If you have any concerns about your safety or the safety of others:
Call us on Monday to Friday 01246 500688
Email us at [email protected]
SAFEGUARDING AND WELLBEING
Safeguarding and Support
If you have any concerns about your safety or the safety of others:
Call us on Monday to Friday 01246 500688
Email us at [email protected]
Navigate between sections:
If you require any support or safeguarding assistance while the college is closed, we have provided details of important contact information for external agencies who should be your first port of call if you have a wellbeing or safeguarding concern, including homelessness, drug and alcohol misuse, finance, domestic abuse and more.
For concerns relating to someone who is under 18 years of age or a vulnerable adult, please call your Local Authority Social Care phone number. The number you call will be different depending on where you live. You can find details on the Government website by putting in the postcode of where you are reporting from.
If you feel that a child or any other student or apprentice is at immediate risk of harm or in need of protection you should contact the police immediately: 999 emergency, 101 non-emergency.
NSPCC Texting Service
You can anonymously text 88858 for free and the Helpline will send an automated confirmation response from an online practitioner within three hours.
Dedicated helpline for people who experienced sexual harassment or abuse in a school or college setting.
Please call 0800 136 663 Email [email protected].
A wide range of national organisations and charities are available throughout the year, providing free support on various issues including homelessness, drug and alcohol misuse, finance, domestic abuse and more. We have provided the contact details below should you require any specific help, advice or guidance.
Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) 03444 111444 (National) Text 03444 111445.
Chesterfield local advice line 0300 4568437
Chesterfield Broad Pavement 01246 209164
Derbyshire Law Centre 01246 550674 (support with tenancy, housing, debt, immigration).
Mental Health Support Services
Interactive map of support, mental health and wellbeing options around Derbyshire. Provided by Derbyshire Mental Health Forum.
Samaritans 116 123
ChildLine 0800 1111 (online toolkit)
KWELL online support for adults with mental health issues
KOOTH online mental health support for children and young people
MIND 0300 123 3393 Text 86463
Young Minds 0808 8025544
For crisis support for your local area, please visit the NHS website.
Domestic Abuse
Call the police on 999 if at immediate risk of harm
National DA Helpline – 0808 2000247
Domestic abuse – How to get help
The Elm Foundation (Chesterfield) 08000 198668
Homelessness
Homeless Prevention Team Chesterfield 01246 345825
Pathways of Chesterfield 01246 498204
For your local authority contact search
Money Matters
Food Bank Contacts
Alcohol and Substance Misuse Support
Drink Aware 0207 766 9900
Derbyshire Addictions Advice Service 01246 2306514
Derbyshire Recovery Partnership 01246 206514
CGL (Change Grow Live – Harm Reduction)
Alcoholics Anonymous 0800 917 7650
FRANK Honest information about drugs
Gambling Support
Gamcare 0808 8020 1330 (24/7 helpline) gamcare.org.uk
Gordan Moody Association 01384 241292 (Rehabilitation support)
Gamblers Anonymous 0330 0940322
Sexual Health
Sexual Health Matters 0800 3283383
You can also visit your local GP or A&E/walk-in centre.
Emergency Services
For support with any Prevent (radicalisation and extremism) or Child at Risk of Criminal or Sexual Exploitation issues please call the Police on 101 or 999 if at risk of immediate harm.
Non-emergency Police 101
Emergency police, fire, ambulance 999
A&E – Chesterfield Royal Hospital 01246 277 271
NHS non-emergency 111 (including mental health support)
Crime Stoppers 0800 555111
You can find us in the Wellbeing Hub, South Block at the Infirmary Road site where you can have a face-to-face conversation with a Safeguarding Officer.
The Chesterfield College Group is committed to safeguarding our students, apprentices, staff and visitors. Your health, safety and well-being are our priority.
Safeguarding is everyone’s business. Every member of the college community has a responsibility for safeguarding, all doing their part to keep children, young people and vulnerable adults safe. That includes all staff, Governors, volunteers, students and employers. All college staff and employers receive appropriate training to support students and apprentices. This includes being able to identify the risk of harm and knowing how to make appropriate referrals for support.
