About Us

Safeguarding and Welfare of our Pupils

“Pitmaston Primary School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.”

At Pitmaston, we believe that safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility. Mrs Sara Bream (Deputy Headteacher) is our Designated Safeguarding Lead. Mrs Kate Wilcock (Head teacher) Mrs Jane Lyons (Assistant Head teacher) Mrs Sue Bladen (School Business Manager) and Mrs Rebecca Williams (Phase 4 Leader) are all Deputy Designated Safeguarding leads. The Governor with responsibility for child protection is Mrs Lynda Townsend.

Pitmaston Primary School believes that it is completely unacceptable for a child to experience abuse of any kind. We recognise our responsibility to safeguard the welfare of all children. We provide staff and volunteers with guidance to follow when they suspect a child may be experiencing abuse or at risk of harm. We will work co-operatively with other professionals and external agencies to safeguard and promote the welfare of all children. We will ensure that our concerns about our pupils are discussed with parents/carers first – unless we have reason to believe that such a move would be contrary to the child’s welfare.

As a school, we recognise the power of early intervention and Early Help, with the aim of supporting concerns and issues before they escalate into more serious Child Protection concerns. Please refer to our Early Help offer for further information with regards to the additional support we can provide.

At Pitmaston, we have our own Family Support Worker, Kelethe Pusharski. Kelethe is able to meet with parents offering bespoke support for a range of problems or concerns. Through this personalised support, parents are given the information and resources needed to empower them to make positive changes to improve home and family life. Kelethe is also a qualified Family Thrive practitioner and is able to use this knowledge to further support parents via group and 1:1 sessions. More information can be found within our Early Help Offer.

We recognise and strive to maintain a school where children feel safe and are in an environment where they feel they are able to share concerns and worries, allowing us to effectively safeguard all children. As a Thrive School, and as a school that adopts a Trauma Informed Approach, early intervention support for social and emotional as well as mental health issues are of paramount importance to us. Qualified practitioners offer targeted support for children with these needs, as well as other external agencies including our Play Therapist, School Counsellor and CAMHs CAST.

Our school delivers comprehensive Personal, Social, Health and Economics, (PSHE) lessons, which are guided by the Jigsaw Programme, in addition to Relationship and Sex Education (RSE) programmes. These further support the children’s understanding of how to keep themselves safe. It also broadens their understanding of strategies to develop their resilience, as well as their awareness of their own mental health and approaches to keep this aspect of their lives healthy.

Within our school, we have 10 key staff who have all received the Mental Health First Aid training, supporting staff to spot signs and symptoms of common mental health issues, provide non-judgmental support and reassurance, and guide the young person or adult to seek professional support they may need to recover.

We are also a Domestic Abuse hub, and have a dedicated Domestic Abuse phone line intended to supporting victims, both present and past, of Domestic Abuse. We recognise the detrimental impact that Domestic Abuse has, not only on the primary victim, but on the children growing up in an environment where Domestic Abuse is prevalent. Our dedicated phone line enables victims to share their situation with a Domestic Abuse Champion, who can then help develop a collaborative support network around the victim.

As a school, we are fully aware of the impact that any form of sexual violence and/or sexual harassment can have on our children, and know that it can occur online as well as face to face. Furthermore, we know that this behaviour is never acceptable. As set out in Part one of Keeping children safe in education (KCSIE), all staff working with children maintain an attitude of ‘it could happen here’ and will address inappropriate behaviour (even if it appears to be relatively innocuous) with the intention of preventing problematic, abusive and/or violent behaviour in the future. Further support and information for parents can also be found by clicking onto the Parents Protect link below.

Our early help offer - effective ways to help and support your family at the earliest opportunity

The Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) Programme offers free holiday provision to children in receipt of Free School Meals (FSM) and vulnerable families during Easter, summer and Christmas school holidays. Click on the banner above for more information.