Ferndale Primary and Nursery School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.
Please see the link at the bottom of this page for our updated Safeguarding policy.
Please click here to read The Blue Kite Trust Safeguarding statement
If you have a safeguarding concern please contact school on 01793 332425 and ask to speak to Miss Horrobin (Head of School and DSL) or use Children and Families, Contact Swindon.
Swindon Borough Council - Children and Families, Contact Swindon:
Telephone: 01793 464646
Email: contactchildrenandfamilies@swindon.gov.uk
https://www.swindon.gov.uk/info/20043/safeguarding/43/children_and_families_contact_swindon
Our safeguarding team here at Ferndale Primary School and Nursery are:
Designated safeguarding lead: Miss Horrobin (Headteacher)
Deputy designated safeguarding leads: Mrs Rouse (Deputy Headteacher), Miss Challoner (SENDCo) and Miss Miller (Inclusion worker).
Worried about an adult who works or volunteers in the school, please speak to the headteacher, Miss Horrobin. Worried about the headteacher, please speak to one of the following Blue Kite staff:
Our school provides a safe, caring, positive and stimulating environment, free from discrimination or bullying, promoting the physical, moral and social development of the individual child, where children can learn and develop happily.
Sometimes we may need to share information and work in partnership with other agencies when there are concerns about a child’s welfare. We will ensure that our concerns about our pupils are discussed with parents/carers first. However, there may be a rare occasion when our concerns about your child may mean we have to consult other agencies even before we contact you. The procedures which we follow are laid down by the Local Children Safeguarding Board and we have a number of policies and procedures in place, that contribute to our safeguarding commitment, including our Child Protection Policy.
Any action is taken in line with the following legislation/guidance:
Keeping Children Safe in Education. Click here to read this document
South West Child Protection Procedures (SWCPP)
Working Together to Safeguard Children. Click here to read this document.
Swindon Local Safeguarding Children Board guidance. A link to the Swindon Safeguarding Partnership website can be found here.
The Prevent duty – Departmental advice for schools and childcare providers. Click here to read this document
We are working with Sarah Turner Consulting Safeguarding Solutions. Sarah will be providing the team with independent information, advice and guidance along with the support of our statutory agencies.
Attendance and Safeguarding
At Ferndale Primary and Nursery School, attendance is a safeguarding priority.
Regular school attendance is not only essential for learning — it is a key protective factor in keeping children safe. When children attend school consistently, we are able to:
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See them regularly and check on their wellbeing
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Notice changes in behaviour, presentation or mood
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Provide consistent pastoral support
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Help children build trusted relationships with adults
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Identify and respond quickly to any safeguarding concerns
Why Attendance Is a Safeguarding Matter
When a child is absent, particularly without clear explanation, we cannot be assured of their safety. Prolonged or repeated absence can sometimes be an indicator of:
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Emotional distress or anxiety
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Bullying or peer concerns
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Unmet additional needs
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Family difficulties
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Exposure to risk outside of school
For this reason, we follow up unexplained absences on the first day and maintain close oversight of attendance patterns. This is not simply administrative — it is part of our duty of care.
Our Safeguarding Responsibilities
Under statutory safeguarding guidance, schools must monitor attendance as part of their wider safeguarding role. Patterns of persistent absence or sudden changes in attendance are reviewed by senior leaders and our Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL). Where appropriate, we may:
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Speak with parents/carers to understand any barriers
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Offer pastoral or early help support
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Work with external agencies if required
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Put additional support plans in place
Our aim is always to work in partnership with families and to identify support early, before concerns escalate.
Supporting Good Attendance
We understand that there can be genuine reasons for absence, including illness or exceptional circumstances. We ask that parents:
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Inform the school promptly on the first day of absence
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Maintain open communication with us
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Work with us if attendance becomes a concern
If your child is reluctant to attend school or expresses worries about coming in, please let us know immediately. Early communication allows us to address concerns quickly and sensitively.
Every Day Matters
Good attendance supports academic success, emotional wellbeing and, most importantly, children’s safety. When children are in school, they are visible, supported and protected.
If you have any concerns about your child’s attendance or wellbeing, please contact the school office or speak directly with a member of our safeguarding team.
Extremism and Radicalisation
We actively support the Government’s Prevent Agenda to counter radicalism and extremism. It is vital that staff and parents are aware of the possible danger of extremism and radicalisation of children, predominantly but not solely through online activities. We are committed to supporting parents and pupils to be aware of these dangers. The document below provides further information on this. Staff training is carried out in this area.
