A safe and welcoming school
We welcome visitors and value the contribution volunteers make to life at Hamstreet Primary Academy. Everyone who visits or helps in school has a part to play in keeping children safe.
This page explains what to expect when you visit, how to raise a safeguarding concern and how to enquire about volunteering. Please follow the instructions given by school staff and the safeguarding information provided during your visit.
When you arrive
- Please arrange your visit with the school in advance wherever possible.
- Report to the school office on arrival and follow the sign-in arrangements. Please bring identification, particularly if you are visiting in a professional capacity.
- Wear any visitor identification issued to you so that it is clearly visible, and return it when you leave.
- Remain with your host or in the areas agreed with school staff. Do not enter classrooms or other areas without permission.
- Follow the school’s arrangements for signing out before leaving.
If you need help with access or have any requirements that will help you take part in your visit, please contact the office beforehand.
Keeping children safe during your visit
Conduct and boundaries
- Treat children and adults with respect and use appropriate language.
- Follow staff instructions about supervision and working with children. Do not arrange to be alone with a child outside the agreed arrangements.
- Do not exchange personal contact details with pupils, contact them through personal accounts or connect with them on social media.
- Refer requests for personal care, medication or first aid to school staff unless you have been specifically authorised for that role.
Phones, photographs and privacy
- Keep personal phones and devices put away while working with children, unless school staff have authorised their use.
- Do not photograph, film or record children without the school’s prior permission and agreed arrangements.
- Do not share information about pupils or families, including on social media. Discuss confidential information only with the appropriate member of staff.
- Always share safeguarding concerns through the school’s reporting procedures, even where information has been given to you in confidence.
If you are worried about a child
Tell a member of our safeguarding team immediately. You do not need proof, and you do not need to decide whether a concern is serious enough to report.
While you are on site, speak to a member of staff or the school office so that they can contact the Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) or a deputy. Do not wait until the end of your visit or rely on an email for an urgent concern.
Our safeguarding team
Mrs Helen Glancy, Headteacher and Designated Safeguarding Lead
Mrs Nicola Bolton, Deputy Headteacher and Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead
Mrs Sarah Hayes, SENDCO and Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead
Telephone: 01233 732577
Email: enquiries@ham-street.org.uk
If a child is in immediate danger, call 999. Our safeguarding page includes external reporting routes for urgent concerns when the school is closed.
If a child tells you something worrying
- Listen calmly. Take the child seriously and reassure them that they have done the right thing by telling you.
- Do not promise secrecy. Explain that you need to tell someone who can help keep them safe.
- Do not investigate. Avoid leading questions, do not ask the child to repeat their account to others, and do not confront anyone involved.
- Report immediately. Contact the DSL or a deputy through school staff. If neither is available, tell a senior member of staff straight away.
- Make an accurate record promptly. Record the date, time, what you saw or heard and the child’s own words as closely as possible. Give it directly to the safeguarding team using the school’s agreed process. Do not keep a personal copy.
Concerns about an adult
If you are concerned about the behaviour of a member of staff, volunteer, contractor or another adult working on behalf of the school, report it to Mrs Helen Glancy, Headteacher. This includes behaviour that makes you feel uneasy, even if you are unsure whether it amounts to abuse.
If your concern is about the Headteacher, report it directly to Joanna Ronayne, Chief Executive Officer of ACE Learning, at enquiries@ace-learning.org.uk. Do not report the concern to the person it relates to.
Interested in volunteering?
If you would like to help at Hamstreet, please contact the school office to discuss the opportunities available. We will explain the role, the time commitment and the steps needed before you can start.
- Volunteer arrangements must be agreed with the school before you begin.
- The school will assess the role and arrange the appropriate identity, suitability and safeguarding checks. These may include references and a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.
- Volunteers undertaking regulated activity with children require an enhanced DBS check with children’s barred list information, in line with current requirements.
- The school will confirm when the required checks and arrangements are complete and you may start. An existing DBS certificate does not automatically authorise you to volunteer.
- Please follow the safeguarding induction, code of conduct, confidentiality requirements and supervision arrangements provided for your role.
Volunteers who have not had the necessary checks must not work unsupervised with children or undertake regulated activity.
Emergencies and site safety
Follow the emergency information given when you arrive. If an alarm sounds, follow staff instructions and the school’s evacuation arrangements. If lockdown instructions are given, follow them immediately.
Report any accident, injury, hazard or security concern to a member of staff straight away. Do not open external doors or gates to admit other visitors; direct them to the school office.
Thank you for helping keep our children safe
Please ask your host or the school office if you are unsure about any aspect of your visit or volunteer role.
View our safeguarding information and child protection policy