As a student or apprentice, you too will also receive safeguarding information through your pastoral programme and advice on how to report concerns. It may be that you are worried about yourself or others during your studies with us, please be reassured that we are here to listen and help.
The term safeguarding; embraces both child and vulnerable adult protection and preventative approaches to keep you safe, our Safeguarding Policy and Procedure aims to meet this commitment.
Our dedicated Safeguarding Team provides a safe environment throughout your learner journey.
If you need help to stay safe, you are at risk of harm or already experiencing harm; the Safeguarding Team will take the appropriate action to ensure you stay safe in college, at home and/or in a work-based setting.
The Chesterfield College Group actively promotes British Values to enable our students and apprentices to:
- Become valuable and rounded members of society who treat others with respect and tolerance, regardless of background
- Ensure young people understand the importance of mutual respect and leave the College fully prepared for life in modern Britain
- Celebrate difference and promote diversity in all areas of society
- Encourage an understanding of the difficulties other cultures face where such values are not respected
The Chesterfield College Group has a statutory duty to ‘prevent people from being drawn into terrorism and comply with this duty and keep our college community safe.
Here at the college, we ensure that all of our staff, students and apprentices have the knowledge and confidence to identify the risks of extremism, radicalisation and terrorism in order to keep themselves and others safe and how to report these concerns the Safeguarding Team or Police.
More information can be found here: actearly.uk
Please watch: RUN, HIDE AND TELL – what to do in the rare event of a weapon or a firearm attack
Immediate help: Call 999 for an emergency or 111 non-emergency
The Prevent duty is the duty in the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015 on specified authorities, in the exercise of their functions, to have due regard to the need to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism.
At the heart of Prevent is safeguarding children and adults and providing early intervention to protect and divert people away from being drawn into terrorist activity.
The Chesterfield College Group has a statutory duty to ‘prevent people from being drawn into terrorism and comply with this duty and keep our college community safe.
Sadly, there is no single way to identify whether a child or vulnerable adult is susceptible to this type of abuse. Perpetrators use many different platforms to exploit an individual’s vulnerabilities. Here at the college, we ensure that all of our staff, students and apprentices have the knowledge and confidence to identify the risks of extremism, radicalisation and terrorism in order to keep themselves and others safe and how to report these concerns the Safeguarding Team or Police.
What might indicate someone is vulnerable
The journey to becoming radicalised is different for everyone. It can be quick or take time. There can be many reasons why a person becomes vulnerable. This is not an exhaustive list but experience shows us these can be indicators:
· Being at a transitional phase in life
· Having a need to find an identity, belonging, status or excitement
· Being susceptible to being influenced or controlled – or wanting to dominate others
· Feeling a sense of grievance, injustice or being under threat
· Having an emotional desire for political or moral change
· Having mental health-related issues
· Being secretive about social networking contacts
Prevent is not about criminalising an individual, it is about safeguarding them.
If you, or someone you know is at risk in this way you can contact the Safeguarding Team at Chesterfield college on 01246 500688 or email [email protected].
Call the Police on 101 or 999 in an emergency
You can also call the national police Prevent advice line on 0800 011 3764. For more information: actearly.uk
Get help if you’re worried about someone being radicalised through the government website.
Find out how the Prevent programme supports people who are at risk of becoming involved with terrorism through radicalisation.
Tips to support your children: The radicalisation of young children online | Internet Matters
Taking steps to protect students
The college considers any concerns related to harassment and sexual misconduct to be a safeguarding concern. Detailed procedures for reporting and responding to safeguarding concerns, including specific procedures for dealing with allegations against staff, are contained within the safeguarding suite of procedures aligned to the college Safeguarding Policy Family.
The college has an established process for student reps and student governors to be represented at formal committees including Safeguarding, Equality Diversity and Inclusion,and the Board of Governors. Relevant policies are approved by those committees and the Board as appropriate.
