Safeguarding

Policy

Guidance and Procedures

 Contents

1. Introduction
2. Scope
3. Ethos
4. Policy Statements
5. Procedures linked to our Safeguarding Policy
5.1 Single Central Register
5.2 The Disclosure and Barring Service
5.2.1 Persons prohibited from working or seeking work with children
5.2.2 Managing Persons Disqualified
5.2.3 Evaluation and Management of Disclosure Information
5.3 Safer Recruitment
5.3.1 Quality of Job Advertisement
5.3.2 Job Description and Person Specification
5.3.3 References
5.3.4 The Selection Panel
5.3.5 Scrutinising and Shortlisting
5.3.6 Interviews
5.3.7 Offer of Appointment to Successful Candidate
5.3.8 DBS Check Results
5.3.9 Confidential Storage and Record Keeping

5.4 Safeguarding Training

5.4.1 Keeping Children Safe in Education
5.4.2 E-Learning training on Prevent
5.4.3 Statutory and Mandatory Training
5.4.4 Training Log

6. Whistle Blowing
7. Accountability

Further Information

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 1. Introduction

All those working in education can contribute to the safeguarding and protection of the welfare of
a child in need. According to the DfE, safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is defined
as:
• protecting children from maltreatment;
• preventing impairment of children’s health or development;
• ensuring children are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe
and effective care; and
• taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes.

Pivot Point Services Limited’s Safeguarding Children and Child Protection Policy and Procedures
(hereafter referred to as ‘the Policy’) has been drawn up based on law and guidance that seeks
to protect children, namely:

• The Children Act, 1989

• United Convention of the Rights of the Child, 1991
• Data Protection Act, 1998
• Sexual Offences Act, 2003
• Children Act, 2004
• Protection of Freedoms Act, 2012; and
• Relevant government guidance on safeguarding children, as follows:
- Keeping Children Safe in Education – Statutory guidance for schools and colleges,
September 2016
- Working Together to Safeguard Children, March 2015 (Statutory guidance)
- Prevent Duty, July 2015

The following policy is based on current legislation, guidance and best practice and aims to embed
the culture of safeguarding and child protection within service provision at Pivot Point Services
Limited.

2. Scope
This guidance applies to all our staff, permanent, temporary as well as those recruited from
overseas, who will have contact with children, young people and Adults at Risk through our services.
It also applies to our staff who may not have direct responsibility for children, but who have access
to confidential and sensitive information pertaining to the recruitment and supervision our staff as
well as administration of our services.
At Pivot Point Services all our service level agreements or contracts contain a safeguarding
statement, which makes explicit the standards expected of all our staff. All our agreements are also
regularly reviewed with policy amendments updates included as and when needed.

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 As part of our commitment to the promotion of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children
and vulnerable adults our overarching statement must be included in all the following whenever we
use them:
• Publicity materials;
• Recruitment websites;
• Advertisements;
• Candidate information packs;
• Person specifications;
• Job descriptions;
• Competency frameworks;
• Induction training.

3. Ethos
Through our commitment to safeguarding the interest of all children and vulnerable adults, we
expect all our staff to promote a safe physical environment in which children and vulnerable
adults can learn and develop both personally and academically and achieve success in the
following as stated in the Children Act 2004:
• Be healthy (physically, mentally and emotionally);
• Stay Safe (protection from harm and neglect);
• Enjoy and Achieve (via education, training and recreation);
• Make a positive contribution to the general society;
• Achieve social and economic well-being.

4. Policy Statement
Safeguarding is Everyone's Responsibility
Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults is everyone’s
responsibility. Everyone who comes into contact with children and vulnerable adults and their
families and carers has a role to play in safeguarding their welfare. To fulfil this responsibility
effectively, all professionals should make sure their approach is service-user-centred. This means
that they should consider, always, what in in the best interests of the service user.
Our Safeguarding statement is pinned upon the following values:

• All service users, regardless of age, disability, gender, racial heritage, religious belief,
sexual orientation or identity have the right to equal protection from all types of harm or
abuse.
• Some service users are additionally vulnerable because of the impact of previous
experiences, their level of dependency, communication needs or other issues.
• Working in partnership with our service users, their parents/carers/guardians and other
agencies is essential in promoting the service user’s welfare.

