Please note The Child Protection Policy (Safeguarding) has been updated and a paper copy is available in Preschool - please ask Jo, Vicky or Louise (DSL) if you wish to see it. September 2026

 **THIS POLICY IS CURRENTLY BEING UPDATED HERE - PLEASE REFER TO PAPER VERSION HELD AT PRESCHOOL**

Carmel Caterpillars Pre-School 

Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy

Please note: this is a short overview/summary of our full, and lengthy, Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy. You can request to read the full paper copy of this policy from Joanne Redsell or Vicky Trinkwon, Managers or Louise Leppenwell the Designated Safeguarding Lead Person

Introduction

This policy has been developed in accordance with the principles established by the Children's Acts 1989 and 2004 and related national and local guidance. This includes but is not limited to:

• The Early Years Foundation Stage (2026)
• Keeping Children Safe In Education (KCSIE) 2026
• Working Together to safeguard Children (WTSC) 2026
• Ofsted: Education Inspection Framework and Early Years Inspection Guidance 2026
• Framework for the Assessment of Children In Need and Their Families (2000)
• Kent and Medway Local Safeguarding Children Procedures
• Kent Support Levels Guidance for practitioners supporting children, young people and families
• The Education Act 2002, The Childcare Act 2006
• The Human Rights Act, The Equality Act 2010 and the Data Protection Laws

What is Safeguarding

In line with 'Working Together to Safeguard Children', safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is defined as:

• Providing help and support to meet the needs of children as soon as problems emerge
• Protecting children from maltreatment, whether that is within or outside the home, including online
• Preventing impairment of children's mental and physical health or development
• Ensuring that children grow up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care
• Promoting the upbringing of children with their birth parents, or otherwise their family network, whenever possible and where this is in the best interests of the child
• Taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes

Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and everyone who comes into contact with children and families has a role to play. Everyone should consider wider environmental factors in a child's life that may be a threat to their safety and/or welfare. Our setting acknowledges that safeguarding includes a wide range of specific issues including - abuse and neglect, bullying, including cyberbullying, prejudice-based and discriminatory bullying, child-on-child abuse, children absent from education, missing from education, home or care, children with family members in prison or affected by parental offending, contextual safeguarding and extra-familial harm, domestic abuse, drugs and alcohol abuse, exploitation, including child sexual exploitation and child criminal exploitation, group-based exploitation, county lines, gangs, serious violence, trafficking and modern slavery, fabricated or induces illness, gender-based abuse and violence against women and girls, hate, discrimination and harmful prejudice, homelessness, honour or faith-based abuse, including FGM and forced marriage, mental health concerns, online abuse and technology-assisted harm, preventing radicalisation and extremism and private fostering.

Ethos

All children deserve the care and support they need to have the best start in life.  Children learn and develop at a faster rate from birth to five years old than at any other time  in their lives, so their experiences in early years have a major impact on their future life chances.  A secure, safe and happy childhood is important in it's own right.  Good parenting and high-quality early learning provide the foundation children need to fulfil their potential. Children learn best when they are healthy, safe, secure, when their individual needs are met, and when they have positive relationships with the adults caring for them. (EYFS)

The committee of Carmel Caterpillars Pre-School believe that all those directly involved with our setting have an essential role to play in making it safe and secure. This applies to all staff, trustees (committee members), temporary staff, students and volunteers. Our setting aims to create the safest environment, within which every child has the opportunity to achieve their full potential, and we take seriously our responsibility to promote the welfare, and safeguard, of all the children and young people entrusted to our care. 

As part of the safeguarding ethos of the setting we are committed to: 

• Keeping children's welfare and best interests at the centre of our practice.
• Creating an environment and culture where children feel safe, secure, valued and respected, confident to talk openly and sure of being listened to. 
• Helping children in age appropriate ways to understand feelings, relationships, boundaries, safe and unsafe situations and adults who can help them.
• Building safe, positive and professional relationships between children and the adults that care for them.
• Working with parents/carers where it is safe and appropriate to do so while taking prompt safeguarding action where concerns arise.
• Ensuring staff receive appropriate induction, safeguarding training and regular updates so they can recognise and respond to concerns.
• Supporting children who made need additional help including those receiving community based early help.
• Keeping clear, confidential child protection records which are stored securely and shared appropriately.
• Working effectively with other agencies and professionals to safeguard and promote children's welfare. 

