Veritas Educational Trust is committed to the vital contribution all Trustees and staff make to safeguarding and the protection and welfare of children and young people. We aim to ensure that all child protection and welfare concerns and referrals are handled sensitively, professionally and in ways that support the specific needs of the individual child. We aim to foster an atmosphere of trust, respect and security and all of our academies follow clearly published procedures with regards to safeguarding and child protection. The Trust also follows clear procedures in the safer recruitment of staff as outlined in the 'Work with Us' section of our school website.
The named Trustee for Safeguarding on the Trust Board is Pauline Byles.
Details of the school's Safeguarding Team can be viewed here
Veritas Educational Trust ensures all policies and procedures in respect of safeguarding children are up to date and in line with the latest version of Keeping Children Safe in Education. The policies are accessible to all staff through the Staff Portal. Policies and procedures are reviewed and revised by the Trust Board on a regular basis.
As delegated by the Board of Trustees, the Chief Executive is the lead for Safeguarding and directly line manages the Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) who has oversight of the Policy. They in turn liaise directly with the named Safeguarding Trustees on the Trust Board who report to the Board on all Safeguarding issues.
Veritas Educational Trust meets statutory requirements in relation to the Disclosure & Barring Service. All staff and volunteers who work with and for the Trust meet the ‘regulated activity test’ (Freedoms Act 2012) and are required to undergo an enhanced DBS check prior to employment.
The Board of Trustees for Veritas Educational Trust has ultimate responsibility for Safeguarding issues. Operationally, this responsibility is delegated to the Chief Executive, who leads on policy issues in relation to the safeguarding of children and adults at risk in conjunction with the Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL). The DSL leads a team of Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads (DDSLs) and all are clear about their responsibilities. Members of the Safeguarding Team have sufficient time and receive relevant support, and training, to undertake their roles, which involve close contact with outside agencies including social services, the Local Safeguarding Children’s Board and relevant health care organisations.
All eligible staff and volunteers are required to undertake relevant safeguarding training at least annually and this is regularly reviewed by the Designated Safeguarding Lead and the Trust's HR team to ensure it is up to date. A training database for all staff and volunteers is maintained. In addition all named Safeguarding Trustees attend scheduled meetings with the DSL throughout the year.
Veritas Educational Trust has robust audit checklists to ensure that safeguarding systems and processes are working. The audit includes: the monitoring of the online Single Central Record, the monitoring of Safeguarding and Child Protection Policies and Procedures including, ‘Allegations against Professionals’ and the monitoring of the training, guidance and support provided for all employees and volunteers. The Trust also commissions external safeguarding audits and takes part in relevant audits with partner agencies including those from the Local Authority.
