Riddings Junior School

Family Wellbeing Support

Early Help Support

At Riddings Junior School, we are committed to supporting the wellbeing of every child and family within our school community. Our Inclusion Team, led by Mrs Godfrey, works closely with children, parents and carers to provide support, advice and guidance whenever additional help may be needed.

We believe that offering support at the earliest opportunity can make a real difference. By identifying concerns early and working together, we can often prevent challenges from becoming more serious and help families access the right support at the right time.

We also work alongside a range of external agencies and services to ensure that children and families receive the most appropriate support for their individual needs.

If you feel that your child or your family might benefit from additional support, then please talk to any member of staff or specifically Mrs Godfrey, Miss Smith or Mrs Fox, at any point.

At Riddings Junior we have approximately 240 children on roll in our school. All of our members of staff recognise their role in Safeguarding, and we work together to provide Early Help and services to support children and families.

As part of our Early Help support, we have two dedicated Family Support Workers, Miss Smith and Mrs Fox, who work closely with children and families. They can offer practical and emotional support for a range of concerns, including:

Anxiety and emotional wellbeing
Low self-esteem and confidence
Attendance concerns
Friendship difficulties
Family challenges
Behavioural concerns
Any issues that may affect a child's wellbeing, happiness or success in school

If you have any concerns about your child, please email us at:

info@riddings-jun.derbyshire.sch.uk

How will we know if we think that Early Help is needed?

We may identify a need for Early Help through:

Daily contact between school staff, children and families.
Information shared by parents or carers.
Concerns raised regarding a child's wellbeing, attendance or development.
Assessments undertaken by school staff.
Attendance monitoring and pastoral support.
Information shared by partner agencies.

All concerns are recorded using our secure safeguarding system, MyConcern, and are monitored by the Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs).

Where there are immediate safeguarding concerns, these will be referred to Starting Point, Derbyshire's Children's Services contact and referral service, following consultation with the school's Designated Safeguarding Leads.

Early Help Interventions

We have two Family Support Workers who provide support for children and families.
Our school website contains information for families actively seeking advice and support.
Support can be offered during the school day for both children and families. In some circumstances, a home visit may be appropriate.

What sort of support might happen?

It will depend on what the need is and might include services you already get. We will discuss these with you and make sure it all makes sense.

Recording, Reporting and Referrals

Where additional support is needed, we will work with families and relevant agencies to coordinate appropriate help.

In some cases, a Team Around the Family (TAF) meeting may be arranged. This allows all professionals involved with a child or family to work together and agree the best way forward.

We work closely with a range of professional services including:

School Health
CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services)
Children's Services
Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs)
Other specialist support agencies

The Headteacher, Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL), has overall responsibility for safeguarding case management within school and works alongside the safeguarding team to ensure that support is provided at the appropriate level.

Our recording system, ‘MyConcern’, is available online for staff to record information and concerns. This is closely monitored – identifying patterns/ frequency of concerns and the actions that have been taken.

If a vulnerable child transfers to another school, safeguarding information will be shared appropriately to ensure continuity of support.

Where concerns increase or a child's welfare does not improve despite support being offered, further referrals may be made to Children's Services through Starting Point.

The Inclusion Team and Headteacher meet regularly to discuss children and families and the progress that is being made.

Next steps after Early Help

For many families, Early Help provides enough support to improve outcomes and resolve concerns.

However, if difficulties continue or a family experiences a significant crisis, it may become necessary to increase the level of support available. In some cases, a social worker may become involved. If this happens, the school will continue to work alongside the family and other professionals to support the child.

The Headteacher or representative will always be available to represent the school at the Case Conference or Child in Need Reviews should these be called.

PLEASE NOTE: Over the school holidays, sign posting for other early help support is available on our school website (see below).

If you are concerned about the safety of a child or require urgent help or advice, call Derbyshire on 01629 533190.

Requests for early help can be made face to face, via the school office or by using the contacts below: