CHILD PROTECTION & SAFEGUARDING POLICY

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Child Protection & Safeguarding Policy

August 2023

Table of Contents

Statement of Intent ➡ 3
Purpose / Aims ➡ 3
Definitions ➡  4
Ethos and Principles ➡ 4
Legal, Policy and Ethical Framework ➡ 5
Elements of Our Policy ➡ 5
Types of Abuse ➡ 6
Physical Abuse ➡ 6
Emotional Abuse ➡ 7
Sexual Abuse ➡ 8
Neglect ➡  9
Specific Safeguarding and Student Wellbeing Issues ➡ 10
Peer-on-Peer Abuse ➡ 10
Mental Health and Emotional Wellbeing Issues ➡ 11
Students with Special Needs and/or Disabilities ➡ 11
Grooming ➡ 12
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) ➡ 12
Child Sexual Exploitation ➡ 12
Grooming ➡ 12
Corporal Punishment ➡ 13
Online Safety ➡ 13
Safeguarding Roles, Responsibilities and Procedures ➡ 13
Record Keeping ➡ 14
Professional Confidentiality ➡ 14
Creating a Safe Environment ➡ 15
Staff Recruitment Procedures ➡ 15
Allegations Against Staff ➡ 16
Staff Training Procedures ➡ 16
Management and Oversight of this Policy ➡ 17
Consistency of Policies ➡ 18
Designated Safeguarding Staff ➡ 18
Step-By-Step Safeguarding Reporting Process ➡ 19
Contact Information for Social and Emergency Services ➡ 20

STATEMENT of INTENT

At Mooltripakdee International School (M.I.S.) the safety and wellbeing of our students is at the core of everything we do. Our aim of creating a happy, safe, and welcoming community is a fundamental part of our school mission. As such, we recognize the contribution we can make towards ensuring the safety of our students and view our responsibilities regarding their protection and safeguarding with the utmost seriousness.
Our core aim is to provide a safe, secure, and child-centred environment in which our students can thrive. This policy will set out the measures we have established to fulfill our child protection and safeguarding responsibilities, with the key elements informing this policy being protection, prevention, and support.
All elements of this policy are in line with our ethical and legal responsibilities and have been created to ensure the safety and welfare of our students and staff. Furthermore, as an international school in Thailand, this policy will demonstrate respect for Thai culture while also ensuring that appropriate international standards are met and upheld. It is our firm expectation that all members of the M.I.S. community, be they staff, students, parents, or other key stakeholders, will abide by this policy.

PURPOSE & AIMS
The purpose of Mooltripakdee International School’s safeguarding policy is to ensure every child who is a registered student at our school is safe and protected from harm. This means we will always work to:

  • Protect children and young people in our school community from maltreatment.
  • Prevent impairment of the health, safety or development of children or young people in our school community.
  • Ensure that children and young people in our school community grow up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care.
  • Apply the provisions of this policy, and other related policies, in an outcomes-based manner that ensures the best interests of children and young people in our school community are our first and foremost consideration.
  • Ensure that other policies that protect the right of school staff and registered visitors to work and conduct their business in a safe environment interact appropriately with this policy.

This policy gives direction to all staff (both teaching and non-teaching), volunteers, visitors, and parents about our expectations regarding safeguarding, and the behavioural standards we expect to be upheld. It will also recognise our legal responsibility to safeguard and promote the welfare of all children at our school and acknowledge that this extends beyond our immediate school environment into the wider community.

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This policy applies to all M.I.S. students and their parents, guardians, and family members, as well as staff, governors, volunteers, and visitors.

DEFINITIONS
The following definitions apply in this policy:
“Child Protection” – the protection of children from violence, exploitation, abuse, and neglect.
“Safeguarding” – the action that is taken to promote the welfare of children and protect them from harm. “Designated Safeguarding Lead” (DSL). The head of our school’s safeguarding team. Reports to the School Principal. “Guardian/s” – Any individual involved in the care of a child outside of school hours.
“Welfare” – The physical, emotional, mental, and general wellbeing of a child, both at school and in other environments.
“Senior Management Team” – Principal, Heads of School (Primary and Secondary), Head of Personnel and School Coordinator.
Other specific terms will be defined in applicable sections of this policy.

