Safeguarding & Child Protection Policy

Dyslexia Direct Services Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy

The purpose of this policy statement is:

to protect children and young people who receive services from Dyslexia Direct Services from harm.
to provide children and young people and their families, with the overarching principles that guide our approach to child protection.

Legal Framework:

This policy has been drawn up on the basis of legislation, policy and guidance that seeks to protect children in England. A summary of the key legislation is available from the NSPCC.

Supporting documents:

This policy statement should be read alongside our organisational policies, procedures and guidance on:

- Code of Conduct, Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy for Online Tuition
- Privacy Notice.

We believe that:

children and young people should never experience abuse of any kind.
we have a responsibility to promote the welfare of all children and young people, to keep them safe and to practise in a way that protects them.

We recognise that:

the welfare of children is paramount in all the work we do and in all the decisions we take.
all children, regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation have an equal right to protection from all types of harm or abuse.
some children are additionally vulnerable because of the impact of previous experiences, their level of dependency, communication needs or other issues.
working in partnership with children, young people, their parents, carers and other agencies is essential in promoting young people’s welfare.

We will seek to keep children and young people safe by:

valuing, listening to and respecting them.
appointing a nominated child protection lead for children and young people.
adopting child protection and safeguarding best practice through our policies, procedures and code of conduct.
developing and implementing an effective online safety policy.
recording, storing and using information professionally and securely, in line with data protection legislation and guidance [more information about this is available from the Information Commissioner’s Office]
sharing information about safeguarding and good practice with children and their families via copies of the policy online, by request and through one-to-one discussions.
making sure that children, young people and their families know where to go for help if they have a concern.
using our safeguarding and child protection procedures to share concerns and relevant information with agencies who need to know, and involve children, young people, parents, families and carers appropriately.
using our procedures to manage any allegations.
creating and maintaining an anti-bullying environment.
ensuring that all complaints and whistleblowing measures are followed.
ensuring that we provide a safe physical environment for our children, young people and adults, by applying health and safety measures in accordance with the law and regulatory guidance.
building a safeguarding culture where adults, children, young people and their families, treat each other with respect and are comfortable about sharing concerns.