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 5. Procedures linked to our Safeguarding Policy
5.1 Single Central Register
The following are included in our Single Central Register:

5.1.1 a check of professional qualifications

5.1.2 a check to establish our staff’s right to work in the United Kingdom

5.1.3 all our staff identity checks

5.1.4 a barred list check conducted on all our staff

5.1.5 a record of an enhanced DBS check for each staff who will be
expected to come in contact with children;

5.1.6 a prohibition from teaching check (NB This is not the same as a barred
list check). This is made for any of our staff undertaking teaching work
(with or without Qualified Teacher Status) to ensure they are not a
prohibited teacher

5.1.7 further checks on people who have lived/worked overseas for 3

months or more in the last 10 years, including any restrictions placed
on teachers from the European Economic Area (EEA). It is the
responsibility our staff with overseas experience to obtain a
Certificate of Good Conduct. In the case where our staff have
lived/worked in a country where criminal record checks cannot be
made or is a refugee with leave to remain in the UK and has no means
of obtaining relevant information, Pivot Point Services endeavours to
take extra care in taking up references and carrying out background
checks through requisition of additional references.

5.2 The Disclosure and Barring Service

The Disclosure and Barring Service helps employers make safer recruitment decisions and prevent
unsuitable people from working with vulnerable groups, including children. The Disclosure and Barring
Services are responsible for:

a) Processing requests for criminal records checks

b) Deciding whether it is appropriate for a person to be place on or removed from a barred

list

c) Placing or removing people from the DBS children’s barred list and adults’ barred list for
England. Wales and Northern Ireland

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 Criminal Record Checks
The DBS search police records and, in relevant cases, barred list information, and then issue a DBS
certificate to the applicant. The DBS recognise that information released on DBS certificates can be
extremely sensitive and personal. Therefore, a code of practice for recipients of criminal record
information has been developed to ensure that any information they get is handled fairly and used
properly.

The DBS produce a list of guidance documents which is available at

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dbs-checking-service-guidance--2.

It is mandatory that all our staff coming into contact with children and vulnerable adults have
a cleared enhanced DBS check, and this should be undertaken before they can begin any such
work. This also applies to all staff working at Pivot Point Services Limited office locations.

Disclosure and Barring Service Update Service

With effect from 17 June 2013, an optional online Update Service is operated by the Disclosure and Barring
Service (DBS), designed to reduce the number of DBS checks requested. Instead of a new criminal
records/Barred Lists check being necessary whenever an individual applies for a new paid or voluntary role
working with children/Adults at Risk, individuals can opt to subscribe to the online Update Service. This will
allow them to keep their criminal record certificate up to date, so that they can take it with them from role
to role, within the same workforce.

Pivot Point Services can carry out free, instant, online status checks of a registered individual's
status. We only carry out new DBS checks if the status check indicates a change in the individual's
status (because new information has been added).

5.2.1 Persons Prohibited from Working/Seeking Work with Children

If a disclosure reveals that an applicant is prohibited from seeking or working with children, as
set out in Section 36 of the Criminal Justice and Court Act 2000, it is an offence for a person to
apply for or accept any work in any of the regulated positions as set out in the Act and the
Police must be informed without delay of the individual’s attempt to seek employment. It is
also an offence for an organisation to knowingly offer work in a regulated position to an
individual who is disqualified from working with children or vulnerable adults or fail to
remove such a person from work.

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 5.2.2 Managing Persons Disqualified
A person is disqualified if any of the following apply:

• They have been included on the DBS Children’s Barred List;

• They have been cautioned for, or convicted of certain violent or sexual criminal
offences against adults and any offences against children;

• They are the subject of an Order, direction or similar in respect of childcare,

including orders made in respect of their own children;

• That have had registration refused or cancelled in relation to childcare of children’s

homes or have been disqualified from private fostering;

• They have been found to have committed an offence overseas which would
constitute a disqualification offence if it had been done in the UK;

• They live in the same household where another person who is disqualified lives or
works (disqualification ‘by association’). This means that the householder has an order,
restriction, conviction, caution etc. set out in the Legislation. It is accepted that staff may not
necessarily know this information and as such the declaration requires them to answer, “to
the best of their knowledge” that they or members of their household have not been
disqualified from working with children and vulnerable adults.

Action points on disqualification

The Recruitment Team at pivot Point must ensure that they are not knowingly employing a
person who is disqualified. In gathering information to make these decisions the Recruitment
Team must ensure that they act proportionately and minimise wherever possible the
intrusion into the private lives of any Pivot Point Services Limited staff and members of their
household. Accordingly, the Recruitment Team must ensure that they handle data fairly and
lawfully and take care not to breach the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA), the Rehabilitation of
Offenders Act 1974 (ROA) and the Human Rights Act 1998.

