Safeguarding at MVC
At Melbourn Village College we are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of our young people. Safeguarding is the responsibility of every member of staff regardless of their role at the school.
To achieve this, we ensure that there is regular safeguarding training for staff, continuous development and improvement of our robust safeguarding processes and procedures and a pastoral curriculum that promotes a culture of safety and safeguarding within our school.
All staff undertake a full enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check before starting work at the school and all volunteers, external services and alternative providers undergo rigorous checks to ensure that they are appropriate to work with our children.
If you have a safeguarding concern you can email the safeguarding team using safeguarding@melbournvc.org This is a dedicated safeguarding inbox which is monitored closely by our Safeguarding Team. All concerns will be acknowledged within 48 working hours.
All safeguarding concerns that are raised in school or via the email address are logged on MyConcern. MyConcern is a leading safeguarding management system and is used by all CAM Academy Trust schools.
If you would prefer to discuss a safeguarding issue, or want to know more about the services below, please use the following contact details –
- Mrs Edwards – Designated Safeguarding Lead – 01763 223400 / hedwards@melbournvc.org
- Mrs Deadman – Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead – 01763 223400 / cdeadman@melbournvc.org
In addition to the Designated Safeguarding Lead and Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead there are a team of additional staff who have undertaken DSL training or enhanced safeguarding training who ensure that issues are dealt with quickly and effectively and students supported.
If you are concerned about a child and want to report your worries but school is closed, or you don’t feel comfortable reporting the problem to the school, please use the online reporting form that can be found HERE. These reports will be dealt with by the Cambridgeshire children’s social care team rather than the school safeguarding team.
If you consider the incident to be an emergency, call 999.
If you see something or hear something that doesn’t feel right – say something.
- Social withdrawal or isolation
- Mood changes or challenging behaviour
- Increased or unusual internet use
- New friends or changes in appearance
- Loss of interest in usual activities
- Following extremist content online
- Resentment toward authority or “us vs them” thinking
- Secretive behaviour
- Inappropriate or scripted speech
- Intolerance of others’ views
We all play a part in protecting young people from harm. Recognising when extreme views become dangerous isn’t always easy, but early action can prevent individuals from being groomed or exploited by extremists.
Prevent Officers, trained by police forces nationwide, work with schools through the Home Office’s Prevent programme to support those vulnerable to radicalisation. Friends, family, and staff are often the first to notice concerns — trust your instincts.
If you are worried about a student at Melbourn Village College, contact our Prevent Lead, Mrs H Edwards, at safeguarding@melbournvc.org.
For urgent concerns, call 101, or in an emergency, dial 999.