Safeguarding in the St Monica's Curriculum

Safeguarding is at the heart of everything we do here at St Monica's. Great importance is placed on identifying opportunities in the taught curriculum for children to learn about safeguarding.

Our broad curriculum gives pupils opportunities to experience life in all its diversity, to acquire knowledge, understanding, and skills that significantly impact personal development, behaviour, and welfare, and equips every child with the knowledge and skills required for personal safeguarding.

Our PSHE curriculum covers key areas of Safeguarding, and our Computing Curriculum covers key aspects of Digital Safety. We are sensitive in our teaching and recognise that some more sensitive subjects need to be taught at an age-appropriate level, or at a small group or 1:1 level where a more urgent need arises.

We plan to constantly challenge children to think deeply about safeguarding matters and their own personal physical and mental wellbeing. We value pupils’ questions and give them space for their own thoughts, ideas, and concerns.

We give pupils’ opportunities across the curriculum to explore values, personal rights, responsibilities, and equal opportunities that develop moral concepts that impact positively on safeguarding, promote British values and prevent radicalisation and extremism. There are many opportunities throughout our learning in school to explore safeguarding issues.

Practical safeguarding opportunities are planned into the curriculum. For example:

• Road and rail safety (including out of school visits, bike-ability, work with police officers in the community)
• Poolside and water safety through swimming lessons
• Fire awareness (including visits from Merseyside Fire Service)
• Visitors from charities
• Work from local voluntary sector services and St Peter’s church particularly around safe transition to Secondary school
• Plays and shows
• Exploitation and Gang Life
• Online safety quizzes and training
• Our visits and experiences incorporate “Stranger Danger”, being safe in the outdoors, what to do if? What to do if you are separated from your group (in relation to school visits)?
• Safe use of technology including password security and privacy settings

We have developed an open and safe learning environment in which pupils express their views, seek help, and help others. The promotion of equality of opportunity and diversity, for pupils and staff, helps prevent any form of direct or indirect discriminatory behaviour.

• Our children learn to not tolerate any prejudiced behaviour
• Our behaviour policy promotes making good choices and exhibiting good learning behaviours. Class times are a time for sharing ideas, addressing concerns, and promoting important values
• Assembly time and circle times are used to promote personal safeguarding matters and explore themes. For example, we talk about anti- bullying including cyber bullying and British values including how these values are promoted in society
• Staff and children are quick to challenge stereotypes. Our school reflects the diversity of pupils’ experiences and provides pupils with a comprehensive understanding of people and communities beyond their immediate experience

Throughout the curriculum, there are planned opportunities to promote all forms of equality and foster greater understanding of and respect for people of all faiths (and those with no faith), races, genders, ages, disabilities, and sexual orientations, through their words, actions and in their influence. Opportunities are created in a variety of subjects to address areas of safeguarding, for example, themes are highlighted through novels in English lessons.

Time is taken at the beginning of every new school year to reaffirm Core Values (Faith, Aspiration, Resilience, Respect) behavioural expectations, and rules for being part of Team St Monica's.

This good start to the year, with everyone clear about their roles and responsibilities, sets the tone for the rest of the year and leads to excellent safeguarding outcomes.