Safeguarding

At BCCS we are committed to providing a safe and secure environment for children, staff and visitors and promoting a climate where children and adults will feel confident about sharing any concerns which they may have about their own safety or the well-being of others. We follow the Bristol Child Protection Procedures and the Local Safeguarding Children's Board local guidance and have systems in place to share concerns. Part of our legal duty to safeguard our children may also include us needing to consult specifically with and take advice from the Police or Children's Social Care, should the need arise. Please find our CST Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy under the Policies section on the website. The Safeguarding of our students is of paramount importance to us and we have a dedicated Safeguarding Team you can contact about any concerns.

The email address safe@bristolcathedral.org.uk will send your email to all colleagues within Safeguarding Team

If you wish to anonymously report any concerns to the School please use the below link to Whisper

If you need help urgently or are in danger, please call 999.

If you need to contact the police but it is not urgent, please call 101.

If you have concerns that a young person is suffering from harm, please call First Response 0117 9036444

The Safeguarding Team

The Governor with responsibility for safeguarding in our School is Dr Beth Williamson.

Our school is part of Operation Encompass.

Through Operation Encompass the police will share information with our school about all police-attended domestic abuse incidents which involve any of our children who are related to either of the adults involved in the incident. Children are recognised as victims of domestic abuse in their own right even if they are witnesses rather than victims of abuse (Domestic Abuse Act, 2021)

There is a legislative requirement for police forces to share information with educational settings through Operation Encompass. This sharing of information will typically occur prior to the start of the next school day. The notification will inform us about the context of the incident, who was involved and where possible, will include the Voice of the Child. The Operation Encompass notification is stored in line with all other confidential safeguarding and child protection information.

The  Designated Safeguarding Lead, Ms Mia Helmich, undertook training in August 2025

We want students, parents and carers to be fully aware that we are an Operation Encompass school. There there are poster around the school reminding students of this fact, information is woven into PSHEe lessons and communication sent home via the school newsletter annually. All staff and Governors recieve training about Operation Encompass, the indicators and prevalence of Domestic Abuse and the impact of this abuse on children.

We have a warm and experienced Pastoral Team at BCCS, who support young people on a day-to-day basis and particularly following an Operation Encompass notification. We are aware that we must do nothing that puts the child/ren or the non-abusing adult at risk.

Support for Young People

If you are a young person looking for support, there are some support
contacts available here:

• Bristol Emotional Health and Wellbeing Director for Young People
• You can also access Kooth (www.kooth.com) or Childline (www.childline.org.uk)

Please also visit our 'Wellbeing Hub' via the homepage of the school website for more specific support and early help providers