Carmel Caterpillars Pre-School adheres to the KSCB Safeguarding Children Procedures. The full KSCB procedures document and additional guidance relating to specific safeguarding issues can be found on the KSCB website: www.kscb.org.uk 

 Carmel Caterpillars Preschool adheres to the Kent Safeguarding Children Multi-Agency Partnership (KSCMP) procedures.  The full KSCMP procedures and additional guidance can be found on the KSCMP website.

Related Safeguarding Policies

We are aware that safeguarding is fundamental to the welfare of all children in our care. This policy is therefore one of a series of our integrated safeguarding portfolio that supports compliance with the EYFS safeguarding and welfare requirements. It should be read and actioned in conjunction with all the other safeguarding policies listed in the paper version held at Preschool.

Responsibilities for Staff and Designated Lead Person

All Staff

• The EYFS requires providers " to take all necessary steps to keep children safe and well" and everyone involved in the care of young children has a responsibility to safeguard and promote their welfare.  All members of staff in Carmel Caterpillars Pre-School are part of the wider safeguarding system for children and are in a unique position to observe any changes in a child's behaviour, appearance, development, attendance, wellbeing or interations. Staff may be able to identify concerns early, provide help and support, promote children's welfare and prevent concerns from escalating. All members of staff have a responsibility to:
• provide a safe environment in which children can learn, play, develop and receive care
• be alert to any concerns in a child's life at home, in the setting, online, in the wider family or community context
• be aware of the indicators of abuse, neglect and exploitation, so they can identify children who may need help or protection
• know what to do if a child tells them they are being abused, neglected or exploited, or if they observe signs that a child may be at risk
  
• recognise that very young children may communicate concerns through behaviour, presentation, play, interactions, development, attendance or physical signs, rather than verbal disclosure
• be prepared to identify children who may benefit from support before statutory intervention is required, including community-based Early Help and Family Help, in-line with the Kent Support Levels Guidance
• understand the setting's safeguarding policies, procedures and recording systems
• undertake safeguarding training and engage with regular safeguarding updates in line with the EYFS and local procedures
• understand the local process for seeking advice and making referrals, including Requests for Support to the Front Door Service and statutory assessments under the Children Act 1989
• know how to maintain appropriate confidentiality, while understanding that information must be shared promptly where this is necessary to safeguard or promote the welfare of a child
• ensure children are adequately supervised in line with our setting policies and EYFS requirements, including during eating, sleeping, toileting, intimate care, outdoor play, outings and the use of technology
• reassure children who communicate, or report concerns that they are being taken seriously and that they will be supported and kept safe  

The Designated Safeguarding Lead Person ( DSL)

• The EYFS states " a practitioner must be designated to take lead responsibility for safeguarding children in every setting".
• The committee of Carmel Caterpillars Pre-School , who's responsibility it is to ensure all legal requirements are met, have appointed an appropriately qualified and experienced Designated Safeguarding Lead ( DSL), to fulfill this role in our setting. They are committed to ensuring that the DSL is properly supported in being able to carry out this role fully, including providing them with appropriate time and resources away from other job commitments. 

The Designated Safeguarding Lead is LOUISE LEPPENWELL. The DSL Deputy is KRISTINA TAYLOR. 

Louise has the overall responsibility for the day to day safeguarding and child protection systems, in the setting. These responsibilities include:

• Provide support advice and guidance to all staff, on safeguarding and child protection matters. 
• Maintaining a confidential recording system for safeguarding and child protection concerns.
• Coordinate safeguarding action for individual children.
• Ensure safeguarding responses are child-centered and take account of the child's age, development, communication needs, lived experience, wishes and feelings.
• Where applicable, ensure the setting holds the details of a child's social worker and/or the local authority that looks after the child
• Liaise with other agencies and professionals in line with the EYFS, Working Together to Safeguard Children, Kent Safeguarding Children Multi-Agency Partnership procedures and the Kent Support Levels Guidance.
• Ensure local safeguarding procedures, including those put in place by the Kent Safeguarding Multi-Agency Partnership, are followed as required.
• Ensure safeguarding responses are coordinated with wider multi-agency planning, including community-based help (see full paper copy)
• Represent, or ensure the setting is appropriately represented at relevant multi-agency safeguarding meetings, including child protection conferences, core groups and child in need meetings.
• Monitor the setting's role in any multi-agency plan for a child.
• Be available during setting opening hours for staff to discuss safeguarding concerns and ensure adequate and appropriate DSL cover arrangements are in place when the setting is operating, including during any out-of-hours or out-of-term activities arranged by the setting.
• Keeping appraised of any updates in policy and practice as agreed by Kent Safeguarding Children's Board ( via the Education Safeguarding Team). 
• Take lead responsibility for internet/online safety, including understanding any filtering, monitoring and technology arrangements in place as relevant to the setting context. 
• Liaise with the Managers to keep them informed of safeguarding issues, especially ongoing enquiries under section 47 of the Children Act 1989, police investigations, allegations against staff, significant safeguarding incidents and any issues affecting the safety or welfare of the children.