ETHOS & PRINCIPLES
The child’s welfare is of paramount importance. Our school will establish and maintain an environment in which students are safe, are encouraged to talk about their needs, and are listened to and understood when they do so. In this environment, our students will be able to talk freely to any MIS staff member if they are experiencing abuse, worries, stresses, threats or fears.
Child protection and safeguarding arrangements at M.I.S. are governed by these key principles:

1. M.I.S. has a child-centred philosophy which values the welfare, safety, needs, wishes, views and voices of its students.
2. Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility: all staff must play their part in keeping children safe.
3. All members of staff must maintain a clear and updated understanding of abuse, neglect, and other child safety issues as per their definitions in this policy. All staff must know how to identify, report, and respond to abuse and neglect, in line with the step-by-step procedure outlined herein.
4. Staff or other concerned stakeholders should feel confident that, when they report a child protection issue, it will be dealt with swiftly and securely, and in a manner that

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follows mandated procedures. These procedures will have the safety and wellbeing of the child or children in question as their top priority.
LEGAL, POLICY and ETHICAL FRAMEWORK
The framework of legislation, policy, guidelines, data, and ethical considerations that underpins this policy has been developed by relevant governments and non-government organisations. As an international school, we have drawn on relevant material from both Thailand and abroad, namely:

  • The Child Protection Act (Thailand) 2003
  • The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UN OHCHR) 1989
  • National Framework for Protecting Australia’s Children Indicators (Australia) 2022
  • The Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations (U.K.) 2014
  • Keeping Children Safe in Education (U.K.) 2022
  • Working Together to Safeguard Children (U.K.) 2022
  • The Children Act (U.K.) 2004
  • World Health Organisation Guidelines on Child Health (WHO) 2017

ELEMENTS of this POLICY
There are nine main elements to our policy which are laid out in the following sections:
1. Types of Abuse, Neglect and Maltreatment (and possible indicators)
2. Safeguarding Roles, Responsibilities, and Procedures
3. Record Keeping
4. Professional Confidentiality
5. Creating a Safe Environment
6. Staff Recruitment Procedures
7. Allegations against Staff
8. Staff Training
9. Management and Oversight (including interaction with other relevant MIS policies)

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1.Types of Abuse
There are a significant number of ways that students may be exposed to risk and danger. Abuse is defined as any form of maltreatment of a child. This can manifest itself as direct harm to a child or by failing to act to prevent harm. For the purpose of clarity, this policy covers abuse that occurs in any environment, not just at our school. One of the best ways to support children is by being aware of the signs of possible abuse. All staff should be aware of the signs of potential abuse and neglect so that they are able to identify children who may be in need of help or protection. Please note that many signs and indicators of abuse will be consistent across different forms of abuse.
It should be noted that the following list is not exhaustive and that, under the terms of this policy, action can and must be taken in regard to any and all forms of abuse, even if they are not listed here.

1.1 Physical Abuse
Physical abuse may involve hitting, shaking, throwing, poisoning, burning or scalding, drowning, suffocating or otherwise causing physical harm to a child. Physical harm may also be caused when an adult fabricates the symptoms of, or deliberately induces, illness in a child.

Signs of Physical Abuse
Most children will sustain cuts, grazes, bruises and other minor injuries in the course of their daily activities. These should always be interpreted in the context of the child’s medical and social history, developmental stage and the explanation given by the child or their caregiver. Most accidental bruises are seen over bony parts of the body, such as elbows, knees, shins, and are often on the front of the body. Some children, however, will suffer cuts, bruising or other injuries that are more than likely inflicted rather than accidental.
Important indicators of physical abuse are bruises or injuries that are either unexplained or inconsistent with the explanation given; these can often be visible on the ‘soft’ parts of the body where accidental injuries are unlikely, such as cheeks, abdomen, back and buttocks.
Furthermore, the act of delaying medical treatment when a child requires it can also be considered a form of abuse.
The physical signs of abuse may include:

  • Bruising, marks or injuries on any part of the body that the child either will not explain or cannot explain logically.
  • Multiple bruises, in clusters, often on the upper arm, outside of the thigh.
  • Cigarette burns.
  • Human bite marks.
  • Broken bones.

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  • Scalds, with upward splash marks.
  • Multiple burns with a clearly demarcated edge.
  • Changes in behaviour that can also indicate physical abuse:
  • Fear of parents being approached for an explanation.
  • Aggressive behaviour or severe temper outbursts.
  • Flinching when approached or touched.
  • Reluctance to get changed, for example in hot weather.
  • Depression.
  • Withdrawn behaviour.
  • Reluctance to go home after school, or an obvious sense of anxiety or fear of doing so.
  • Running away from home.

