Safeguarding

As part of London South East Academies Trust, Horizons Academy Bexley believes that our learners should never encounter abuse of any kind and it is our responsibility to protect them from harm and keep them safe. All our learners, regardless of age, religion, belief, sex, disability, gender reassignment, race, or sexual orientation have a right to protection and that their families know where to access help, advice and guidance.

Horizons Academy recognises that the welfare of our learners is paramount if they are to reach their full potential, which is at the heart of our practice and decision making. Our approach encompasses the regular monitoring of learner absence and punctuality, working in partnership with the allocated Education Welfare Officer to overcome attendance barriers.

We are aware that some of our learners are additionally vulnerable because of the impact of previous experiences (latent trauma), communication needs or other challenges relating to a learning disability or circumstances and therefore offer ongoing CPD to staff in order to appropriately and confidently support them.

We seek to keep our learners safe by always valuing, respecting and listening to their voice. At Horizons Academy our safeguarding staff are a consistent resource which supports Horizons Academy achieving safeguarding best practice through our policies, procedures and staff code of conduct for staff (this includes agency staff) and volunteers. Effective management of staff and volunteers is provided through safer recruitment, training and support so that all Horizons Academy staff and volunteers know about and adhere to our policies, procedures and expectations, confidently and competently. We further use our procedures to appropriately manage any allegations made against staff and have both a complaints and whistleblowing measures in place. We additionally take account of the Local Authority procedures and practices (primarily Bexley), established by the Safeguarding Partnership (Bexley SHIELD) and comply with any requests from them.

Learner records that are created or stored are used professionally and securely in line with data protection legislation and guidance and we will use our safeguarding procedures to share any concerns and relevant information with agencies in order to protect a learner from harm. We will involve our learners, parents/carers and families appropriately and work in partnership with external agencies to effectively safeguard our learners, staff and environment.

Horizons Academy maintains an anti-bullying environment and will not tolerate sexual abuse, assault or harassment. All staff work together to allow learners to raise their concerns in a safe, supported space and we ensure we have policies and procedures in place to help us respond effectively when any concerns do arise. We provide a safe physical environment for our learners, staff and volunteers by applying health & safety measures in accordance with the law and regulatory guidance and have further built a safeguarding culture where everyone is encouraged to treat each other with respect and feel safe in sharing concerns.

If you need to contact a member of our Safeguarding Team please call 0208 312 2746 or email safeguarding@horizons.lseat.org.uk

Key Contacts

Bexley Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO)
Edward Snelgar
LADO@bexley.gov.uk
020 3045 3436
https://bexleysafeguardingpartnership.co.uk

Education Welfare Officer (EWO)
Jennifer Tatlock
020 3045 3108
Jennifer.Tatlock@bexley.gov.uk

Emergency Evacuation Procedures for Visitors

Horizons Academy - 020 8312 2746
Premises Manager: Darren Bolton - 020 8312 2746

Health & Safety at Work

This page provides basic safety rules in the event of an emergency. It applies to all visitors, including parents/cares, contractors and outside of school hours users of the site, all of whom are required to co-operate in maintain a safe working environment. All visitors MUST comply with our health and safety procedures.

Emergency Procedures

Fire Instructions: If you discover a fire please raise the alarm at the nearest fire point, which is located close to an exit route (by breaking the glass), and then evacuate to the appropriate meeting area as explained to you by Reception.

Evacuation Areas

This is applicable to all visitors, including temporary contractors and outside-of-school-hours users of any of our school sites.

You should be led by the person who has given you authorisation to be on the site (e.g a member of SLT, site service team), follow the teacher and adhere to instructions provided upon arrival to Horizons Academy. You can only return to the building once it is safe to do so and you have been authorised to do so.

Evacuation Safety:

Do not stop to collect belongings
Do not re-enter the building until it is declared safe to do so
Do not enter a building which has an alarm sounding
When you have reached the evacuation area, you should report to the evacuation co-ordinator
Do not put yourself at risk

First Aid

The following staff at Horizons Academy are designated First aiders:

Talan Abdullah

Dean Ashby

Dayo Bankole

Shauna Barrett

Danielle Barton

Temi Busari

Theo Fairweather

Sarah Fakoya

Nadia King

Michelle Lawrence

Daniel Murrell

James Nash

Kabirat Ogunseye

Dami Ogwu

Abel Olatunji

Amy Poole

Amie Power

Emily Sabourn

Stuart Sheaf

Kai Sheffield

Paola Sim

Jack Stephen

Emma Tolfrey

Kathryn Toogood

Carly Tullett

Jason White

Michelle Williams

Keeping Children Safe in Education 2024

Designated Safeguarding Leads

Name	Position	Contact
Rebecca Williams	Designated Safeguarding Lead – Head Teacher
Emma Slater	Designated Safeguarding Lead – Assistant Head of School
Emily Sabourn	Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead - Welfare Officer
Stuart Sheaf	Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead – Deputy Head Teacher
Dean Ashby	Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead – Head of Primary and Helix
Jacques Mostert	Designated LAC teacher - Secondary SENCO
Beth Moore	Group Head of Safeguarding; London & South East Education Group
Neil Miller	Deputy CEO; London South East Academies Trust

Staff Training Schedule

CPD Schedule

Term:	Half Term 1	Half Term 2	Half Term 3	Half Term 4	Half Term 5	Half Term 6
Training:	‘So-called Honour Based’ Abuse, Forced Marriage and FGM	Understanding and Meeting Thresholds	Sexual and Physical Abuse	Grooming and CSE	Neglect and Emotional Abuse	The impact of abuse