Everyone who works here has a duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of students. If you have any suspicions that abuse may have occurred, contact the Centre Manager. Make notes of what the student has said, do not ask leading questions as this may jeopardise any further investigations. When a student makes an allegation, be reassuring that you are listening and taking it seriously. The Centre Manager will contact the relevant person in the LA Social Services and will liaise with social services and take their advice on police involvement. Records regarding family contact details, child’s name and age are kept on premises, and must be kept up-to-date to facilitate contact. Written records will be kept of any concerns expressed regarding the students and will be shared with social workers in case further useful information regarding the student is available. Decisions not to seek further information and the reasons will also be recorded. Where suitable, speak to the child and parents about making a referral. Agreement should be made with the social worker regarding what information should be shared with parents and child and who is responsible for this.
Child Safeguarding with the Centre
• All staff will have enhanced DBS checks to ensure their suitability to work with children.
• References will be taken up and qualifications asked for.
• Staff will be given clear guidelines to interact appropriately with the students.
• Staff work with groups of children at the Centre and should not be in the position of being alone with a child. In this situation physical contact should be kept to a minimum.
• Where children seek physical comfort, encourage hugging a soft toy or give themselves a hug
• Celebrate success by clapping, smiles, stickers, thumbs up gestures rather than hugs.
• If first aid is required contact parents/carers first then encourage child the child to apply the plaster or cold compress themselves.
• Record any first-aid given in the record folder.
• Alert the responsible first aider on site of the situation and allow them to handle it accordingly.
• Any situations that could be misinterpreted should be recorded and mentioned to the Centre Manager as soon as possible.
• If a member of staff is found to have broken these guidelines or a complaint is made by a child, parent or carer, an interview will be held with a written record being taken. Depending on the outcome of this interview, a warning, dismissal or extra training may result, with regards to the guidelines.
• Dismissal will be followed by a report to the police.
• The door is to be kept under watch during sessions to safeguard students from strangers.
• Toilets have lockable doors and staff should be aware of which students are using these facilities.
• Students are to remain in the main area of the centre where they are supervised.
If you would like to contact LADO, please search the LADO centre based on the area your local centre operates in.
Reviewed January 2026