1.2 Emotional Abuse
Emotional abuse is the emotional maltreatment of a child to the extent that it can severely and persistently harm their emotional development. This can take the form of a severe isolated incident, or possibly take place on a persistent basis. It may involve explicitly or implicitly telling a child that they are worthless or unloved, inadequate, or valued only insofar as they meet the needs of another person. It may include not giving the child opportunities to express their views, needs or perspectives, deliberately silencing them or ‘making fun’ of what they say or how they communicate.
Imposing age or developmentally inappropriate expectations on children can also be a form of emotional abuse. This may include interactions that are beyond the developmental capability of the child in question, as well as overprotection and limitation of exploration and learning, or preventing the child participating in normal social interaction.
Emotional abuse may involve seeing or hearing the ill-treatment of another. It may involve serious bullying (including cyber bullying), causing children to frequently feel frightened or in danger, or the exploitation and/or corruption of children.

1)Signs of Emotional Abuse

Emotional abuse can be difficult to identify as there are often no outward physical signs. Indications may be a developmental delay due to a failure to thrive and grow. However, children who appear well-cared for may nevertheless be emotionally abused by being taunted, put down or belittled. They may receive little or no attention, love or affection from their parents and/or carers. Emotional abuse can also take the form of deliberately isolating a child from social contact, such as preventing them from mixing with or playing with other children.

Changes in behaviour which can indicate emotional abuse include:

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  • Agitated or maladjusted behaviour: for example, sulking, hair twisting, rocking when seated
  • Being unable or unwilling to play
  • Fear of making mistakes
  • Sudden speech disorders, such as the onset of a stutter, change in speech patterns or hesitancy to speak
  • Being distracted or disengaged during group activities
  • A loss of interest in previously enjoyable activities
  • A noticeable change in behaviour patterns
  • Intentional self-harm
  • An increased propensity for accidents
  • Fear of parent being approached regarding their behaviour
  • Developmental delay in terms of emotional progress

1.3 Sexual Abuse
Sexual abuse involves forcing or enticing a child or young person to take part in sexual activities, not necessarily involving a high level of violence, whether or not the child is aware of what is happening. The activities may involve physical contact or non-contact activities, such as involving children in looking at, or in the production of, sexual images, watching sexual activities, encouraging children to behave in sexually inappropriate ways, or grooming a child in preparation for abuse (including via the internet). Sexual abuse can be perpetrated by people of any gender, including other children; it should not be assumed that only adult males can commit sexual abuse.

Signs of Sexual Abuse
Studies have shown that under-reporting of sexual abuse that occurs within the family environment is a worldwide issue. As such, we must not rely on others (and especially not children who are victims or witnesses of abuse) to report or disclose such issues.
All staff should report any concerns that may have arisen through, for example, the observation and play of younger children and by understanding the behaviour indicators in older children which may be symptomatic of such abuse.

All staff should be aware that adults who use children to meet their own sexual needs may abuse both girls and boys of all ages. Also, in some cases older children may be abusing younger children. Indications of sexual abuse may be physical or seen through the child’s behaviour. Children who report sexual abuse do so because they want it to stop, and if they reach out to a member of our school community with a disclosure of abuse, we must follow correct procedures to protect them. It is important, therefore, that children who disclose abuse (whether as a victim or a witness) are listened to and taken seriously.
The physical signs of sexual abuse may include:

  • Pain or itching in the genital area

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  • Bruising or bleeding near genital area
  • Sexually transmitted disease
  • Vaginal discharge or infection
  • Stomach pains
  • Discomfort when walking or sitting down
  • Pregnancy.
  • Changes in behaviour which can also indicate sexual abuse include:
  • Sudden or unexplained changes in behaviour, such as becoming aggressive or withdrawn
  • Fear of being left with a specific person or group of people
  • Having nightmares
  • Running away from home
  • Sexual knowledge which is beyond their age, or developmental level
  • Sexual drawings or language
  • Bedwetting
  • Eating problems, such as overeating or anorexia
  • Self-harm or mutilation, sometimes leading to suicide attempts
  • Saying they have secrets they cannot tell anyone about
  • Substance or drug abuse
  • Suddenly having unexplained sources of money
  • Not allowed to have friends (particularly in adolescence)

1.4 Neglect
Neglect is the persistent failure to meet a child’s basic physical and/or psychological needs, likely to result in the serious impairment of the child’s health or development. It may include a failure to:

  • Provide adequate food, clothing and shelter.
  • Protect a child from physical and emotional harm or danger.
  • Ensure adequate supervision (including the use of inadequate care-givers).
  • Ensure access to appropriate medical care or treatment.
  • Respond to a child’s basic emotional needs.
  • Allow a child’s mental health to deteriorate through inaction where it is clear that the child needs appropriate professional assistance
  • Deny a child access to education that is appropriate to their age, or neglect their individual educational needs (especially in cases where a child has learning difficulties)
    It is the responsibility of a child’s parents or guardians to ensure the child is allowed proper sleep at night, given proper meals (including breakfast before school), is brought to school on time and has all required educational materials with them.

