Ofsted Safeguarding: Key features of outstanding practice

1.        Most of the features of outstanding practice are found, to a greater or lesser extent, in all effective schools with outstanding safeguarding arrangements. It is a wide-ranging list; in outstanding schools safeguarding permeates all aspects of school life. These features are covered in more detail in the body of the report and illustrated with examples of best practice from outstanding schools. In summary, the key features of outstanding practice include:

 high-quality leadership and management that makes safeguarding a priority across all aspects of a school’s work

 stringent vetting procedures in place for staff and other adults

 rigorous safeguarding policies and procedures in place, written in plain English, compliant with statutory requirements and updated regularly; in particular, clear and coherent child protection policies

 child protection arrangements that are accessible to everyone, so that pupils and families, as well as adults in the school, know who they can talk to if they are worried

 excellent communication systems with up-to-date information that can be accessed and shared by those who need it

 a high priority given to training in safeguarding, generally going beyond basic requirements, extending expertise widely and building internal capacity

 robust arrangements for site security, understood and applied by staff and pupils

 a curriculum that is flexible, relevant and engages pupils’ interest; that is used to promote safeguarding, not least through teaching pupils how to stay safe, how to protect themselves from harm and how to take responsibility for their own and others’ safety

courteous and responsible behaviour by the pupils, enabling everyone to feel secure and well-protected

well thought out and workable day-to-day arrangements to protect and promote pupils’ health and safety

rigorous monitoring of absence, with timely and appropriate follow-up, to ensure that pupils attend regularly

risk assessment taken seriously and used to good effect in promoting safety. 

Taken from http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/resources/safeguarding-schools-best-practice