Keep Children Safe
It is very important that parents and carers are able to access high quality information which will enable them to support their children’s well-being and resilience. This section of the website is designed to bring together useful pieces of information about matters which may be affecting your child presently, or are potential issues in the future. With the massive development in technology, our children are facing challenges which many parents may not even be aware of. There may also be issues parents feel uncomfortable talking about. Knowledge and understanding will help us to keep our children safe and give us the confidence to talk about challenging issues.
If parents feel there are further topics on which they would appreciate support, please send a request to: [email protected]
Please note, if you have serious concerns about the safety of your child you should contact the police or seek medical advice immediately. The advice on the links published in this section of our website has been collated from that provided by independent experts in their field and is not necessarily the views of Hatton Hill School. Further advice and support is widely available from your GP, school nurse and various professional agencies.
Concerned about a Child?
If a child is in immediate danger, call 999.
What is a Concern?
You may want to report a concern if you:
- are worried about the safety or wellbeing of a child
- suspect neglect or abuse
- would like to report an incident
- are a child or young people who needs support
Concerns about a child should alway be reported. The safety of our children is our number one priority. Our designated safeguarding leads (DSLs) are Mrs James, headteacher, and Mrs Hickey, Learning Mentor. We will always take concerns about children seriously and we work tirelessly with a range of professionals to ensure all children within our school community are safe from harm.
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Mrs James |
Mrs Hickey |
Out of school hours, concerns should be directed to Sefton's Children's Services on 0345 140 0845 or out of hours 0151 934 3555. More information can be found here: https://www.sefton.gov.uk/social-care/children-and-young-people/report-a-child-or-young-person-at-risk
Or contact:
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Adults: 0808 800 5000 |
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Children: 0800 11 11 |
Well-being
At Hatton Hill, we work as a team to help support the well-being of our whole school community. Mrs Hickey, our Learning Mentor, is a fountain of knowledge and is able to help children and/or families who may be struggling for a variety of reasons. This may be through in-house support or by helping you access other professional agencies. We may also recommend that you seek the advice of your GP.
Our SENDco, Mrs Jones, also works closely with the families of children who have special education needs or disabillities. She ensures that our teachers and teaching assistants maintain a high level of skill. She also liasies with other professionals to ensure that our children access the range of support they may need.
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Sefton Mental Health Support Team (MHST)
Mental Health Support Teams in Schools (MHST) are part of a national programme to reduce inequalities and increase access to mental health support for children and young people. The Alder Hey MHST’s work with over 160 schools across Liverpool and Sefton, including Hatton Hill, in collaboration with partner agencies.
The team offers support to children and young people who are experiencing:
- low mood
- worry
- anxiety and avoidance (eg simple phobias or separation anxiety)
- sleep difficulties
Through the MHST, children, school staff and parents can access support, guidance and training around specific issues of mental health and emotional wellbeing. Sefton school MHST's aim is to help every child going to school in Sefton know how to look after their emotional wellbeing. The team aims to do this in a non-stigmatising way, so that emotional wellbeing and mental health can be ‘championed’ and talked about in exactly the same way as physical health. The MHST offers timely, direct, psychological interventions to prevent deterioration of emotional wellbeing aiming to get the right treatment to the right person at the right time, which may include sign posting to a more appropriate local provider, or support referral to specialist CAMH services.
Referral criteria
MHST provides support to children and young people aged 5-18 years. MHST is an early-intervention service for children and young people who are experiencing low to moderate mental health concerns.
Referral process
Mental health concerns regarding specific children and young people are referred by the school’s mental health leads, Mrs James and Mrs Hickey, following discussion with the MHST team. Consent is obtained from parents/carers prior to consultation. Advice and signposting to other appropriate services can also be provided by MHST. If you feel your child is need of this support, please contact Mrs James or Mrs Hickey. Our named practioner, Mr Connor, visits our school bi-weekly.
Our School Health Team can also be contacted to arrange an appointment: Tel: 0151 247 6354 or via email: [email protected].
Important: if you are seriously concerned about your child's mental well-being and feel they may be at risk of harm, you should attend A&E.
Ollee
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It is normal for children to have worries from time-to-time; however, it is good to talk them through so they don’t become too big to manage. Ollee is a digital friend for children aged 8-11, created by Parent Zone and funded by the BBC’s Children in Need appeal. It aims to support children’s emotional well-being and can be accessed completely free of charge at: http://ollee.org.uk/ Ollee gives good advice on a range of issues and could be used by a child independently, or by a parent and child together.
“Ollee is a digital friend that supports parent and child communication, particularly around what can be difficult topics,” says Lucy, Partnerships Manager at Parent Zone. “Ollee supports a child’s and a family’s emotional wellbeing by promoting discussion and enabling children to express themselves. It’s designed to help children reflect on how they feel.”
So how does it work?
First, children pick a subject they want to talk about. Then, they choose an emotion they are feeling. It could be worried, stressed, happy, confused, or another emotion. With prompts such as, “I feel lonely”, “no one listens to me” or “I am being bullied”, Ollee then gives children supportive advice about that subject and how they feel. Watch the short cloip below to find out more.
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The Ollee app is free to download and available on Apple and Android devices.
Useful websites: links
Papyrus (suicide prevention support)
Report Harmful Content (for online bullying and online harms)
Childnet International (for online bullying and online harms)
Internet Matters (for online bullying and online harms)
Free Online E-Learning Courses: safeguarding children; health & well-being
Keeping Safe Online
Children have the right to enjoy childhood online, to access safe online spaces, and to benefit from all the opportunities that a connected world can bring to them, appropriate to their age and stage. As they grow older, it is crucial that they learn to balance the benefits offered by technology with a critical awareness of their own and other’s online behaviour and develop effective strategies for staying safe and making a positive contribution online.
Hatton Hill uses the UK Council for Internet Safety's 'Education for a Connected World' framework which describes the knowledge, understanding and skills that children and young people should have the opportunity to develop at different ages and stages. It highlights what a child should know in terms of current online technology, its influence on behaviour and development, how to get support, and what skills they need to be able to navigate it safely.
Children and young people’s online activity and behaviour can be different both within and across an age range. This framework has helped us:
- Develop a rich, effective and developmental curriculum, which will support young people to be safe, healthy and thriving online
- Audit and evaluate existing provision of online safety education
- Coordinate delivery of online safety education throughout the curriculum
- Improve engagement across the wider school community on issues related to online safety
- Develop effective training for staff and governors
Please see a summary of the framework below. A full copy can also accessed at the bottom of this page.
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Useful websites: links
Digital Parenting (highly recommended)
Parent Zone - A Direct Link to Parent Guides
O2 Internet Safety: Guidance and Resources
NSPCC Information about Social Media
NSPCC Be Share Aware: Guidance on How To Talk To Your Children About Keeping Safe Online
Free Online E-Learning Courses: safeguarding children; health & well-being
Report Harmful Content (for online bullying and online harms)
Childnet International (for online bullying and online harms)
Internet Matters (for online bullying and online harms)
Operation Encompass
In conjunction with Merseyside Police, School Name is involved in an initiative called Operation Encompass. The purpose of Operation Encompass is to safeguard and support children and young people who have been involved in, heard or witnessed a domestic abuse incident. Following such an incident, children can arrive at school distressed, upset, worried and unprepared. Operation Encompass aims to ensure that appropriate school staff (called Key Adults) are made aware early enough to support children and young people in a way that means they feel safe and included.
At Hatton Hill, our Key Adults are Mrs James (Headteacher) and Mrs Hickey (Learning Mentor).
This is a valuable initiative that means we can continue to support and help children and families within our school community when they need it the most. You can find our more by visiting www.operationencompass.org or by contacting our Key Adults.
Healthy Children
We know that sometimes our pupils cannot come to school because they are really unwell - and that's the right thing to do for them and other students. Medical advice is clear however that children with mild illness will often be well enough to attend - for example if they have a cough, or cold, without a temperature. The NHS guidance Is my child too ill for school? - NHS (www.nhs.uk) is designed to support parents in their decision making about mild illness.
We also know that pupils fall behind their friends and classmates when they miss school. At Hatton Hill School we want the amount of missed education to be reduced as much as possible. We believe that our community is stronger together, with all of our pupils in school, on time, every day. We are building life skills, life-long friendships and preparing your child for future success.
It can be tricky deciding whether or not to keep your child off school, nursery or playgroup when they're unwell. The information below is designed to help you make a decision, however if you are concerned about your child, always seek medical advice.
Is my child too ill for school? https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/is-my-child-too-ill-for-school/
Alder Hey Symptom Checker: Please see below a poster and short video clip explaining Alder Hey's new support service in the form of an easy to use symptom checker. This will help parents decide how to best access the appropriate level of care for a poorly child:
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School Nurse Attend Anywhere Appointments: The School Health Team is not currently offering face-to-face drop-in sessions at our school. Instead, Attend Anywhere Appointments are being offered online. A leaflet explaining this can be found below and dates on which the service is being offered will be emailed to you and appear on our school calendar. If you are unable to attend either of the allocated sessions but still wish to speak to the school health team. Please contact the team on:
Tel: 0151 247 6354 or via email: [email protected].