• Be healthy
• Be safe
• Achieve 
• Grow in a stimulating and nurturing environment 
• Be responsible and respected 
• Have a voice and be heard 
• Move confidently into adulthood 
• Have confidence, dignity and self-respect

• One of JCG’s core values is belong; we think that being safe, and feeling safe, is integral to your sense of belonging. It is this foundation of safety and belonging that allows you to aspire, inquire and excel. 
• Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is defined for the purposes of this policy as: 
  • Protecting children from maltreatment 
  • Preventing the impairment of children’s mental and physical health or development 
  • Ensuring that children grow up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care, and 
  • Taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes. Children includes everyone under the age of 18.

A child is anyone under 18. Child abuse can take place when someone causes harm or when someone fails to take action to prevent harm. Children can be abused by adults and by other children; abuse can happen in a family or community setting or elsewhere, and it can take place partly or wholly online. 

There are four main categories of abuse:

• Physical abuse: includes hitting, shaking, suffocating and otherwise causing physical harm 
• Emotional abuse: can involve making a child feel worthless and unloved, can involve bullying (online or offline) 
• Sexual abuse: includes unwanted sexual contact, but can also take place entirely online and involve sharing/sending of sexually explicit material 
• Neglect: involves failing to meet a child's basic needs, including food, shelter, clothing and medical care

• There are many possible signs of abuse, and all staff at College are trained to spot these 
• You might become concerned about a friend because they talk to you about something worrying or because you notice a change in their behaviour (you know what is 'normal' for your friends) 
• If you are ever concerned about your own safety, or the safety of another student at College, we are here to help

• Listen (without judgement) 
• Signpost support and pass on your concern (see next slide) 
• Remember: act responsibility, but don't take responsibility

The first step is to talk to a trusted adult. This might be a parent or another family member, but you can also talk to any adult in College, including the following people: 

• Your Tutor 
• One of your subject teachers 
• A school counsellor (More information available here) 
• Your Head of School (or their Assistant) 
• Mr Milner (Designated Safeguarding Lead), Miss Veitch (Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead) or any member of the Senior Leadership Team 

See the Who Can I Talk To page of the College website, and the Guide to Wellbeing posters in every room of the College.

• You will be taken seriously, regardless of what you are worried about or when it happened (sometimes, it takes a while to feel able to speak about things that worry us) 
• The member of staff will listen to what you have to say and may ask you some open questions, such as 'is there anything else you'd like to tell me?' 
• The member of staff will make a record (notes) of the conversation either during your discussion or immediately after 
• The member of staff may need to pass on what you have told them, and they will discuss this with you

• If we have reason to be concerned about your safety, we will always act in your best interests and we will always talk to you about the steps we need to take in order to keep you safe 
• Your welfare will be the priority, and you will always remain at the centre of the process; a member of staff will speak to you about anything we need to do to support you

• The full policy is available through our website: https://jerseycollegeforgirls.com/pages/about-jcg/our-policies-and-procedures
• The policy is reviewed every year; if you think there is something missing from the policy, which should be included, please speak to Mr Milner 
• Thank you for reading the student version of this policy: keeping you safe is the most important thing we do at College