Visitors in School

We hope that you have an enjoyable visit to Mendip Green Primary School.

If you're visiting a school, you need to make sure everything goes safely and smoothly.

You might visit the same school in different capacities, for example as a parent attending a school play, a volunteer helping out at a school activity or a visiting speaker.  We may ask you to follow different procedures depending on the reason for your visit.

Mendip Green Primary School is committed to the highest possible standards in safeguarding and promoting the welfare of our children. This requires all staff and visitors to share this commitment. Our main priority is to ensure that everyone who visits is aware of their responsibilities towards making sure all young people are safe.

Please ensure you understand and comply with our procedures for visitors and understand what you need to do to keep children safe, whichever capacity you are visiting in. Make sure you know how to recognise and respond to any concerns about a child's safety or welfare.

As a visitor please remember the following:

•  If you are working in a 1:1 situation, we must have confirmation that all the necessary safeguarding checks have been completed including an Enhanced DBS disclosure check.
•  You must not have any physical contact with any pupil.
•  You must never exchange personal contact details with a pupil or arrange to meet them outside of the school environment.
• The use of cameras and taking photographs is not permitted unless using a school device.

Mendip Green's 'Expectations for Visitors' can be found in the policy section of our website

Before your visit:

• Confirm the date and time of your visit with the school. Make sure you know who to ask for when you arrive.
• If you're self-employed or visiting on behalf of an organisation, be prepared to share your safeguarding and child protection policies and procedures in advance. We will need to check that your safeguarding measure meet our standards.
• Organisations should provide us with written confirmation that visitors have been recruited following safer recruitment. This includes confirmation that anyone working or volunteering with children has undergone the relevant vetting and barring checks. We will need to check these procedures meet our standards.
• If you are self-employed, it’s best practice to show the school evidence that you have carried out the appropriate vetting and barring checks for self-employed people.

Please be aware that:

• Mobile phones and cameras are not permitted beyond the foyer.  Phones can be handed in at the school office where they will be held securely until you sign out.
• Mendip Green is a nut-free school.  Please do not bring nuts or products which contain nuts in their listed ingredients onto our site.
• All visitors will be given a 'visitors' lanyard on arrival unless they are a member of staff from the Trust with an approved ELAN lanyard or are one of our compliance contractors wearing the company logoed uniform.
• Access to the school site for all visitors is via the Nutwell Road entrance only.

During your visit:

• All visitors to school are expected to follow the schools safeguarding policies, procedures and the school code of conduct in order to ensure that they know what their duties are for keeping children safe.
• Please be prepared to show identification when you arrive. Sign in at the school office on arrival, collect a visitor badge and hand in any mobile devices. Please wear your badge at all times to avoid being challenged by staff or students.
• Only go into areas of the school that you have been permitted to enter.
• You should only be alone with children if the school has given you permission. If you are working one-to-one with a child, make sure you put the appropriate safeguarding measure in place.
• On departure, please sign out, return your lanyard and collect your mobile phone.
• All visitors are expected familiarise themselves with the safety procedures for when they are on site. 

Disclosure by a child 

If you have a concern or are concerned in any way about a child’s welfare or safety, you must speak to a member of the Safeguarding team:

Designated Safeguarding Lead - Lorraine Young

Deputy Safeguarding Leads -  Sarah Handock, James Oakley

Other members of Safeguarding team - Victoria Walton, Emma Parkins, Ashleigh Melhuish and Kerry Neate

Safeguarding Governor - Tania Ribeiro

At Mendip Green, we work to promote a safe culture. We ensure allegations are dealt with quickly, are alert to the signs of abuse and neglect and always follow procedures to ensure that pupils receive effective support and protection.

If a child discloses information about significant harm or you identify any other safeguarding or child protection concern, you should:

• Listen
• Tell the student that you need to tell someone else - you cannot promise to keep a secret
• Report it by following Mendip Green's and your own procedures.
• Make accurate notes of what has been said by the child and pass this immediately to the DSL.
• Work with us to support any ongoing work with that child and their family, including referrals to other agencies.

Please note: It is not your responsibility tor investigate but to report to the Designated Safeguarding Lead.

For full details about Safeguarding at Mendip Green, please visit the Safeguarding section of our website.

Whistleblowing

The type of activity or behaviour which the school considers should be dealt with under the whistleblowing policy includes:-  

• safeguarding breaches
• any criminal activity
• dangerous practices
• abuse of position
• sexual or physical abuse of pupils or others
• other unethical conduct.

The whistle-blower should raise the matter with the headteacher or chair of governors initially so that the matter can be investigated.

If the concern relates to the head teacher or chair of governors the matter should be raised with the Chief Executive officer of the Extend Learning Academies Network, Adam Matthews

adam.matthews@extendlearning.org

Confidentiality

There is a significant amount of confidential information in schools. It is absolutely essential that any information you may hear or see about children, or families is treated in the utmost confidence and must not be discussed outside of the school.

Trips and Visits

• If you are helping on a school trip or visit, you will receive a risk assessment and a timetable of the day.
• Helpers should not take a child to the toilet.
• Advice will be given by the class teacher.
• School mobile phones are taken on external school visits.

Fire Safety

• Please take your time to familiarise yourself with your nearest fire exit. In the event that fire alarm should sound, please follow all instructions from the staff member you are working with.
• Do not try to collect your belongings.
• Visitors need to assemble on the playground nearest the foyer (by The Cove).
• Fire drills are regularly held and children will be accustomed to our procedures. If there is a scheduled drill on the day of your visit you will be notified.

First Aid

If a child has an accident no matter how slight, please report it to a member of staff, who will advise you on the appropriate actions.

Health and Safety

If you notice anything that could be deemed a health and safety risk, please report it to the school office.