Why is safeguarding so important in schools?

Safeguarding is an essential aspect of any school setting, as it helps to protect and support the school community. It is the legal and moral responsibility of schools to ensure that students, staff and visitors are safe and protected from harm, and by implementing robust safeguarding policies and procedures, schools can ensure that they are providing a safe and secure environment for all members of their community to help prevent incidents from occurring. Here we look at some of the main aspects of safeguarding in schools.

Protecting students from harm

A key aspect of safeguarding in schools is protecting students from harm. This includes protecting them from physical, emotional and sexual abuse, as well as neglect and bullying. Schools have a legal and moral responsibility to ensure that students are safe and protected from harm, and safeguarding policies and procedures are in place to help prevent these types of incidents from occurring.

Supporting vulnerable and at risk students

Another important aspect of safeguarding in schools is to support students who may be vulnerable or at risk. This includes students who may have special educational needs, mental health issues, or who come from difficult backgrounds. Schools have a duty to identify and support these students, and safeguarding policies and procedures can help to ensure that they receive the appropriate support and services.

Protecting staff and visitors

In addition to protecting and supporting students, safeguarding in schools also helps to protect staff and visitors. This includes ensuring that staff are safe from physical, emotional and sexual abuse, and that visitors are not a risk to the school community. Safeguarding policies and procedures can help to ensure that staff and visitors are aware of their responsibilities and how to report any concerns.

Creating a safe and secure school environment

Lastly, safeguarding in schools is important to ensure that the school environment is safe and secure for all. This includes ensuring that the school buildings and grounds are safe and that emergency procedures are in place in case of an incident. Safeguarding policies and procedures can help to ensure that the school is prepared for any emergency and that the school community knows what to do in case of an incident.

Keep your school community safe with our end-to-end safeguarding tools

If you're looking for safeguarding support we have two great tools that can help.

You can provide staff with flexible, expert-written online training in safeguarding, compliance, health and safety, and wellbeing with our safeguarding training package, Tes Safeguarding.

For more information, or to request a free demo, just fill in our short form and one of our education consultants will be in touch.