Safeguarding

Oswald Road Primary School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of our children. We require all staff, volunteers and visitors to share the commitment.

Click here to read our Safeguarding Policy

Safeguarding Staff

These members of staff have all received safeguarding designated person training so please feel free to approach them with any questions or concerns.

  • Deputy Headteacher (Curriculum/Safeguarding)

    Donna Wealleans


    Deputy Headteacher (Curriculum/Safeguarding)

    Donna Wealleans is our school Deputy Headteacher and has worked at Oswald Road since September 2013. She has achieved the National Educational Leader in Mental Health in January 2023 and is also our Adult Mental Health First Aider. She is a member of the Manchester Safeguarding Strategy Group.

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  • Pastoral & Support Manager

    Amanda Clifton


    Pastoral & Support Manager

    Amanda Clifton has worked at Oswald Road since 2014. She is an Accredited Early Help Practitioner, Youth Mental Health First Aider and has a Diploma in Trauma and Mental Health Informed Schools and Communities, Practitioner Status ( Trauma Informed UK Schools). She is a third year BA(Hons) Social Work student at Manchester Metropolitan University.

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  • Headteacher

    Deborah Howard


    Headteacher
    More
  • Deputy Headteacher (SEND)

    Helen Woolf


    Deputy Headteacher (SEND)
  • Sports Coach

    Kieran Bentley


    Sports Coach

"The arrangements for safeguarding are effective."

Ofsted, September 2023

"The arrangements for safeguarding are effective."

Ofsted, September 2023

At Oswald Road Primary School we are totally committed to safeguarding children and to a culture of vigilance. We expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

We make every effort to provide a safe and welcoming environment underpinned by a culture of openness where both children and adults feel secure, able to talk and believe that they are being listened to.

The school has a comprehensive policy so that we can provide staff, volunteers and governors with the framework they need in order to keep children safe and secure in our school and to inform parents and guardians how we will safeguard their children whilst they are in our care.

If anyone has any concerns regarding the safeguarding and well-being of children at our school they should see Donna Wealleans, Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) or in her absence Amanda Clifton, Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead (DDSL). Our Safeguarding Governor is Yogita Patel.

All members of staff have completed all the relevant safeguarding training.

Online Safety & Digital Literacy

The Parent Engagement Project has been set up by the Manchester Safeguarding Partnership to give families the tools to ensure they are staying safe online through digital literacy. Using this resource you can:

  • Get advice on the latest apps & games
  • Learn more about online safety topics
  • Get help with social media incidents
  • Check if your family is set up for online safety

The Reporting Harmful Content button is an asset of SWGfL, a charity working internationally to ensure all benefit from technology, free from harm.

Children under 13 years of age are encouraged to tell an adult that they trust about what has happened and to ask for their help in reporting this going through the how we can help resource together.

SWGfL Report Harmful Content

Metaverse and VR headsets:

To help you understand this new, fast changing issue the NSPCC has published a guide to both the Metaverse and VR headsets. To find out more please follow the link:

https://www.nspcc.org.uk/about-us/news-opinion/2022/christmas-vr-safety-advice-for-parents-metaverse/

Fortnite

We are aware that some children are accessing this game since Christmas and we would urge Parents to read the guidance below:

https://www.internetmatters.org/hub/guidance/fortnite-battle-royal-parents-guide-keep-kids-safe-gaming

A Guide to Online Safety and Gaming

As a new generation of young people arrive onto using multiplayer games and the internet in general this new year, it is more important than ever to make your children aware of how to stay safe online. The SWGfL has published a pamphlet on how to best keep safe whilst using online software and games. With advice on reporting and blocking, online socialization and the considerations on online gaming, the pamphlet can be a useful resource for any Parent. You can find a link to that resource below:

https://swgfl.org.uk/assets/documents/online-safety-and-gaming.pdf

Open Forums:

We are also aware that some of our children are also accessing open forums even though they are much younger than the account set up age such as Twitch, Discord and Reddit. We ask that you check your devices and ensure the children have not set up their own accounts and do not have access to Parent/Carer accounts please find further guidance on these below:

https://www.commonsensemedia.org/website-reviews/twitch/user-reviews/adult

https://www.commonsensemedia.org/app-reviews/discord/user-reviews/adult

https://www.commonsensemedia.org/website-reviews/reddit/user-reviews/adult

Digital Wellbeing:

As the internet becomes more important to us and our children as a social space. It is important to develop a sense of how we can all use it to support our lives, but at the same time to guard against negative influences that exist there. Digital Wellbeing relates to how we can turn the internet into a positive force within our lives, and can aid our mental health. The SWGfL has developed a page designed to raise awareness of Digital Wellbeing and good practice while engaging online. On the page they have an interesting video on the subject, a discussion on the importance of Digital Wellbeing at school and more. To take a look at this fascinating page please follow the link below:

https://swgfl.org.uk/topics/digital-wellbeing/

Supporting Foster Carers and Adoptive Parents Online – UK Safer Internet Centre

In England there are just over four thousand foster carers and two and a half thousand adoptive parents. Their needs are specific and often differ from that of parents with biological children. Their backgrounds can be traumatic, and the older they are the more they likely remember from their often difficult pasts and each memory and experience that’s unconsciously present within the child involved will contribute to their inner trauma. This can sometimes make caring for such children and young people immensely challenging. With this in mind the UK Safer Internet Centre has published guides and resources to help those bringing up children and young people with these needs, in the online space. To find out more please click here.

Operation Encompass

Oswald Road is continuing to take part in Operation Encompass which runs  in partnership with Manchester Safeguarding Board and Greater Manchester Police.

Operation Encompass is a Police and Education early intervention safeguarding partnership which supports children and young people exposed to domestic abuse.

Operation Encompass is the reporting to schools before the start of the next school day when a child or young person has been involved or exposed to a domestic abuse incident the previous evening.

The information is given in strict confidence to a school’s Key Adult to enable support to be given dependent on the needs and wishes of the child.

Operation Encompass is a Trauma Informed and Trauma Sensitive charity. We acknowledge and understand the impact of Domestic Abuse as an Adverse Childhood Experience.

Operation Encompass mitigates against the damaged caused by exposure to Domestic Abuse and other ACE’s.

You can find out more about Operation Encompass by clicking here.

Operation Encompass- Governors’ Commitment

Early Help Service

Oswald Road Primary School is offering an Early Help Service to all of our families.

The Early Help offer in Manchester provides help and support for families and children to promote well being, increase resilience and stability ensuring children are safe, healthy and aspiring to achieve.

If you would like to know more about this service please contact Amanda Clifton, Pastoral & Support Manager, on 0161 881 4266.

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Useful Links, Documents & Contacts

Safeguarding

Oswald Road Primary School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of our children. We require all staff, volunteers and visitors to share the commitment. For more information and resources, view our safeguarding page by clicking here.

Click here to read our Safeguarding Policy

To contact our Safeguarding Team, please email d.wealleans@oswaldroad.manchester.sch.uk or a.clifton@oswaldroad.manchester.sch.uk

Our Safeguarding Page also features lots of useful resources on Online Safety, including information about the ‘Report Harmful Content’ button shown below.

SWGfL Report Harmful Content