All recruitment agencies are responsible for ensuring that anyone who falls within the
relevant categories of staff described above is made aware of the legislation, including that
they may be disqualified ‘by association’ where they live in the same household as a
disqualified person or in a household in which a disqualified person is employed.

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 5.2.3 Evaluation and Management of Disclosure Information

Any concerns raised as a result of Disclosure and Barring Service checks must be followed up.
Where information is disclosed, The HR officer involved in the recruitment process must refer
the matter to the Managing Director who will in turn carry out an initial evaluation and make
a judgment about the person's suitability to work with children taking into account only those
offences that may be relevant to the post in question.

Where further information is required, the applicant's consent must be sought, and the
information should be obtained by the designated Lead Safeguarding Officer at Pivot Point
Services Central Office;

In deciding the relevance of disclosure information, the following should be considered:

▪ the nature of the appointment;

▪ the nature and circumstances of the offence;
▪ the age at which the offence took place;
▪ the frequency of the offence

In compliance with the Data Protection Act, Pivot Point Services Limited does not retain
copies of DBS certificates for longer than six months. We do however retain copies of other
documents such as, e.g. passport, driving licence, right to work information,
professional qualifications.

5.3 Safer Recruitment

Safe recruitment is central to the safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults. All organisations
which employ staff or volunteers to work with children and young people have a duty to safeguard
and promote their welfare. This includes ensuring that the organisation adopts safe recruitment and
selection procedures which prevent unsuitable persons from gaining access to children and
vulnerable adults.

Section 11, Children Act 2004, sets out the arrangements for safeguarding and promoting the
welfare of children and applies to all key local bodies named under section 11(1) of the Act. One
of the key features of these arrangements is ensuring safe recruitment procedures are in place.
Interviewing
• Pivot Point Services Limited’s recruitment and selection committee, including key managers
and HR officers, should have regular comprehensive safe recruitment and selection
training, and appropriate updates
• Each interview panel should include a person suitably trained in safeguarding and child
protection procedures and regulations.

The Managing Director should monitor the take up of training to ensure that all Pivot Point
Services Limited have appropriately trained staff involved in its recruitment processes.

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 Choice of Candidate
5.3.1 Quality of Job Advertisement
5.3.1.1 Once a post becomes vacant or a new post is created, the job description and person
specification need to be agreed and/or reviewed by the interviewing committee to ensure
compliance with the safe recruitment guidance as set out in this procedure. This will apply to
whatever the level of responsibility or duration of the appointment
5.3.1.2 All job advertisements should include reference to the need for the successful applicant to
undertake an Enhanced Disclosure via the Disclosure and Barring Service, where
appropriate, as well as the usual details of the post, salary, qualifications required etc. The
level of information to be sent to potential applicants in the candidates' information pack
will depend on the level of the post. A copy of the Pivot Point Service Limited’s Child
Protection Statement should always be included in the information pack, as well as the
application form, job description and person specification. The information should also set
out clearly the extent of the relationships and contact with children and the degree of
responsibility for children that the person will have in the position to be filled. The
information will stress that the identity of the candidate, if successful, will need to be
checked thoroughly and will refer to the need for a Disclosure and Barring Service check.

5.3.2 Job Description and Person Specification

Job descriptions must state:
5.3.2.1 The main duties and responsibilities of the post; and
• The post-holder's responsibility to safeguard and promote the welfare of
children and vulnerable adults with whom s/he has contact or for whom s/he is
responsible.
5.3.2.2 Person specifications should:
• Include the qualifications and experience, and any other requirements needed
to perform the role in relation to working with children;
• Describe the competencies and qualities that the successful candidate should be
able to demonstrate;
• Explain that if the applicant is short-listed any relevant issues arising from the
references will be taken up at interview;
• Explain how these requirements will be tested and assessed during the selection
process including:
i. Motivation to work with children and vulnerable adults;
ii. Ability to form and maintain appropriate relationships and personal
boundaries with children and vulnerable adults;
iii. Emotional resilience in working with challenging behaviours;
iv. Attitudes to use of authority and maintaining discipline.

