The Wellbeing Hub
What is Safeguarding?
Safeguarding children is the action we take to promote the welfare of children and protect them from harm. Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is defined in ‘Working Together to Safeguard Children. A guide to inter-agency working to safeguard and promote the welfare of children as :
- protecting children from maltreatment;
- preventing impairment of children’s health and development;
- ensuring that children grow up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care; and
- taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes.
Our students’ welfare is our paramount concern. Buckswood will ensure that our school will safeguard and promote the welfare of all our students and work together with other agencies to ensure that our educational establishments have adequate arrangements to identify, assess and support those children who are suffering or likely to suffer harm.
Our Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy is available on our Policies section.
Buckswood School ensures that its students are safe, emotionally secure and stimulated. Our students needs are integral to everything we do. It is our desire that all of our students form open, harmonious and trusting relationships that enable them to express their feelings and opinions. Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is everyone’s responsibility.
Our Wellbeing Hub is based in the heart of the school and is there for any child or staff as a resource base and if they need support in any way. ISI recently praised the safeguarding at the school, observing that “Leaders and staff actively promote a vigilant culture of safeguarding and implement procedures effectively.”
The Wellbeing Team is comprised of:
Designated Safeguarding Lead
Mr Steven Pittman, who can be contacted by email : dsl@buckswood.co.uk or on 01424 813813 x212
Safeguarding Officer
Chloe Street, who can be contacted by email : safeguardingofficer@buckswood.co.uk or on 01424 813813 x244
Other Deputy DSL’s are:
Gayle Gidman – Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead
Anthony Yan – Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead
Debbie Mentessi – Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead
Karen Green – Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead
Meet Our Pastoral Lead
Mr Steven Pittman — Deputy Principal Pastoral and Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL)
I am delighted to (re)introduce myself to the Buckswood community as Deputy Principal Pastoral and Designated Safeguarding Lead.
Having worked here previously in safeguarding, I am proud to return to a school I know well — one with a strong sense of community, care, and ambition for every child.
Before returning to Buckswood, I spent over 20 years in policing and leadership, specialising in safeguarding investigations, multi-agency collaboration, and professional training. These experiences have shaped my approach to pastoral care: child-centred, transparent, and rooted in partnership with families and professionals.
At Buckswood, my role is to ensure that every pupil feels safe, supported, and able to thrive. Safeguarding is not only about protecting children from harm, but also about building a culture of openness, wellbeing, and respect that extends across classrooms, boarding houses, and beyond.
Some of the initiatives we are embedding this year include:
Wellbeing Wheels in boarding — regular check-ins with pupils to spot worries early.
Low-Level Concern reporting — ensuring even the smallest concerns are logged and acted on.
Half-termly Pastoral Newsletters — keeping parents informed and connected.
Regular blogs and updates — linking safeguarding guidance (KCSIE 2025) with practical advice for families.
I firmly believe that safeguarding and wellbeing are the responsibility of the whole school community — staff, parents, and pupils alike. My door is always open, and I encourage parents to reach out if they have any concerns, however small. Together, we can build on Buckswood’s strong pastoral foundations and ensure every child flourishes.
Warm regards,
Steven Pittman
The Buckswood Person
The School Support Mechanisms that help and encourage each student.
Attendance Matters!
Excellent attendance at school allows a young person to have the best possible start in life.
There are lots of reasons why young people should attend school:
- To learn
- To build confidence and self-esteem
- To understand responsibility
- To develop new skills
- To grow as individuals
- To gain qualifications
- To make new friends, have fun and develop life and social skills
- To develop awareness of other cultures
At Buckswood School we expect all students to attend every day when the school is in session so long as they are fit and healthy enough to do so. Absenteeism not only affects the continuity of a student’s education, causing extra effort on the part of teacher and student to catch up on missed work, but also risks underachievement for the student.
Our aim at Buckswood School is to:
- Ensure that students are made aware that regular attendance at school is essential to their learning and attainment so that they perform successfully in all areas of school life.
- Maintain an attendance of at least 95%.
- Establish attendance and punctuality monitoring procedures which are understood by all students, staff and parents/carers.
- Establish procedures to raise overall attendance and punctuality and to acknowledge those students who attain 100% attendance each term.
- Support students who are experiencing genuine difficulties in attending school.
Parents will have access to monitor their child’s attendance record via the SIM’s parent app. If you do not have access to this please contact the ICT manager on ict@buckswood.co.uk
Please take time to read the following documents:
Attendance Procedures
Unplanned Absence or Sickness
Please call the Absence Line on 01424 815915 if your child is unwell and unable to come to school before 08:45. This is a 24-hour answering service. Or alternatively please email the Attendance Officer on attendance@buckswood.co.uk
Is my child too ill for school? – Please see the NHS Guidance for parents and carers https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/is-my-child-too-ill-for-school/
Planned Absence
Please complete an Absence Form for any planned absence, this includes medical appointments, sporting activities, university visits or any other absence that is not sickness. PLEASE NOTE THAT HOLIDAYS ARE NOT PERMITTED TO BE TAKEN DURING TERM TIME.
The link to the form is here, it is available on the school website under ‘Useful Forms’.
https://www.buckswood.co.uk/permissions-forms/leave-of-absence-from-school/
Attendance Queries
If you have any questions or queries about your child’s attendance record please contact the Attendance Officer on attendance@buckswood.co.uk
Improving attendance is everyone’s business. We appreciate that barriers to accessing education are wide and complex, both within and beyond the school gates. At Buckswood we offer a safe, and supportive environment where we hope our students will want to attend and be keen and ready to learn.
We appreciate that some pupils find it harder than others to attend school and therefore are happy to work with our students and their families to support any needs that our students may have which may impact their attendance by building strong and trusting relationships and working together to put the right support in place.
Other Useful Information
Please see the Government Guidance from the Education Hub on how to Improve your Child’s Attendance and where to get support if needed.
https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2024/01/03/improving-school-attendance/
Guidance for Parents on School Attendance from the Children’s Commissioner
Members of the Attendance Action Alliance have worked with the Department for Education to develop this short guide which helps parents understand how they can work with their school to support their child to attend school and get the right support.
