The University of Cambridge Primary School fully recognises the responsibility it has under section 175 of the Education Act 2002 (as amended) to have arrangements in place to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.
We will endeavour to provide a safe and welcoming environment where children are respected and valued.
The school will therefore be alert to signs of abuse, neglect and exploitation, and will follow the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Safeguarding Children Partnership Board’s procedures to ensure that children receive appropriate and effective support and protection.
Parents/carers should know that the law requires the whole team to pass on information which gives rise to a concern about a child’s welfare, including risk from neglect, physical, emotional or sexual abuse and exploitation. Parents/carers should know that records of safeguarding concerns may be kept about their child. They should be informed that the team will generally seek to discuss any concerns with them, including referrals to other agencies.
Local procedures state that consent should always be sought from an adult with parental responsibility for the child before passing information about them to Children’s Social Care, unless seeking consent would place the child at risk of significant harm, or may lead to the loss of evidence — for example, destroying evidence of a crime or influencing a child about a disclosure made. This includes sharing information without consent where it is not possible to gain consent, where it cannot reasonably be expected that a professional gains consent, or where to gain consent would place a child at risk.
Where there is a need to share special category personal data, the Data Protection Act 2018 and the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 contain ‘safeguarding of children and individuals at risk’ as a processing condition that allows professionals to share information.
In accordance with legislation and local Information Sharing protocols, we will ensure that information is shared securely and sensitively. Information will only be shared with other services where it is deemed necessary and proportionate to ensure that children receive the right support. In all circumstances, the safety of the child will be the paramount concern.
The school will contact Children’s Social Care when it has reasonable cause to suspect a child may be suffering, or likely to suffer, significant harm. Occasionally, concerns are passed on which are later shown to be unfounded. Parents/carers will appreciate that the team member with responsibility for child protection (known as the Designated Safeguarding Lead or Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead) was carrying out their responsibilities in accordance with the law and acting in the best interests of all children.
Holding Power
Under Section 3(5) of the Children Act 1989, any person who has care of a child may do what is reasonable in all the circumstances of the case for the purpose of safeguarding and promoting the child’s welfare. This means that, on rare occasions, the school may need to ‘hold’ a child in school whilst Social Care and the Police investigate any concerns further.