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 5.3.2.3 Both job descriptions and person specifications must be completed at the same time and
before the job is advertised. Under no circumstances should the person specification be
completed or revised after the selection panel has had access to the applications received
5.3.2.4 The standard Pivot Point Services Limited application form should ask for:
5.3.2.4.1 Full identifying details of the applicant, including current and former names, date of
birth, current address and national insurance number;
5.3.2.4.2 Details of any relevant academic and/or vocational qualifications with details of the
awarding body and date of the award;
5.3.2.4.3 A full history in chronological order since leaving secondary education, including
periods of any post-secondary education or training and part-time or voluntary work
as well as full-time employment with start and end dates, explanations for periods
not in employment, education or training and reasons for leaving each employment;
5.3.2.4.4 Details of referees, one of whom must be from the applicant's current or most
recent employer. Referees should not be accepted from relatives or persons writing
solely in the capacity of friends. Where an applicant who is not currently working
with children or vulnerable adults but has done so in the past, it is important that a
reference is also obtained from the employer by whom the person was most
recently employed in work with children or vulnerable adults. Careful consideration
needs to be given where the applicant has been working as a locum or on a series of
temporary contracts. The need to request an additional reference from the last
permanent employer should be considered.
5.3.2.4.5 A statement of the personal qualities and experiences that the applicant believes are
relevant to his or her suitability for the post advertised and how s/he meets the
person specification;
5.3.2.4.6 A signed declaration by the applicant that s/he is not disqualified from work with
children or vulnerable adults, on the Barred Lists of the Disclosure and Barring
Service or subject to sanctions imposed by a Regulatory Authority and that s/he has
no convictions, cautions and bind-overs, including those regarded as 'spent', or has
attached details of his or her criminal record in a sealed envelope marked
'confidential'.
5.3.2.5 The application form should also record that:
5.3.2.5.1 Where appropriate, the successful candidate will be required to provide a Disclosure
and Barring Service Disclosure at the appropriate level for the post;
5.3.2.5.2 The prospective employer will seek references on short-listed candidates and may
approach previous employers to verify particular experience or qualifications, before
interview;
5.3.2.5.3 If the applicant is working with children or vulnerable adults, either paid or unpaid,
his or her current employer will be asked about disciplinary offences relating to
children or vulnerable adults, including any for which the penalty is time expired,
and whether the candidate has been the subject of any child protection concerns
and if so, the outcome of any enquiry or disciplinary procedure. If the applicant is
nor currently working with children but has done so in the past, that previous
employer will be asked about these issues; and

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 5.3.2.5.4 Providing false information is an offence and could result in the application being
rejected or summary dismissal if the applicant has been selected and possible
referral to the Police.
5.3.2.5.5 Incomplete applications must not be accepted and must be returned to the
applicant for completion.
5.3.2.5.6 It is not good practice to accept CVs drawn up by applicants in place of an
application form because these will only contain the information the applicant
wishes to present and may omit relevant details;

NOTE: DBS Eligibility Criteria has been updated to cover the new term of ‘Work with Children’
Enhanced DBS checks will be undertaken where the activities will fall within the definition of
Work with Children or Regulated Activity. The concept of Work with Children includes, but is
wider than, Regulated Activity. The term has been adopted by the DBS to give a single definition
of roles which will be subject to an Enhanced check, which were previously dealt with under
various provisions. The term does not alter the relevant activities, it merely clarifies the
situation.

5.3.3 References
5.3.3.1 The purpose of seeking reference is to obtain objective and factual information to
support appointment decision;
5.3.3.2 References must not be accepted except where they have been sought directly from
a previous employer or other referee. Open "To whom it may concern" references
must never be accepted;
5.3.3.3 A copy of the job description and the person specifications should be included with
all reference requests;
5.3.3.4 All requests for references should ask (and a pro forma may be used for this
purpose):
• About the referee’s relationship with the candidate, e.g. did they have a
working relationship; if so, what; how long has the referee known the
candidate, and in what capacity;
• Whether the referee is satisfied that the person has the ability and is
suitable to undertake the job;
• Whether the referee is completely satisfied that the candidate is suitable to
work with children and vulnerable adults and if not, for specific details of the
referees concerns and the reasons why the referee believes the person
might be unsuitable;

