The Safer School Policy Statement

Adopted by Market Drayton Junior School

“The school has recognised the link between a successful school, pupil contentment, parent satisfaction, community involvement and the implementation of an effective risk management system.

Through the risk management system the school intends to establish the safety and security of staff, pupils and their property as a priority. This will be achieved by monitoring activity in and around school in a structured manner. Stakeholders in the school will be fully conversant with the system and will be actively encouraged to make constructive contributions.

The school will undertake to reduce levels of anti-social and/or criminal activity through the accurate recording of incidents with specific details and locations: this will allow preventative actions to be taken in conjunction with all stakeholders.

The school has committed to developing systems which will enable staff and pupils to concentrate on the process of education, secure in the knowledge that the environment in which they are working is as safe as possible”

Safer Schools Survey

West Mercia Police and Shropshire Council support our school with the Safer School initiative. We are an accredited 'Safer School' and proud of our Safer School sign and certificate. The accreditation is reviewed every two years.

The initiative is a holistic, practical and realistic approach to school security and personal safety. It gives our school a clear focus on the subject and turns a negative subject into a positive one. It sets a minimum standard for school security.

The essential elements of the 'Safer School' process include: -

1. Implementing a security policy that the governors have adopted.

2. Consulting parents/carers and pupils/students for their views and updating them on any progress.

3. Publicity of Safer Schools to school staff, pupils, school neighbours, parents and prospective parents.

4. Establishing a Safer School Group. This Safer School Group is a partnership of school stakeholders – Headteacher/Deputy, staff, governors, parents, pupils, neighbours, Shropshire Council and West Mercia Police.

5. Regularly reviewing and implementing good practice and essential security/safety measures for staff, pupils, the site and assets.

6. Educating pupils through the Personal, Social, Health and Economic curriculum programme or the Safer School folder.

7. A daily procedure for recording incidents should they occur i.e. trespass, burglary, theft, anti-social behaviour, vandalism, arson, suspicious activity etc., both during school hours and out-of hours.

Results of the Safer School Survey 2022

Thank you very much to everyone who undertook the survey again this year. The results are as follows:

Safer School Meeting 2022

Thank you to everyone who completed the survey.  We received 35 responses this year and the results were overwhelmingly positive as you can see above.

The written comments we received were again very helpful and were discussed at our Safer School meeting on Wednesday 25th May.

Ian Bartlett, Crime Prevention Officer for Shropshire Council, sent us this statement after our meeting in 2021:

The involvement of Market Drayton Junior School with the Safer School initiative is excellent. Mrs Scott, with the support of Miss Brayne, recently held a Safer School meeting at the school and it was attended by governors, staff, the Police and myself, representing Shropshire Council. A thorough meeting, covering all aspects of the security/safety process. This included a pro-active approach to security/safety, reflecting on any school issues and planning for the future. The work during the year and in preparation for the meeting was exceptionally good. The main discussion during the meeting was the highway outside the school. Overall, an excellent example of Safer School involvement and a future meeting is scheduled for Summer 2022. Congratulations to the school on maintaining the Safer School accreditation and the school received an updated certificate.