The welfare and safety of children are the responsibility of ALL staff in the setting, and ANY concern for a child's welfare MUST be reported to the DSL.  

Recognition and Categories of Abuse

All staff in the setting are aware of the definitions and signs and symptoms of abuse. There are four categories of abuse:

Emotional abuse

Physical abuse

Neglect

Sexual abuse

***********************************************************************************************************************

The most up to date definitions and possible indicators and signs of abuse are found in Appendix 1.  ( To see this Appendix, please ask for the full paper copy of this policy from Louise Leppenwell). 

Staff should also refer to part 1 and Annex 1, within "Keeping children safe in Education 2016 (see Appendix 2), and " What to do if you are worried a child is being abused " 2015. 

All members of staff are aware that abuse, neglect and safeguarding issues are rarely standalone events that can be covered by one definition or label. In most cases multiple issues will overlap with one another. 

Members of staff are aware that child welfare concerns may arise in many different contexts, and can vary greatly in terms of their nature or seriousness. For example children may be abused in a family, in an institutional or community setting, by those known to them, or a stranger. They may be being abused via the internet by their peers, family members or by unknown, or in some cases unidentifiable, individuals. In the case of honour based abuse, including forced marriage and female genital mutilation, children may be taken out of the country to be abused. An abused child may often experience more than one type of abuse, as well as other difficulties in their lives. 

Abuse and neglect can happen over a period of time, but can also be a one-off event. This can have major long-term impacts on all aspects of a child's health, development and wellbeing. 

The warning signs and symptoms of child abuse and neglect can vary from child to child. Children also develop and mature at different rates, so what appears to be worrying behaviour for a younger child might be normal for an older child. Parental behaviours may also indicate child abuse or neglect, so staff should also be alert to parent-child interactions or concerning parental behaviours. This could include parents who are under the influence of drugs or alcohol or if there's a sudden change in their mental health. 

By understanding the warning signs, we can respond to problems as early as possible and provide the right support and services for the child and their family. It is important to recognise that a warning sign doesn't automatically mean that a child is being abused. 

Safeguarding and child Protection Procedures

Carmel Caterpillars Pre-School adheres to the KSCB Safeguarding Children Procedures. The full KSCB procedures document and additional guidance relating to specific issues, can be found on the KSCB website www.kscb.org.uk 

Additional guidance includes:

• What to do if you are Worried About a Child Being Abused ( DfE 2015)
• Information Sharing advice for Safeguarding Practitioners (2015)
• Kent and Medway Inter-Agency Threshold Criteria for Children In Need 
• The Assessment Framework for Children in Need and Their families (2000) 

Confidentiality and Information Sharing

We recognise that all matters relating to child protection are confidential. The DSL will only disclose information about a child to other members of staff on a need to know basis. 

All staff are aware that they have a professional responsibility to share information with other agencies in order to safeguard children. 

All staff are aware that they cannot promise a child to keep secrets which might compromise the child's safety or wellbeing. 

If the setting is made aware of any safeguarding concerns which they feel need to be shared with the wider community ( including other local settings), then advice will be sought from the Education Safeguarding Team to ensure that the integrity of any subsequent investigations are maintained, and that all members of the community are safeguarded. 

Complaints

The setting has a Complaints Policy and Procedure available to parents/carers, children and members of staff  who wish to report concerns. 

All reported concerns concerns will be taken seriously and considered within the relevant and appropriate process. Anything that constitutes an allegation against a member of staff or volunteer will be dealt with under the specific Procedures for managing Allegations against staff policy. 

The full and original of this document was signed on behalf of Carmel Caterpillars Pre-School Committee by the current Chairperson. 

 .