Personal Safety refers not only to a person’s physical safety, but also to emotional and psychological protection. Therefore, this includes the freedom from concern about any form of victimisation. The core theme of Personal Safety is an umbrella term which incorporates several interlinking subjects including lone working, violence and aggression, harassment and bullying, domestic abuse, hate crime, stalking (including digital stalking) and social media safety.
You and your staff’s personal safety should be considered as part of the risk assessments carried out on your role, task and work activity. It should be considered when driving or travelling for work, visiting children and parents at home or in the community, when dealing with members of the public either face to face or over the telephone, when working away from your usual school, even using social media – in fact everything you do. Personal safety is not just a lone working issue.
Please see the guidance document entitled ‘Personal Safety – Schools’ Information’ as below. It has a range of topics within it, including training for personal safety, advice lines and websites and information on purchasing personal safety devices.
Please do not forget to add this topic to your risk assessment portfolio!
The DfE have published an updated version of the guidance called ‘Advice on School Security – Access to, and barring individuals from school property – DfE guidance’ which is now a web based document called ‘Controlling access to school premises’. This can be found here: Controlling access to school premises – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
As usual – any questions, contact Nina at [email protected]
You may also find the information at this link useful: School and college security – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)