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Signs of Neglect
While it can be difficult to recognise the signs of neglect, its effects can be long term and damaging for children. As such, we must be alert to possible indicators. The physical signs of neglect may include:

  • Being constantly dirty or ‘smelly’.
  • Constant hunger, sometimes stealing food from other children.
  • Losing weight or being constantly underweight.
  • Signs of tiredness, including frequent complaints of being tired.
  • Inappropriate or dirty clothing.
    Neglect may be indicated by behaviour which may include:
  • Mentioning being left alone or unsupervised.
  • Not having many friends.
  • Not requesting medical assistance and/or failing to attend appointments.
  • Homework or schoolwork rarely or poorly done
  • A lack of engagement by parents, guardians or carers in regard to the child’s educational wellbeing
  • Poor nutrition, including being hungry or only being provided with food that is not suitable for being relied upon as a primary meal
  • Consistent lateness or absences from school.

1.5 Specific Safeguarding and Student Wellbeing Issues
All staff should have an awareness of the safeguarding issues which are listed below. Safeguarding can link to issues such as drug-taking, alcohol abuse, truancy, nude or semi-nude image sharing (formerly known as sexting) and online safety. It should be noted that this list is not exhaustive, and that other issues that may affect the safety and wellbeing of students at our school can also fall under the purview of our safeguarding policy.

Peer on Peer Abuse
If a member of staff thinks for whatever reason that a student may pose a risk of harm to themselves or to others (this includes but is not limited to cases of bullying), the member of staff should report their concern to the DSL as soon as possible. In cases of bullying, the schools Anti-Bullying Policy should also be referred to.
All staff should be aware that safeguarding issues can manifest themselves via peer-on-peer abuse; and that children can abuse each other. Such abuse should never be tolerated or normalised through the common myth that it is part of ‘growing up’. This issue may include, but is not limited to, bullying (including cyber bullying), gender based violence, grooming, inappropriate or sexualised play or conversations, sexual assaults, nude or semi-nude image sharing (formerly known as sexting) and gender issues with groups of girls and boys.

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Mental Health and Emotional Wellbeing Issues
Children experiencing mental health issues, including but not limited to depression, anxiety, other diagnosable mental health conditions (whether or not a clinical diagnosis has been made) and emotional wellbeing issues can also face additional safeguarding challenges. These challenges can make them more vulnerable to abuse or neglect. These include:

  • Being more vulnerable to grooming or other inappropriate relationships.
  • Becoming the target of bullying, or even committing acts of bullying.
  • Behaviour changes, such as becoming withdrawn, aggressive, emotional or easily upset.
  • Engaging in unhealthy or inappropriate behaviour as a means of seeking contact with others, or as a way of drawing attention to their situation.
  • Disordered eating, an excessive level of concern with appearance, anxiety about how others view them or noticeable stress over academic performance or results.
  • Self-harm, substance abuse, reckless behaviour that may endanger their own safety or that of others, sexual experimentation, suicidal ideations or suicide attempts.
    Whether or not a child experiencing these issues is also a victim of abuse, we recognize the importance of allowing our students to access appropriate mental health support whenever this is required. As such, our school counselling team will assist MIS students experiencing these issues to the best of their professional ability. We will also work with any external therapists or clinical professionals the student may engage with, to ensure coordinated care is given.

Children with Special Education Needs and / or Disabilities
Children with special education needs (SEN) and disabilities can face additional safeguarding challenges and additional barriers can exist when recognising abuse and neglect in this group of children. These include:

  • Assumptions that indicators of possible abuse such as behaviour, mood and injury relate to the child’s disability without further exploration.
  • A lack of access to appropriate support, or barriers to accessing support that is available.
  • A lack of suitable facilities, which may increase the risk of a child being injured or being unable to access areas of the school that other students can access.
  • Children with SEN and disabilities can be disproportionately impacted by things like bullying without outwardly showing any signs.
  • Communication barriers and difficulties in overcoming these challenges.

