As CCQ suggest
“Safeguarding means protecting people’s health, wellbeing and human rights, and enabling them to live free from harm, abuse and neglect. It’s fundamental to high quality health and social care. All people and organisations that come into contact with children using health and care services have a responsibility to help keep them safe from abuse.” Care Quality Commission

Our practice takes this responsibility very seriously. All our staff are trained and competent to safeguard children at risk. Our ambition is to keep all children consistently safe and protected from bullying, harassment, avoidable harm, neglect, abuse and discrimination.

Our practice has effective safeguarding systems, policies and procedures and manages safeguarding concerns promptly, using local safeguarding procedures whenever necessary. There is a consistent approach to safeguarding and matters are always dealt with in an open, transparent and objective way.

Where the practice is used by children, staff take a preventative approach to safeguarding and are aware of relevant risk factors and triggers. We discuss any concerns internally within the practice, and the service works with children, their families and external agencies to promote children’s safety and prevent abuse.

All staff have a comprehensive awareness and understanding of abuse and know what to do to make sure that people who lack a voice are protected, including when experiencing harassment or abuse in the community.

We want patients to know about our safeguarding approach and feel comfortable raising concerns about any children’s safety. Patients who raise concerns will receive sympathetic support and there will be no recriminations; we see it as a normal and desirable part of day-today practice.

Contacting the local safeguarding team directly with any concern for a quick response

You can also directly contact the local safeguarding team, who can also advise about any concern that you might have and take a direct referral. This team help manage all children safeguarding concerns locally. We have information on how to do this, and also how you can anonymously speak to a national helpline for support and advice all under Safeguarding children.

If there is immediate risk of harm to a child, call the Police on 999.