Every adult here has a duty to keep our students safe. If you are worried about a young person, tell us. You do not need to be certain, and you will not be wasting our time.

Many of our students have had difficult experiences before they reach us. Safeguarding is not a separate activity at Pledge2Learn; it is part of how the school runs every day.

What happens when you tell us something

Whatever you tell us is written down the same day and recorded securely on our safeguarding system. The Designated Safeguarding Lead reviews it and decides what needs to happen next.

That might mean support inside school, a conversation with you, a referral to Children’s Services for support, and in some instances it may require a call to the police. Where the threshold for a referral is met, we make it. We do not wait to see whether a situation resolves itself.

We will tell you what we have done, unless doing so would put a child at greater risk. We cannot always share everything, and sometimes we have to act without a parent’s agreement. If that happens we will say so.

If your concern is about a member of staff

Send it directly to Holly Dickinson, Head of School, on 01724 454377. Please do not use the main safeguarding inbox for this, so that confidentiality can be kept.

If your concern is about the Head of School, or you would rather not raise it inside the school at all, contact Patrick Lappin, Chair of the Proprietor Body, or go straight to the North Lincolnshire Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) at lado@northlincs.gov.uk or 01724 298293.

You do not need our permission to contact the LADO, and you do not need to raise it with us first.

Operation Encompass

We take part in Operation Encompass, a national scheme run jointly by police forces and schools. Where the police attend an incident of domestic abuse and a child in our school was present or living in the household, they notify our Designated Safeguarding Lead before the start of the next school day.

It means we already know that a student may arrive tired, upset or on edge, without them having to explain anything. Staff can adjust what we ask of them that day, keep an eye on how they are doing, and offer support quietly. We do not raise it with the student unless they want to talk about it.

What we expect of our staff

Everyone who works here is recruited under safer recruitment procedures, including an enhanced DBS check with a children’s barred list check. All staff read and follow Part 1 of Keeping Children Safe in Education, and safeguarding training is refreshed on a rolling cycle. Staff are trained in Team Teach so they are equipped to handle situations where physical intervention support is needed.

More detail is on our recruitment page.

Related pages

Online safety · Concerns and complaints · Policies and documents · Support for children and families