Safeguarding

Our school ensures children learn in a safe, caring and enriching environment. Children are taught how to keep themselves safe, on and offline, to develop positive and healthy relationships and how to avoid situations where they might be at risk, including by being exploited.

Our school 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 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 is advised by Children’s Social Care or the police that the parents/carers cannot be informed whilst they investigate the matter. 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 best interests of the child.

You can contact our safeguarding team by email [email protected] or by phone (0116 2413756).

TMET Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy 24-25

Safeguarding Team

Our safeguarding team is made up of Mrs H Sandy-Sharpe as our Designated Safeguarding Lead. Mrs J Hill, Mrs H Lal, Mrs G Curtis, Miss L Moscetano, Mrs L Cottis, Mrs V Brown and Miss D Thompson are our Vice Designated Safeguarding Leads.

Operation Encompass

All schools in Leicester City and Leicestershire are part of a safeguarding initiative which aims to improve outcomes for children and families affected by domestic violence and abuse. Please read this letter to find out more. Operation Encompass Letter

All of our DSL’s have completed the ‘Operation Encompass Key adult briefing’ training.

Online Safety

All of our DSL’s have completed the NSPCC’s ‘Keeping Children Safe Online training’ in partnership with CEOP.

At Willowbrook Mead we believe that the internet provides us with a rich and diverse resource, but it must be treated with care and responsibility. We understand that technology play a large part in our pupils live and we aim to prepare pupils for their use of technology now and in their future lives.

We are committed to supporting parents, carers and pupil with online safety. Through our curriculum pupils learn how to access the internet safely and appropriately. You can access our information and guidance page for parents here

Early help

‘Early Help’ means providing help for children, young people and families as soon as concerns start to emerge or where it is likely that issues will impact negatively on children’s outcomes. Early help:

is for children of all ages and not just the very young
can be very effective in supporting a child, young person and/or their family to step down from statutory services as well as preventing the escalation of issues.
is important because there is clear evidence that it results in better outcomes for children.

Day to Day Support

Most families, most of the time, can get on with their lives quite happily with little or no outside help. If they need help it is usually provided by universal services, such as schools.

Focused Pastoral Support

All families can have times, when difficulties arise, and they either may not recognise it or may not know how to start putting things right. Schools play a role in supporting families to address these difficulties through more focused pastoral support, which might include bringing in support via an external agency.

Early Help Assessment

For those children and families whose needs and circumstances make them more vulnerable, or where schools need the support of other agencies to meet the needs of the family, a coordinated multi-agency approach is usually best. In Leicester this is achieved through undertaking an Early Help Assessment and assigning a Lead Practitioner to work closely with the family to ensure they receive the support they require. Willowbrook Mead Primary Academy is a key partner in any multi-agency work to support families.

Please click here for more information about our Early Help offer at Willowbrook Mead Primary Academy.

Mental Health and Wellbeing

At Willowbrook Mead, we work closely with the NHS Mental Health Support Team. We are able to refer children for early intervention and support for issues such as mild to moderate anxiety, to prevent these conditions from getting worse and having an impact on children’s wellbeing and learning.

Take a look at this short animation that you can watch with your child for more information about the team:

If you wish to visit their website for children, click here

Our ELSA

Our Emotional Literacy Support Assistant attends specialist training from educational psychologists to support the emotional development of children. Elsa’s help the children to understand their emotions and respect the feelings of those around them, support with conflict resolution, confidence/self-esteem or specific needs including anxiety and bereavement.

Our Family Support Worker Offer

Our Family Support Worker works in partnership with parents/carers and their children to ensure that the children feel secure and that their basic needs are met. Mrs Cottis works closely with a number of agencies across Leicester and Leicestershire and is happy to refer or signpost families where needed.

For more information on our inclusion offer please click here