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 • And should remind the referee that:
• They have a responsibility to ensure that the reference is accurate and does
not contain any material misstatement or omission;
• Relevant factual content of the reference may be discussed with the
applicant.
5.3.3.5 In addition to the above, requests addressed to a candidate's current or previous
employer in work with children or vulnerable adults should also seek:
• Specific verifiable comments about the candidate’s performance history and
conduct;
• Details of any disciplinary procedures the candidate has been subject to in
which the disciplinary sanction is current;
• Details of any disciplinary procedures the candidate has been subject to
involving issues related to the safety and welfare of children and vulnerable
adults, including any in which the disciplinary sanction has expired, and the
outcome of those;
• Details of any allegations or concerns that have been raised about the
candidate that relate either to the safety and welfare of children and
vulnerable adults or behaviour towards children and vulnerable adults and
the outcome of those concerns, e.g. whether the allegations or concerns
were investigated, the conclusions reached, and how the matter was
resolved.
5.3.3.6 An employer reference must also be obtained in respect of internal candidates for posts
involving direct contact with children and vulnerable adults; So that information of
comparable weight is obtained for all candidates, references on all short-listed
candidates (including internal ones) should wherever possible be obtained prior to
interview so that any issues of concern they raise can be explored further with a referee
and taken up with the candidate at interview;
5.3.3.7 Written references must be checked carefully with the application form to identify any
possible discrepancies; in all cases, any discrepancy should be taken up with the
candidate before the person's appointment is confirmed.

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 Selection Methods
5.3.4 The Selection Panel
5.3.4.1 All Pivot Point Services Limited’s Selection Panels should comprise a minimum of two
interviewers. It is essential that the same selection panel should both short-list and
interview candidates. Panel members should not stand to gain from the appointment or
have a personal relationship with any of the applicants.

5.3.4.2 Interview panels should be balanced wherever possible by gender and race and at least one
panel member must have experience and an understanding of working with children and
vulnerable adults and one panel member (who can be the same person) must have had
specific training in safe recruitment and selection methods.

5.3.5 Scrutinising and Short-Listing

5.3.5.1 All applications should be scrutinised to ensure that they are fully and properly completed,
that the information provided is consistent and does not contain any discrepancies, and to
identify any gaps in employment;
5.3.5.2 In drawing up a short-list there should be a systematic and consistent approach. All
applicants should be assessed equally against the criteria contained in the person
specification without exception or variation. Information provided in application forms must
be cross checked with other sources of information prior to short-listing and interview so
that any discrepancy can be explored with the candidate at interview. The criteria for
personal qualities and skills must be used as well as those in relation to qualifications and
experience. If greater emphasis is placed on one or more important skill and competency for
the job, this must be clear from the outset.

5.3.6 Interviews
5.3.6.1 Candidates must be asked to bring documentary evidence of their identity that will satisfy
Disclosure and Barring Service requirements - i.e. a full birth certificate or a passport/photo
driving licence or some form of photograph identification, together with an additional
document such as a utility bill that verifies the candidates name and address. Where
appropriate, change of name documentation should also be brought to the interview.
5.3.6.2 Candidates should also be asked to bring original or certified copies of documents
confirming any necessary or relevant educational and professional qualifications. If the
successful candidate cannot produce original documents or certified copies, written
confirmation of his/her relevant qualifications must be obtained from the awarding body.
5.3.6.3 Interviews must be face to face even where there is only one candidate. All questions must
be prepared in advance by the Selection Panel and must not be discriminatory with regard
to sex, marital status, race or ethnic origin, disability, religion, age, sexual orientation or
political belief. Poorly structured interviews will not be reliable

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 5.3.6.4 The candidates' attitude towards children/vulnerable adults and commitment to
safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children/vulnerable adults should be tested. The
following areas should be explored with the candidates in the interview:
• Their motivation and reasons for working with children;
• Their attitudes and behaviour about control and punishment;
• Their perceptions about the boundaries of acceptable behaviour towards children;
• Their ability to form and maintain professional relationships;
• Their personal belief systems including attitudes to, perception of and sensitivity to
sexual images of children;
• Their understanding of safeguarding children.
5.3.6.5 Any gaps in the candidate's employment history must be fully explored during the interview
as should any discrepancies arising from the information supplied by the candidate or a
referee.
5.3.6.6 In appropriate cases, for example interviews for residential social care settings, there may be
pre-interviews which may usefully be underpinned by practical exercises, which simulate the
working environment e.g. anonymised real-life situation (with precautions taken to ensure
no unfair advantage to internal candidates).
5.3.6.7 Notes of questions asked, and answers given at the interview must be made and retained,
usually by the human resources officer in attendance.
5.3.6.8 After the interview, Panel members should separately score the candidates. They should
then share their scores and discuss their reasons for reaching the scores. This discussion
should result in a joint agreed score for each candidate.
5.3.6.9 A decision as to whether to appoint an individual to a role working with children/Vulnerable
must be based upon an evaluation of the information obtained from all of the above stages.
Appointments must be made on the basis of a person's experiences, ability and suitability to
perform the role rather than on the urgency of the need or the availability of the applicant.