Grooming
Grooming is the process by which an individual prepares a child, significant adults in the child’s life. and the surrounding environment for abuse of this child. Children and young

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people can be groomed both online and in their normal environment. A groomer can be a stranger or someone they know. Groomers may be of any age, gender or background. Many children and young people do not understand that they have been groomed, or that what has happened is abuse. The signs of grooming aren’t always obvious. Groomers will also go to great lengths not to be identified. Children may:

  • be very secretive, including about what they are doing online
  • have older boyfriends or girlfriends
  • go to unusual places to meet friends
  • have new things such as clothes or mobile phones that they can’t or won’t explain
  • have access to drugs and alcohol
  • go missing from home or school
  • display behavioural changes
  • have sexual health issues
  • suicidal feelings, self-harming, feeling depressed or unworthy of normal standards of care or attention.
    For the purpose of clarity, and to directly counter misinformation that is at times disseminated online, it should be noted that the provision and fostering of an LGBTQI+ friendly environment, gender-affirmative care or the provision of age-appropriate education on these topics is not defined as grooming, either by our school or any credible authority. Any individual attempting to make allegations in this regard will be dealt with under clause 7.4 of this policy.

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)
FGM is child abuse and a form of violence against women and girls, and therefore should be dealt with through the procedures set out in this document. FGM is potentially damaging to children both physically and emotionally and breaches a number of articles under the UN convention on the rights of the child. While we recognise that this is cultural practice in some countries, we cannot condone practices that have been proscribed by the World Health Organisation. We will be aware of the sensitivities surrounding FGM, while also acting in the best interests of any students that may have been subject to FGM.

Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE)
CSE is a form of abuse which involves children or their guardians receiving something in exchange for the child participating in sexual activity. CSE involves an imbalance of power in the relationship; it can involve varying degrees of coercion, intimidation or enticement, including unwanted pressure from peers to have sex, sexual bullying including cyber bullying and grooming. In addition to these aspects, key indicators of CSE may also include unexplained gifts or new possessions; associating with other young people involved in exploitation; and having older boyfriends or girlfriends. It may be the case that children do not display indicators such as gifts or excess cash, as they may beng

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given to guardians instead by other exploiters. However, in cases such as these, the affected child may display indicators in line with sexual abuse. Any concerns regarding CSE should be immediately reported to the DSL.

Corporal Punishment
Corporal punishment, or the threat of it, is never permitted in this school. It should be noted that students who display injuries from corporal punishment utilized outside our school environment will be offered assistance as per the Physical Abuse category of this policy, and that perpetrators of this abuse may face appropriate legal action.

Online Safety
Staff should be aware of the risks from potentially harmful and inappropriate online material. This can come in the form of sexual exploitation, cyberbullying, exposure to sexual imagery or content, misinformation or disinformation, religious or political radicalization, scams or fraud and other problematic material.
It should be noted that students often participate in online gaming activities, and the chat functions in these games can be used as forums for peer-on-peer cyberbullying or acts of abuse or aggression. In turn, these acts can affect the child when they are at school. As such, the relevant provisions of our Anti-Bullying, Acceptable Use, Discipline and other policies may also apply.

2. Safeguarding Roles, Responsibilities and Procedures
All staff should remain alert to the signs of possible abuse. They also need to know what their role is in terms of child protection and safeguarding and what procedures to follow when a case of suspected abuse has been identified.
It is the responsibility of every person working at MIS to report ALL suspected instances of abuse to a member of the Child Protection and Safeguarding Team.
These are the key child protection and Safeguarding responsibilities all staff need to follow:
2.1 Listening to, and seeking out, the views, wishes and feelings of children and young people, ensuring that what they say is respected, and that their version of events in regard to any relevant incident is taken into account and acted upon;
2.2 Understanding the school’s Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy and its implications for their role in the school and their interactions with children;
2.3 Being alert to the signs of abuse including, but not limited to, the signs outlined in Section 1 of this policy and their need to refer any concerns to a member of the Child Protection and Safeguarding Team using the appropriate process;
2.4 Accurately recording any concerns held about a child in the school and any action taken to address those concerns;

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2.5 Sharing information and working together with agencies (within the bounds of professional confidentiality) to provide children and young people with help and support.