The Safeguarding Committee receive termly updates via the safeguarding report, which includes data reporting that enables the college to:
• Identify trends and inform prevention strategies
• Evaluate the effectiveness of reporting mechanisms and support services available
• Demonstrate transparency and accountability within safeguarding responsibilities
• Inform continuous improvement and ensure compliance with relevant regulatory requirements
Training for staff and students
Training takes place for both staff and students through formalised induction processes, staff development activity, and the Personal Development Curriculum for students. This covers safeguarding monitoring and reporting with a clear zero tolerance approach to harassment and sexual misconduct, along with reference to codes of conduct and appropriate professional behaviours.
The college ensures that students are introduced to safeguarding topics including harassment and sexual misconduct, healthy relationships, and consent as part of the Personal Development Curriculum.
The college monitors continuous achievement of 100% completion of mandatory safeguarding training for all staff, which includes annual refreshers and regular staff briefings.
Our mandatory Staff Development Week, supplemented by in-year updates for HE leads and tutors, ensures the entire team receives comprehensive and current training on freedom of speech principles and guidance on harassment and sexual misconduct, in line with UK legislation and best practices.
Support for those affected
College students can access support through their Personal Development Coach or Higher and Adult Education Support Coordinator, as well as receiving support and signposting to external support services via the Safeguarding Team based in the Wellbeing Hub. Tailored support plans will be individualised for each student depending on their circumstances. This includes support for alleged perpetrators.
As part of our commitment to creating a safe and respectful environment, Chesterfield College supports the Enough Said Pledge, reinforcing our collective responsibility to challenge inappropriate behaviour and uphold a culture of respect and safety for all.
Reporting incidents
Students can raise their concerns regarding any incidents of alleged harassment or sexual misconduct through any member of staff or by contacting the safeguarding team directly via the link here . All staff are trained to recognise harassment and sexual misconduct as a safeguarding concern and are required to utilise a dedicated safeguarding reporting system to log those concerns with the Safeguarding Team.
Dedicated safeguarding pages are included on the college website, which signpost students to appropriate reporting of concerns and to other external support organisations.
Handling information
The college:
- Collects information sensitively and treats it with appropriate confidentiality
- Handles information according to data protection legislation
- Makes sure that students understand how information they disclose may be used by displaying appropriate privacy notices.
Investigating incidents
Where a safeguarding concern is considered to be a potential breach of the law, this would be reported to the Police, who would carry out any appropriate investigations.
Any student misconduct/gross misconduct is defined within the college Student and Apprentice Disciplinary Policy and dealt with in line with the associated procedures, including any formal investigations and disciplinary hearings.
Any staff misconduct/gross misconduct is defined within the college Staff Disciplinary Policy and dealt with in line with the associated procedures, including any formal investigations and disciplinary hearings. Any misconduct perceived to be of a safeguarding nature is reported to the Local Authority Designated Officer.
Communications
The college has a comprehensive source of information published on the website in relation to harassment and sexual misconduct. This can be easily accessed via the Safeguarding pages of the website.
The page clearly outlines the college statement in respect of dealing with harassment and sexual misconduct, with staff and students signposted to this and the further information available through induction, Personal Development Curriculum and staff training/briefings.
Our values
We treat everyone with respect
We believe in treating every individual we encounter with the dignity and respect they deserve.
We’re an inclusive college
We foster an environment where everyone feels welcomed, valued, and empowered to thrive.
We operate with integrity
Upholding honesty and staying true to our core values which guide our actions.
Your wellbeing is our priority
Prioritising the wellbeing of both our students and our team members to enable them to enjoy their experience and flourish.
Mental Health and Wellbeing
We understand just how important mental health and well-being are and the impact this can have on our daily lives.
Abuse prevention
We are committed to identifying and addressing abuse in the appropriate way, working with sensitivity for the victim and in coordination with local services.
Supporting our people
Our whole Safeguarding Team and every member of staff here at Chesterfield College is here to support you or point you in the right direction to receive the best support available.
Human Rights Protection
Not only do we educate students in tutorial on these key safeguarding themes and terms, we also have members of staff who are trained to give students the appropriate support they need if they are facing any of these issues.