Safeguarding
Merchants' Academy is committed to the vital contribution all Governors, teaching and non teaching staff make to safeguarding and the protection and welfare of children and young people. We aim to ensure that all child protection and welfare concerns and referrals are handled sensitively, professionally and in ways that support the specific needs of the individual child. Through providing a caring, safe and stimulating environment which promotes the social, physical and moral development of all our students, we aim to foster an atmosphere of trust, respect and security.
A copy of the Academy's Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy can be downloaded from this page.
The Student Support Centre provides the central provision for student welfare within the Academy.
Merchants' Academy Safeguarding Team
Desgnated Safeguarding Lead for Secondary Mrs Sharon Beesely
Deputy DSL Secondary: Miss Emma Tatters (Safeguarding Manager)
Designated Safeguarding Lead for Primary is Mrs Lisa Bannister (Deputy Head)
Deputy DSL for Primary are:
Mrs Sarah Flannigan (Head of MA Primary)
Mrs Amy Greenslade (Family Support Worker)
Mr Joshua Bassett (Assistant Head)
Mrs Kelly Shearing (Pastoral)
Mrs Kelly Phipps (Pastoral)
Deputy DSL for Secondary are:
Ms Lynn Broome (Child Protection Officer, MA Secondary)
Miss Emily Shelton (Child Protection Office, MA Secondary)
Mr Jack Jones (Assistant Head of Year)
Who's Who at Merchants' Academy Primary? - MAP-Safeguarding-Poster-Sept-2024.pdf (rackcdn.com)
Who's Who at Merchants' Academy Secondary? - Safeguarding-Poster-MAS-1.pdf
Learn about the Bristol Safeguarding Board website here
Safeguarding is…
- How well pupils are taught to keep themselves safe
- How well the school protects pupils from bullying, racist abuse, harassment or discrimination, and promotes good behaviour
- The effectiveness of health and safety policies and procedures
- The effectiveness of arrangements to provide a safe environment and secure school site
- How well the school meets the needs of pupils with medical conditions
- How appropriately child welfare and child protection concerns are identified and responded to by the school
- How effectively the school works with key agencies to safeguard and promote the welfare of children
- The extent to which the school ensures that adults working with children are appropriately recruited and vetted, and receive appropriate training, guidance, support and supervision to undertake the effective safeguarding of pupils.
Our culture of vigilance
At Merchants' Academy we:
· Believe safeguarding and protecting children is everyone’s responsibility
· Identify signs of concerns immediately
· Train all our staff to the highest level
· Keep all staff updated with new guidance and policies
· Monitor attendance thoroughly
· Have rigorous monitoring of vulnerable students
· Communicate regularly with external agencies
· Listen to our students
· Care for each other
· Have an open culture
· Support students and their families
· Teach our students to keep safe at all times
Useful Links and Resources
Safeguarding
Training
Supporting the wellbeing of children has never been so important. To assist you in doing this, we have produced two fantastic free parental resources
- Child Mental Health & Wellbeing - 10 Top Tips for Parents
- Parents' Mental Health & Wellbeing - 10 Top Tips for Parents
Advice and support
The Suzy Lamplugh Trust
National Personal Safety Day
Domestic Violence Support - The Hideout
NSPCC & ChildLine resources
The ChildLine School Service
Young Minds
Educate Against The Hate
Kooth - Online mentoring
Off The Record
Self Injury Support
Winston's Wish
National Self Harm Network
BEAT
Bullying UK
Anorexia and Buliminia Care
Sextortion - National Crime Agency
Sextortion - UK Safer Internet Centre
Online Safety
CEOP Police
Thinkuknow 11-13
Thinkuknow 14+
Childline
Bullying
Sex and Relationships
Drugs
e-Safety
Although the Academy teaches students e-Safety as part of the Computing curriculum, it is vital that parents/carers are aware of the risks too and what you can do to develop a culture of e-Safety in the home. There are some helpful resources for parents/carers below, which we encourage you to read in order to help your child stay safe online.
http://www.internetmatters.org/
#DITTO is a free online safety (e-safety) magazine for schools, organisations and parents to keep you up to date with risks, issues, advice and guidance related to keeping children safe online, with a view to enjoying and learning about technology. A new edition is released approx. every 6 weeks. Please click here for more information.