3. Record Keeping:
Keeping comprehensive records is a key part of good child protection and safeguarding practice.
3.1 All staff need to understand the importance of recording and reporting any concerns they have.
3.2 Records need to be kept securely and confidentially and, where appropriate, passed on to other staff members and/or agencies. These records, and the information contained in them, should only be given to anyone with a professional need-to-know.
3.3 Any member of staff receiving a disclosure of abuse, noticing signs or indicators of abuse or having concerns about a student’s welfare should make a record of this as soon as possible using the Safeguarding Incident Report Form. This record should include details about what has been reported or observed and include any relevant background or contextual information as well as a date and time. These records should then be dated and signed and kept in a secure location where confidentiality can be guaranteed.
3.4 If a student transfers to another school, these records should be copied and forwarded to the Child Protection Coordinator or Designated Safeguarding Lead at the new school. However, this should be done with ethical concerns (including confidentiality) in mind – a summary of issues may at times be more suitable.
3.5 If a new student transfers to our school, we shall ensure that we collect all appropriate information from parents or caregivers about the student’s welfare and behaviour, both in their previous schools and other environments. It shall be a condition of enrolment at MIS that this information be provided in full, and to the best of knowledge of parents or caregivers. We will also contact the student’s previous school and request they complete our Safeguarding Reference Form.

4. Professional Confidentiality:

Confidentiality is an important issue which needs to be fully understood by all members of staff, particularly in the context of child protection and safeguarding.
4.1 In matters of child protection and safeguarding, the only consideration where confidentiality is concerned surrounds the best interest of the child. A member of staff must never guarantee confidentiality to a student nor should they agree to keep a secret;
4.2 In matters of child protection all concerns must be reported to a member of the Child Protection and Safeguarding Team and, where appropriate, external agencies and authorities;
4.3 Only those members of staff who have a professional need to know about a given child protection or safeguarding case will be given that information. Any information shared with a member of staff in this way must be treated in the strictest confidence.

 

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5. Creating a Safe Environment
We recognise that creating a safe environment for our students is an ongoing process which requires regular monitoring and updating. This is a process to which all members of staff can contribute towards, but we acknowledge the important roles played by key members of personnel, such as the site supervisor, in the effective implementation of such initiatives.
5.1 We will ensure that all staff are competent to carry out their responsibilities for safeguarding in promoting the welfare of children by creating an environment and an ethos whereby all staff (including volunteers) feel able to raise concerns and are supported in their safeguarding role;
5.2 We actively encourage a culture of listening to children, taking account of their wishes, feelings and voices both in individual decisions and in the school’s development (including ideas and concerns raised by our students);
5.3 We will ensure that the buildings, including their surroundings, are not only safe but are environments in which children can feel safe. All classroom must have a feature that will allow occupants to be visible from outside the room.
5.4 Our site visitor protocols will ensure that appropriate details are collected and enquires are made as to the bona fides of school visitors and contractors. School visitors will be required to register, and to wear a lanyard while on school property.
5.5 MIS will let parents and carers know about our principles in child protection and safeguarding and allow them to access our policy both in print and on our website;
5.6 The school will not allow any child to leave with an adult who is not their parent or registered carer unless we have been notified in advance of that arrangement.
5.7 MIS recognises that our school must also establish an environment in which our students are safe from both accidental injury and preventable illness. As such, this policy will interact with our School Health and Safety Policy.

6. Staff recruitment procedures
MIS aims to prevent people who pose a risk of harm from working with children by rigorously checking all staff who work with children and, where it is considered prudent, asking for further checks beyond what is legally required:
6.1 The school will, where applicable, check the identity of a person being considered for appointment and their right to stay in the Kingdom of Thailand.
6.2 MIS will undertake an overseas check if a potential appointee has been working abroad.
6.3 MIS will ensure staff and volunteers undergo appropriate criminal records checks. These checks will be required from both Thailand and the teacher’s home country. Any applicants who have worked in other countries for a period of more than one year will also be required to provide a police check from those countries.
6.4 MIS will check references with measures in place to ensure scrutiny and to verify all potential staff.
6.5 The school will seek to ensure there are no gaps in references and/or any missing references.

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6.6 MIS will ensure that any volunteers are vetted before being invited to visit the school and adequately supervised whilst on the campus.
6.7 The school acknowledges that some members of our MIS staff have worked in education management positions in other institutions in Thailand and other neighbouring countries. As such, and with appropriate due process, we will seek to involve them in the recruitment and screening process for new staff. This is an additional layer of security, designed to ensure that applicants who have behaved inappropriately at other such educational institutions can be prevented from securing employment at MIS.