5.3.7 Offer of Appointment to Successful Candidate

5.3.7.1 An offer of appointment must be conditional upon pre-employment checks being
satisfactorily completed, including:

5.3.7.2 Receipt of two satisfactory references - if references have not been obtained before the
interview, it is vital that they are obtained and scrutinised before a person’s appointment is
confirmed;
5.3.7.3 Verification of the candidate's identity (if this has not been verified straight after the
interview);
5.3.7.4 A Disclosure and Barring Service Disclosure appropriate to the role which will include a check
of the Barred Lists;

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 5.3.7.5 Verification of the candidate's medical fitness;
5.3.7.6 Verification of any relevant qualifications and professional status (if not verified straight
after the interview) and whether any restrictions have been imposed by a regulatory body
such as the Teaching Agency or the General Medical Council;
5.3.7.7 Evidence of right to work in the UK for those who are not nationals of a European Economic
Area country.
5.3.7.8 All checks should be confirmed in writing, documented and retained on the personnel file
and followed up where they are unsatisfactory or where there are discrepancies in the
information provided.
5.3.7.9 Where a Disclosure and Barring Service Disclosure indicates cause for concern for temporary
or directly employed staff, the member of staff must immediately be withdrawn pending
further enquiries.

5.3.8 DBS Check Results

5.3.8.1 If a DBS check shows any convictions or cautions, the matter must first be reported directly
to the Managing Director. It is also essential that the Managing Director informs the person
involved and that they are given the opportunity to respond, in writing and at a meeting,
before a final decision is made on whether or not to appoint the individual.
5.3.8.2 Enhanced checks may contain ‘approved’ non-conviction information provided by the police
from their local records. Other relevant information disclosed at the Chief Police Officer(s)
discretion’. If this is the case, then this again must be reported to the Managing Director to
determine what weight, if any, to attach to this in making a final decision on employment
matters. Once again, it is essential to give the person involved the opportunity to respond.

5.3.8.3 An applicant’s suitability should be judged in the light of the results of all the relevant pre-
employment checks carried out on him or her. A judgement must be made taking into
account only those offences which may be relevant to the particular job or situation in
question. In deciding the relevance of convictions, a number of points should be considered
including the nature of the offence, the nature of the appointment, the age of the offence
and the frequency of the offence.

5.3.8.4 If any staff of Pivot Point Services Limited knows or has reason to believe that an individual is
barred, he/she commits an offence if he/she allows the individual to carry out any form of
regulated activity. There are penalties of up to five years in prison if a barred individual in
convicted of attempting to engage or engaging in such work.

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 5.3.9 Confidential Storage and Record Keeping
5.3.9.1 Employers do not have to keep copies of DBS certificates in order to fulfil the duty of
maintaining the SCR. Copies of DBS certificates (where required) should be stored in a
separate and secure place to the personnel file according to the Data Protection Act and
recommendation of the DBS. It is the responsibility of the HR Director to ensure that this is
undertaken. A copy should be retained for no longer than six months.

5.3.9.2 Information disclosed as part of a DBS Disclosure must be treated as confidential. It is an

offence for DBS Disclosure information to be passed to anyone who does not need it in the
course of their duties.
5.3.9.3 The Disclosure information must be kept in secure conditions and must be destroyed, by
secure means, as soon as it is no longer needed. This is generally for a period of up to six
months, to allow for the consideration and resolution of any disputes or complaints.
5.2.9.3 However, before the disclosure is destroyed, records need to be kept detailing the date it
was evidenced, the date it was requested, the date the Disclosure was completed, who it
was evidenced by and the unique reference number.

