Staying Safe and Safeguarding

Quick Links: Safeguarding and Wellbeing Team

Safeguarding is the action that is taken to promote the welfare of children and protect them from harm.

Safeguarding means:

protecting children from abuse and maltreatment
preventing harm to children’s mental and physical health and development
ensuring children grow up with the provision of safe and effective care
taking action to enable all children and young people to have the best outcome

Child protection is part of the safeguarding process. It focuses on protecting individual children identified as suffering or likely to suffer significant harm. This includes child protection procedures which detail how to respond to concerns about a child.

Our Commitment and Safer Recruitment Statement

Education Links is a specialist alternative provision dedicated to transforming the lives of young people with complex social, emotional, and mental health needs. We are unconditionally committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of our pupils and expect every member of staff, volunteer, and visitor to share this unwavering commitment.

We operate a rigorous safer recruitment process in line with the latest Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) guidance. All applicants must be aware that:

Vetting Checks: All successful candidates will be subject to an Enhanced DBS check with a Children’s Barred List check, alongside verification of identity, right to work in the UK, and professional qualifications.
Online Presence: As part of our due diligence, we carry out online searches on all shortlisted candidates to identify any publicly available information that may affect their suitability.
References: We will seek a minimum of two satisfactory references, including one from your most recent employer, which must specifically address your suitability to work with children.
Application Integrity: We do not accept CVs. A full, chronological employment history must be provided on our standard application form, and any gaps in employment will be thoroughly explored.

International Background Checks

To ensure the highest standards of safety and integrity, Education Links requires all candidates who have lived or worked outside the United Kingdom for a significant period (defined as six consecutive months or more within the last five years) to provide additional evidence of their history.

Because a standard UK DBS check only captures criminal records held on the UK Police National Computer, we will conduct the following additional verifications where needed and seek to obtain certificates and documents as listed below:

Certificate of Good Conduct: Required for each country of residence for more than 6 months.
Certified Translations: For any document not issued in English.
Letters of Professional Standing: Required for regulated roles (In education, teaching and working with children) from the relevant overseas regulator.
Evidence of Right to Work: Valid passport, travel document or BRP/eVisa documentation.

By applying for a role at Education Links, you are committing to maintaining the high professional boundaries required to support our vulnerable learners safely."

All staff are responsible for:

creating a safe and nurturing environment within the school
wearing their staff ID at all times
following school procedure when inviting visitors to the school
being vigilant at all times, contributing to a whole school culture of vigilance
being aware and noticing the signs of abuse, neglect or any other form maltreatment in students
role modelling the highest standards of positive language and conduct
challenging sexist, racist, homophobic and any other discriminatory language
reporting any concerns to a member of the safeguarding team

Reporting:

Students should also report any unsafe or concerning situations, and can speak to any member of staff if they feel unsafe or worried.

Students, parents/carers and staff can report any concerns to:

safeguarding@education-links.org

All reports are taken seriously and treated in confidence.

For more details please see our policy:

CLAT Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy

Identified key adults in school and in the Local Authority who have specific responsibilities under child protection procedures:

Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) - Michelle Matthias
Safeguarding Link Governor - Naomi Brown
Newham Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) - Nick Pratt
cprt.lado@newham.gov.uk ; 0203 373 3803

Safeguarding and Wellbeing Team

Stratford

sg poster stratford.pdf

East Ham

sg poster east ham.pdf

Please click on the links below for other relevant information -