7. Allegations against Staff
There are, all told, over 200 adults working at M.I.S. We are confident that our recruitment process makes it unlikely that an adult who may be inclined to abuse children would either seek or gain employment here, but it remains a possibility. All staff, therefore, should be alert to that possibility and know how to respond if they have a genuine concern.
7.1 Allegations of abuse may be raised by a student, a colleague or by other concerned adults parties.
7.2 Any concern about a member of staff or other adult visitor must be immediately reported in writing (using an Incident Report Form, or where one is not immediately available, a direct email containing all pertinent details) to the Designated Safeguarding Lead.
7.3 Any allegation of abuse will be dealt with in a fair and consistent way that both provides effective protection for the child and supports the staff member who is the subject of the allegation.
7.4 It is acknowledged that malicious, vexatious or negligently unfounded allegations against staff can cause great distress to the affected individual, which can include serious career disruption. Any allegations made in bad faith or with undue negligence will be investigated by the School Principal and Directors, and may result in appropriate disciplinary action.
7.5 Where there are concerns about a member of the management team this should be reported to the School Principal. Concerns about the Principal should be referred to the School Proprietor and/or the School Coordinator and Personnel Manager.

8. Staff Training Procedures
We acknowledge the need for all staff members that have contact with children to receive adequate Child Protection and Safeguarding training. All staff who work with children will undertake appropriate child protection awareness training to equip them to carry out their responsibilities for child protection effectively. This will be kept up to date by refresher training, which will be conducted before each new school year starts.
8.1 The School Coordinator (Miss Jiew), along with the DSL, will keep detailed records of all staff child protection training and will issue reminders when updates are required.

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8.2 All members of the Child Protection and Safeguarding team (including the Head of Child Protection and the Designated Safeguarding Leads) will undertake appropriate training that allows them to deliver Safeguarding training to the rest of the staff.
8.3 All members of staff should have regular (minimum once per year), mandatory Child Protection and Safeguarding training, delivered by the Child Protection and Safeguarding team.
8.4 New staff will be given Child Protection and Safeguarding training as part of their induction process. This will be kept up to date by refresher training at yearly intervals.
8.5 All members of staff will be expected to read and agree to abide by the Child Protection and Safeguarding policy. Acceptance of a position of employment at MIS, or continuation of current employment, will be taken as an acknowledgement of acceptance of the conditions of this and other relevant policies.

9. Management and oversight of the policy
All staff members are expected to play a role in implementing our school’s Child Protection and Safeguarding policy but the responsibility for the management, oversight and updating of the policy rests with the school proprietor and the senior management team.
These are the key areas of responsibility for the proprietor and senior management team in terms of the management and oversight of the policy:
9.1 Taking leadership responsibility for the school’s Child Protection and Safeguarding arrangements.
9.2 Keeping up to date with emerging issues in Safeguarding.
9.3 Ensuring that we have a Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) for Child Protection, appointed from the Senior Management Team. The DSL will oversee and manage the activities of all other members of the Child Protection and Safeguarding team.
9.4 Ensuring that a Designated Safeguarding Lead is always on the premises and available during the school day. There also needs to be a contact person for school holiday activities which are held on the school grounds. The leadership team will ensure there is a suitably qualified stand-in for the DSL (to cover in case of illness or other absence) and that there is a clear pathway for raising and reporting concerns in a timely manner whenever there are children on the premises.
9.5 Ensuring that appointed Designated Safeguarding Leads are fully equipped with the knowledge and skills to carry out the role and have access to appropriate regular training to help them keep up to date.
9.6 Ensuring that there are procedures in place for handling allegations against staff or volunteers.
9.7 To see that all new staff are given a mandatory induction which includes knowledge regarding abuse, neglect, specific safeguarding issues, prevention of accidental illness or injury and familiarisation with Child Protection responsibilities.
9.8 To ensure that important related policies, such as those for behaviour and bullying, are kept up to date on a yearly basis.

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9.9 Ensure that children are taught about Safeguarding (including staying safe online) through teaching and learning opportunities as part of providing a broad and balanced curriculum.
9.10 To ensure the PSHE curriculum will implement sex and relationship teaching, which will cover both healthy human relationships as well as awareness of abuse as it relates to students. It will also cover safeguarding issues with children.
9.11 To see that the school has in place an Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) to help address a widening range of issues associated with technology.
9.12 Understand the updated definition of child sexual exploitation and expectations around identifying, reporting and responding to any potential or actual cases of this;
9.13 Make sure that the Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy is shared with parents, guardians, carers and other members of our school community. A copy of this policy will be made available to anyone who requests it.