5.4 Safeguarding Training

As part of our Safer Recruitment policy, all staff at Pivot Point Services limited, who come into
direct contact with children and vulnerable adults, must complete the following courses
before being assigned to any regulated jobs. All the courses below are renewable on annual
basis unless the regulation states otherwise:

5.4.1 Keeping Children Safe in Education: The Department for Education (DfE)'s most recent
statutory guidance on safeguarding is Keeping Children Safe in Education, which came into force
from 5 September 2016. The guidance is organised into four main parts covering:

• Safeguarding information for all staff

• The management of safeguarding
• Safer recruitment
• Allegations of abuse made against teachers and other staff

All staff at Pivot Point Services must undertake this course by reading Part 1 of the guidance to
familiarise themselves with the policy. All staff will then be expected to have signed an
acknowledgement of this policy regulation which will be kept in their personnel file.

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/550499/Keeping_
children_safe_in_education_Part_1.pdf

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 5.4.2 E-Learning training on prevent: This offers an introduction to the Prevent duty, and explains
how it aims to safeguard vulnerable people from being radicalised to supporting terrorism or
becoming terrorists themselves. It will provide an important foundation on which to develop further
knowledge around the risks of radicalisation and the role that you can play in supporting those at
risk. Local authorities have their own bespoke Prevent training courses that take into consideration
local issues and as such Pivot Point Services Limited staff who come into contact with
children/vulnerable adults will be expected to take up the localised training upon commencement of
work, as preferred by our client schools.

All staff at Pivot Point Services, who are likely to come into contact with children and vulnerable
adults must undertake this course. All staff will then be expected to have a home-office issued
certificate as well as a signed an acknowledgement of this policy regulation which will be kept in
their personnel file.

https://www.elearning.prevent.homeoffice.gov.uk/

5.4.3 Statutory & Mandatory Training: This mandatory course undertaken under this banner
enables all Pivot Point Limited’s support staff to meet their statutory and mandatory training
requirement specific to their role in working with vulnerable children and adults and entails the
following:
• Equality and Diversity
• Health and Safety at Work
• Control of Substances Hazardous to Health
• Information Governance (Includes Caldicott Principles)
• Fire Safety Awareness
• Infection Control (Includes RIDDOR & COSHH)
• Food Hygiene
• Manual Handling - (Includes Practical Session)
• Basic Life Support including CPR - (Includes Practical Session)
• Safeguarding Vulnerable Adults (Level 1 & 2 - Includes the Mental Capacity Act)
• Safeguarding Children (Level 1 & 2)
• Conflict Management
• Lone Working

The preferred provider for this course is The Health and Safety group who have training centres
located right across the country. If any staff has already completed the course with a reputable and
verifiable training agency, then their certificates will be acceptable as long as they are in date (less
than a year old)

https://www.healthandsafetygroup.com/products/1386/mandatory/

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 5.4.4 Training Log
A training log is kept detailing what safeguarding training individual staff have undertaken,
the date it was completed, the expiry date, the level and details of any accreditation (if
applicable). This is to be kept in their personnel file.

6 Whistleblowing
6.1 All staff at Pivot Point Services are encouraged to use the concern form for
confidential reporting or whistleblowing of any behaviour towards children or
vulnerable adults, which is abusive, inappropriate or unprofessional. This includes:

i. Conduct which is a breach of the law;

ii. Conduct which compromises health and safety;
iii. Conduct which falls below established standards of practice with children
and young people.
6.2 All received concerns should be treated in the strictest of confidence and the report
writer’s identify can only be revealed with their written consent. The Designated Lead
Safeguarding officer should be informed to avail support should the reporter require
it.

7 Accountability
7.1 The overall accountability for ensuring that DBS, Enhanced DBS checks and all other relevant
checks have been undertaken for all staff and other workers who carry out services on
behalf of Pivot Point Services Limited lies with the Managing Director.
7.2 The Managing Director is responsible for ensuring that regular monitoring and quality checks
are carried out on a local basis, in liaison with the HR team at Pivot Point Services. Periodic
reviews will be carried out by the Managing Director to check the status of DBS checks of all
staff working in the regulated sector.
7.3 The HR Officer is also responsible for ensuring the verification of references and
qualifications is carried out at the pre-employment stage in the selection process.
7.4 The Managing Director must ensure that all staff responsible for the recruitment and
selection of staff adhere to this policy and Recruitment and Selection and Safer Recruitment
and Safeguarding Children Policies and Procedures and attend any appropriate training
required of them.

Policy Document Prepared by: Noella Ayieko (Designated Lead Safeguarding Officer)
Date of Review: 12th December 2017
Used by: All Staff at Pivot Point Services Limited

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