Safety In School: 10 Things Every Parent Needs to Check With Their Child’s School

With vacations coming to an end, safety in school is an issue on every parent’s mind. Below are a few helpful indicators that you can check up on. If the school ticks every box, rest assured, your child is in safe hands. If it doesn’t, you can ask the school to put these systems in place.

Your child’s safety is in your hands. You can make the difference.

The Safety Checklist

Does the School:

Conduct Background check & police verification for all staff members including contract employees.

 Have a full time counselor instituted within the school.

 Have a Child Protection Committee and Officer. Children must also be part of the Committee.

 Have a Comprehensive Child Protection Policy that is Prominently Displayed.

 Regularly train all staff members in child protection and child sexual abuse prevention.

Take monthly sessions on personal safety with all children (this includes talking about body parts, online safety, protection etc).

 Engage in active dialogue with parents and help ensure that parents are aware of the issues faced by children.

 Have a strong system in place for taking swift action and reporting cases of sexual abuse.

Have a list of Organizations and Support persons who can help the school handle cases of sexual abuse.

 Keep the best interests of the child in mind at all times.