What is Safeguarding?
Safeguarding is the action that is taken to promote the welfare of children and protect them from harm.
Safeguarding means:
- protecting children from abuse and maltreatment
- preventing harm to children’s health or development
- ensuring children grow up with the provision of safe and effective care
- taking action to enable all children and young people to have the best outcomes.
The Gooseberry Bush Day Nursery is responsible for ensuring safeguarding measures are met and kept to the high standard for all the children in our care, whether they attend for several years or only for a few months.
If you have a concern about the wellbeing or safety of a child, please speak to the Designated Safeguarding Lead – Claire Buscombe.
If she is not available you can speak to one of our Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads – Jenni Richards and Jean Scoffin.
How does this affect staff?
In regards to staff, the Gooseberry Bush is responsible for ensuring that our staff team are knowledgeable about what signs to look out for and what they are to do if they do have a safeguarding concern.
This includes knowing who to report their concern to in-house and which outside authorities need to be contacted for guidance.
All staff that interact with the children during their working day are DBS checked before changing nappies, supervising toileting and working alone with children in any capacity.
Staff receive safeguarding training during their induction before they start with us; this includes office staff and any other staff who may interact with the children during their working day.
We also refresh staff training annually with all staff renewing their safeguarding training each year. Staff are also tested on their safeguarding knowledge routinely during their supervisions or pop-quizs throughout the year.