Child Safety

The beginning of the school year is a good time to remind parents of the need to educate their child on keeping safe, particularly when they are in public without an adult supervising, or online.

Some of our students walk themselves to school and home again and many of our students have or use devices connected to the online environment and it is important for them to have strategies in place for when they feel unsure, uncomfortable or unsafe.

Teachers cover these conversations several times throughout the year, as part of our cybersafety curriculum, during social skills curriculum (including anti bullying) and other child safety curriculums (including stranger danger), also when we are alerted to potential or possible situations in the local area.

Some of the strategies we will talk to the students about include:

Being alert and aware of the environment around you
Nothing is ever so awful that you can’t tell someone
Recognising the signs your body has to alert you to possible dangers
Who are the people you can trust and tell things to
The safety of moving in groups
Not talking to strangers
Not accepting gifts from strangers
Not accepting friend requests online from people you don’t know
Avoiding online chat rooms
Don’t give personal details to anyone over the internet
Being assertive
Being resilient
Being a good friend
Inappropriate touching

Parents can also support their child by having regular discussions around personal safety, including online. There are several websites that provide support material for teachers and parents, please find some of them listed below.

https://www.safety4kids.com.au/safety-zone_stranger-danger

https://www.esafety.gov.au/

https://bullyingnoway.gov.au/

https://betterrelationships.org.au/family-parenting/common-issues-for-children/protective-behaviours/

https://www.amf.org.au/

If parents have any questions, please speak to your child’s classroom teacher.

Child Safe at School

Malvern Primary School takes the responsibility of protecting the children in our care seriously. As part of our Child Protection responsibilities the school has developed a Child Safe Policy and Child Safe Code of Conduct. All staff and parents volunteers are required to sign the Child Safe Code of Conduct and follow the policies and procedures.

The Child Safe documents are designed to promote respect and understanding and protect children from abuse.

Copies of these documents are available on the school’s website, along with a number of other policies designed to protect our children including: Anti-Bullying, Anaphylaxis, Asthma, Administration of Medication, Camps and Excursions, Duty of Care, External Provider, First Aid, Mobile Phone, Student Engagement and Wellbeing, Sun Smart, Type 1 Diabetes, Visitors, Volunteers and Yard Duty.

Robyn James

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