share information without the consent of the family and may be advised by children’s services or police that the parent/carer cannot be informed whilst they investigate the matter or make enquires. We understand the anxiety parents/carers understandably feel when they are not told about any concerns from the outset. The school follows legislation that aims to act in the interests of the child.

Our Lady & St. Swithin's Primary School will always seek to work in partnership with parents/carers and other agencies to ensure the best possible outcomes for the child and family.

Mrs Morgan is our DSL and can be contacted via the school office on 01515463868 or email at: safeguarding@olss.liverpool.sch.uk. Mrs Morgan is supported by a dedicated team of staff, who will be more than happy to help with any concerns you may have. If you need any safeguarding help or advice, please feel free to contact them.

Mr Foster is the Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead and is suitably trained to deputise in Mrs Morgan’s absence. He can be contacted via email at: safeguarding@olss.liverpool.sch.uk or by telephoning the school office on 01515463868

Our school has also trained all members of the Senior Leadership Team, such is our commitment to safeguarding our pupils. These individuals are identified in our Child Protection Policy – September 2026 and in the photographs on this page.

At Our Lady & St. Swithin’s Catholic Primary School, we regard the safeguarding of children as our main priority. We believe that we all have the right to be happy, to be safe and to learn. We all have the responsibility to make this happen. We will ensure that:

The welfare of the child remains paramount.
All children whatever their age, culture, disability, gender, language, racial origin, religious beliefs and/ or sexual identity have the right to be protected from harm.
All suspicions and allegations of abuse will be taken seriously and responded to swiftly and appropriately.
All staff and volunteers working at our school have a responsibility to report concerns to one of the safeguarding team: Mrs Hartley (Head Teacher and Designated Safeguarding Lead), Mrs Morgan (Designated Safeguarding Lead).

Safer Recruitment:

We follow strict procedures to ensure that everyone who works with our children is vetted, keeping our children as safe as possible.

Ongoing checks and ‘whistle-blowing’ are in line with current policy.

Staff Training:

Staff are trained in child protection issues and they are aware of the procedures to follow.
Staff are encouraged to be vigilant in order to maintain the safety of our children.
All Staff & Volunteers are given our safeguarding policies and directed to the documents
All staff have an up-to-date understanding of safeguarding issues (including those highlighted in the PREVENT strategy) and are able to implement the safeguarding children policy and procedure appropriately.
Policies are in line with current guidance and procedures.

Operation Encompass

“In conjunction with Merseyside Police, Our Lady and St. Swithin’s Catholic Primary School is involved in an initiative called Operation Encompass. The purpose of Operation Encompass is to safeguard and support children and young people who have been involved in, heard or witnessed a domestic abuse incident. Following such an incident, children will often arrive at school distressed, upset, worried and unprepared. Operation Encompass aims to ensure that appropriate school staff (called Key Adults) are made aware early enough to support children and young people in a way that means they feel safe and included.”

Our Key Adult is Mrs Morgan

You can find out more by visiting www.operationencompass.org

Our safeguarding policies cover all areas of school life and can be viewed below.

School Closures

In the event of school closure, our duty and responsibility to safeguard our pupils remains. Our regular check ins with families needing a bit of extra help and support will continue throughout a period of school closure. Please do not feel offended if a member of school staff calls to check in with you. If you have any safeguarding concerns while the school is closed for your child or for any other pupil from the school, please contact us on:

[email protected]

or ring school on 01515463868

Wellbeing

Mental Health support for children

https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/publications/talking-to-your-children-scary-world-news

Tips for talking to your children about Covid-19

Newsround

https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround

Daily news updates for children

Tiny Happy People

https://www.bbc.co.uk/tiny-happy-people

Activities for developing younger children’s language and communication