The Prevent duty – Departmental advice for schools and childcare providers. Click here to read this document
Pastoral Care
At Ferndale, we are concerned with supporting all our children so that they are happy, confident individuals who develop into positive learners and members of both the school and the wider community.
All staff at Ferndale, teaching and non-teaching, have made a commitment to the Behaviour Policy and the Bullying and Conflict Policy. There is a very strong emphasis on encouraging children to express any concerns that they have to teachers, non -teaching staff and the Headteacher.
Parents are also reminded that they need to communicate any concerns expressed by their child. Our school doors open at 8:30a.m. where a member of staff will always be available to listen to any concerns you may have.
If this is not possible remember you can always call our school office on 01793 332425 or email the school on admin@ferndale.bluekitetrust.org and ask to speak to the headteacher or for an appointment to be made.
We strongly believe in a multi-agency approach when working with identified students. We are fortunate to have access to the following agencies:
Lighthouse - Blue Kite Trust Art and Play Therapy Parent Support Advisors
Education and welfare officers - both through Lighthouse and Swindon Borough
Locality School Nurse
Police – Local PCSOs
Local food banks
Click on the following links for further support and guidance: Young Minds and Childline.
E-Safety
We live in an ever changing, digital world with children increasingly having access to the internet. Keeping safe online is a vital part of safeguarding the pupils at Ferndale Primary and Nursery School. We actively teach children about keeping safe online through our cross-curricular ICT curriculum. Further information is kept in our e-safety policy.
Ofsted describes e-safety as a school’s ability to protect and educate pupils in their use of technology as well as having appropriate mechanisms in place to intervene and support any incident where appropriate.
Protect
Protecting students means providing a safe learning environment by using appropriate monitoring and filtering to control what students can access while at school. But, this only protects them while they are on school premises. Education around e-safety is the only way to ensure that, wherever they are, they know how to stay safe online.
Educate - The education of e-safety covers a wide range of subjects, including:
- Online behaviour - understanding what constitutes cyber-bullying and how to behave safely and with respect for others
- Protecting your online reputation – understanding both the risks and rewards of sharing personal information online (your digital footprint)
- How to use social networking safely
- Understanding the reliability and validity of online information
- Data security - keeping your personal information safe and being aware of viruses and hacking
- Knowing what to do if anything bad happens (e.g. you are a victim of cyber-bullying or you upload something by mistake)
Below are some links that you may find useful:
Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre
National Domestic Abuse Helpline
Parent Zone
www.commonsensemedia.org Common Sense Media site reviews videos, games, books, websites etc to help parents and children know which ones are safe to use.
www.getsafeonline.org 'Get Safe On-line', gives answers to many questions, via 'Terry Tablet' who answers any questions, informative videos and includes an update on current on line issues and scams.
www.thinkuknow.co.uk ThinkUKnow is the education programme of the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre aimed at young people. It is based around three key themes:
- How to have fun
- How to stay in control (or how to take control)
- How to report a problem
www.stoptextbully.com resources on this website include a Top 10 Tips poster for young people and a school resource pack ‘Putting U in the Picture’.
www.childnet.com plenty of advice and teachers’ resources. Look for the ‘Prank or Pain’ link through their ‘Know it All’ project link.
www.iwf.org.uk Internet Watch Foundation – support website with information on filtering, protection, and an area to report illegal content.
www.kidsmart.org.uk part of the Childnet stable of websites, dealing with Internet safety programmes for schools, young people and parents.
www.nspcc.org.uk/preventing-abuse/keeping-children-safe/online-safety/ NSPCC have teamed up with O2 to help you keep children safe when they're using the internet, social networks, apps, games and more.
www.saferinternet.org.uk/advice-centre/parents-and-carers Their advice and resources are here to support parents as they support their child to use the internet safely, responsibility and positively.
http://www.ilovedaisychain.com Daisy Chain is the follow up to the acclaimed Children’s book ‘Dandelion’. The story of ‘Daisy Chain’ follows a little girl named Buttercup Bree who just doesn’t fit in. She spends her day plucking Daisies and creating chains in the hope of spreading a message of togetherness to the bullies that watch her every step. The story has been narrated by oscar-winning actress Kate Winslet.
If you have any e-safety concerns, you can contact your child’s class teacher or Miss Horrobin, Mrs Rouse, Miss Challoner or Miss Miller via the school office.
Please see our separate E-Safety section for more support and information.