Consistency of Policies
This policy shall be applied alongside the following school policies:

  • Secondary Student Discipline Policy
  • Primary Student Discipline Policy
  • EYFS Student Behaviour Policy
  • Appropriate Use Policy (AUP) for Digital and On-Line Resources
  • Employee Handbook
  • Anti-bullying Policy
  • Mobile Phone Policy
  • Any other relevant policies our school may deem necessary

Designated Safeguarding Staff
Head of Child Protection and Safeguarding:
Dr Matthew Coutts (Principal)

Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL):
Simon Andrews (Primary Counsellor) First point of contact

Safeguarding Team Departmental Leaders:

Adam Gorski (Head of Secondary) Gregg Sangster (Head of Primary)
Mercedes Slawter (Early Years Coordinator) Natalie Laojun (Secondary Counsellor)
Dr Nissakorn Phimthong (Head of Personnel) Orathai Moolpia (School Coordinator)
Per Christensen (Head of Discipline) Christopher Fung (Head of Academics)
Marmie Poran (School Nurse) Ayesha Rahman (Head of Primary Academics)
Robert Murphy (Events Coordinator) Patrick Flood (Key Stage 3 Coordinator)
Mr Toto (School Site Manager) Mr Dutch (School Discipline Coordinator)
MIsloverly Bucad (Primary SENCo) Kenneth Bernaldez (Secondary SENCo)

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M.I.S. Step-By-Step Safeguarding Concern Reporting Process

If any member of staff observes or becomes aware of a safeguarding concern, they must firstly assist the child or children involved, then document and report the concern immediately. The following procedure must be utilised to do so:
1. Comfort the child by assuring them that we will assist in any way possible. Do not make unrealistic promises.
2. If a threat to the child’s wellbeing is physically present, take any possible action to remove the child from harm’s way, with due regard to your own wellbeing and that of other children and staff.
3. Collect important information by gently questioning the child. Do not ask leading questions, make assumptions or question the child excessively.
4. Access the Wellbeing Manager section of the iSAMS system and create a concern.
5. All information given by the child, as well as the facts observed by the staff member must be noted in the iSams concern. All details requested on the form must be included.
6. Send the concern to the relevant Safeguarding Team as per the instructions in iSams. If you are not sure which team to send it to, or the incident involves issues with both Primary and Secondary students, please send it to the main Safeguarding team.
7. For cases requiring immediate attention (such as an injury requiring immediate treatment, or an incident involving violence or external threats that is currently occurring on school grounds), the DSL and relevant Safeguarding Departmental Team Leader must also be notified by phone call. See the list on Page 18 of the Safeguarding Policy to find your relevant Safeguarding Team Member.
8. In urgent cases involving immediate threat to life, or cases of serious injury, the staff member should immediately call the police, ambulance, fire brigade or other relevant emergency service. Emergency numbers are displayed in all classrooms, and are available on Page 20 of the Safeguarding Policy.
9. The DSL and relevant Safeguarding Departmental Team Leader will decide on a course of action in regard to the concern. This will be communicated to staff on a professional need-to-know basis.
10. The DSL and Safeguarding Team will ensure the proper storage, retention and confidentiality of all forms and other communications regarding safeguarding issues.

This procedure should be printed separately from the rest of the policy and made available in all MIS classrooms and offices.

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Contact information for Social Services in Thailand

1. “Sai Dek” Child Line 1387

2. The Centre for the Protection of Children’s Rights Foundation (CPCR)
Bangkok at (02-4121196 / 02-4120736) www.thaichildrights.org

3. ECPAT International 328/1 Phaya Thai Road Bangkok 10400, Thailand
Tel: + 66 (0) 2 215 3388 ext. 190 Fax: + 66 (0) 2 215 8272 www.ecpat.net

4. Anti Human Trafficking and Child Abuse Center (ATCC)
Opposite Sanuk Town Village Soi Nong Mai Kaen 2 Nongprue Bang Lamung, Chonburi 20150
Tel: +66 (0) 92 2324 924 http://www.atcc.or.th/

 

This policy is to be reviewed annually, but may be updated more regularly if necessary. The next review is due in August 2024.

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Complaints Policy

Acceptable Use Policy (AUP)

Student Sickness Policy

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