How RMGS keeps you safe in school

RMGS is our school, and we want it to be a safe place for everybody who works or studies here. Staff at RMGS will do everything they can to make sure you are protected and happy. Please see below details on how we aim to keep you safe in school and to help you decide what could be a “problem” and to whom you should talk.

All staff at school will do their utmost to:

• Protect you from harm.
• Make sure nothing stops you being healthy or developing properly.
• Make sure you are safely looked after.
• Make sure you have the best life chances and can grow up happy and successful.

Staff will make the school a friendly, welcoming and supportive place to spend time in – somewhere you want to be; will be there for you to talk to if you need to and know who to ask for help; will give you safe messages during your time in school to help you learn how to look after yourself both online and in the real world, and will have all the right rules in place to look after you.

What is abuse?

When someone hurts you, it can be called abuse. This is when someone does something to you that is harmful, unpleasant or painful such as:

• If someone deliberately hits you, hurts you, injures you or humiliates you in different ways.
• If someone regularly says or does something that makes you feel bad about yourself or hurts your feelings which makes you feel scared, sad, upset or frightened.
• If someone shouts, threatens, hits or hurts someone you love whilst you are around which makes you scared, unhappy or worried.
• If someone doesn’t take proper care of you so you feel abandoned, lonely or neglected. You might not be able to eat or wash regularly, or you might not be able to come to school every day or on time.
• If someone touches you in a way that you don’t like, or which makes you feel uncomfortable or worried.
• If someone makes you look at things which make you feel ashamed, embarrassed, uncomfortable or guilty. They may ask you to keep it a secret or give you presents.
• Remember: abuse is never ok, and it is not your fault. You must always tell someone, and they will help it to stop.

In and out of school

All of the staff at RMGS will aim to make sure the building is safe for you to learn in and spend time in. We will make sure that we know who everyone is in the school by asking visitors to sign in at reception. You will always know who a visitor to the school is because they will have signed in at reception and will display a lanyard which will be around the visitor’s neck. The buildings, outside areas and fields will be as safe as they can be for you so that you don’t hurt yourself, although accidents can happen if you are not careful! If the fire alarm goes off you should know what to do and where to go. When you leave school to go on a trip, the staff will make sure they can keep you safe.

What we will do

At RMGS we will help you to keep safe in the following ways:

• We will do our best to spot if there is a problem. All staff in the school have had training in this.
• We will work with other people (including parents and carers) to help protect you and solve any problems you may have.
• We will always listen to you if you want to talk to us and need our help. We will always take you seriously.
• We will support and encourage you and will respect your wishes and views, and will provide information, advice and involve outside agencies whenever appropriate or necessary.

At RMGS you can talk to any member of staff, but you should know that there are a number of staff who are responsible for making sure you are safe and well cared for. People in school who can help you:

• Mrs Horstrup, Deputy Headteacher (Designated Safeguarding Lead)
• Any member of the Leadership Team
• Your Head of Year (Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads) or your Pastoral Support Assistant
• Your Form Tutor
• The Inclusion & Special Needs Team (Mrs Else, our Inclusion Manager, and Mr Smith, Assistant Headteacher and our SENCO are Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads)
• School Counsellor, Ms Allen (Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead) or the NHS Emotional Wellbeing Practitioners
• Your Prefect or Student Mentor
• The School Office (our Office Manager is a Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead)

Tell a member of staff straight away if you are worried about your own safety or wellbeing or that of a friend. We will always listen.

List of External Agencies and Organisations

The pastoral team at RMGS works with a wide range of external agencies and organisations to support children and families. The table below provides an up-to-date list of many of the most frequently used services. Refer to it should you need to call upon their support outside of school hours, such as weekends and holidays when the pastoral teams are not available to provide urgent support.