Dear Parents, Carers and Students,

Security reminder
A student at Hurstmere school was approached by an adult after school on Monday 10th November. The incident was reported to police. We would like to remind all parents and carers to continue to be vigilant around the arrangements for children travelling to and from school without adult supervision. As always, concerns can be reported to the police on 111 (999 in case of emergencies).

Remembrance
In the week beginning 3^rd November we held our school remembrance assemblies. This was followed by the two minutes silence on 11^th November.  The focus of the assemblies was the 80 years since the end of World War II and the stories of individuals involved, read by our school senior officers. The assemblies also included a parade of pupils involved in cadet and other organisations.

Attendance
There is wide agreement among health and educational professionals that school attendance is vital to the life chances of children and young people. Being in school improves their health, wellbeing, and socialisation throughout the life course. To gain the greatest benefits, it is essential that children and young people attend school regularly.

We understand that making the decision to keep your child at home is difficult. To ensure we accurately record attendance under DfE guidelines and provide appropriate safeguarding, we require a clear reason for illness when reporting an absence.

To authorise an absence, please provide a specific symptom (e.g., "high temperature," "vomiting," or "severe sore throat") that prevents your child from attending school. Unfortunately, simply stating your child is "unwell" is not sufficient for an absence to be formally authorised.

As a general guideline, it is usually appropriate for parents and carers to send children to school with mild respiratory illnesses. This includes general cold symptoms like a minor cough, runny nose, or sore throat. However, children should not be sent to school if they have a temperature of 38°C or above.  We strongly encourage you to utilise the NHS guidance 'Is My Child too Ill for School?' available here: https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/is-my-child-too-ill-for-school/

Operation Encompass
We understand that difficult times can affect families, and we want to ensure all members of our school community know where to find support. Experiencing domestic abuse can have a serious, long-lasting emotional and psychological impact on young people. As a school, the safety and well-being of our students is our highest priority. To help protect our students, our school is signed up to Operation Encompass in partnership with the Metropolitan Police as communicated in October.

What this means: Operation Encompass is a scheme that ensures the school's Designated Safeguarding Lead is informed if a young person has been present at an incident of domestic abuse attended by the police. This allows us to offer appropriate and timely support tailored to the child's needs. We have attached an infographic on power and control relating to domestic abuse awareness and education. This resource is based on the 'Duluth Model', which is a well-established intervention program used to combat domestic abuse within communities.

Should your family require support or advice regarding domestic abuse, please do not hesitate to reach out to the school safeguarding team. We are here to listen and help connect you with specialist services.

Our safeguarding contact details are: Safeguarding email - safeguarding@townleygrammar.org.uk - which is monitored by our team of safeguarding leads, although not 24/7.

Safeguarding phone number: 020 3884 1777 please be aware that it is not monitored 24/7. Further information relating to the safeguarding services and policies is available here.

If a child is in immediate danger, you should always call 999. For external support services, the following organisations offer free, confidential, and specialist support:

• Bright Sky App
  • A free-to-download mobile app and website providing information and support for anyone who may be in an abusive relationship or concerned about someone they know.
  • Web address: https://uk.bright-sky.org/en
  • Apple store: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/bright-sky/id1105880511
  • Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.newtonmobile.hestia
• Solace Women's Aid
  • Offer specialist advice and support, including help in assessing risk, reviewing support options, and developing a safety plan.
  • Phone: 0808 802 5565
  • Website: https://www.solacewomensaid.org/

Online Safety

• It is really important to communicate with your children regularly about staying safe online. Not sure where to begin? These conversation starter suggestions from the UK Safer Internet Centre can help:
• Ask your children to tell you about the sites they like to visit and what they enjoy doing online
• What games do you and your friends like to play online? Can you show me the websites you visit the most?
• Shall we play your favourite game online together?
• Ask them about how they stay safe online
• What tips do they have for you, and where did they learn them? What is OK and not OK to share?
• Think about how you each use the internet
• What more could you do to use the internet together? Are there activities that you could enjoy as a family?
• Ask them if they know where to go for help
• Where can they go to find the safety advice, privacy settings and how to report or block on the services they use?

Apps and platforms safety hub: We recommend exploring ParentSafe here, a valuable resource from LGfL providing guidance and practical advice for keeping your children safe online and in their daily lives.  Find expert advice and guidance on the latest apps and platforms children and young people use at InternetMatters.org.

Picture Removal:

• Report Remove | Childline  - If you are worried about a nude or sexual image or video of you that has been shared online, Childline can also help you to report it via the Report Remove tool. Visit www.childline.org.uk/remove to make a confidential report to the IWF (Internet Watch Foundation) and see if your image can be taken down.

• Take it down  - You can also use Take It Down, a tool provided by the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), to help you anonymously remove nudes or semi-nudes that you believe have been or could be shared online. You can use this even if you aren’t sure whether an image has been shared.
• Internet Watch Foundation - Anonymously report suspected child sexual abuse images or videos

Harmful Content:

• Report Harmful Content - If you've experienced or witnessed harm online Report Harmful Content can help. Report Harmful Content can help you to report harmful content online by providing up to date information on community standards and direct links to the correct reporting facilities across multiple platforms

Bexley Family Hub
Please see the attached flyer for details of a coffee morning, focusing on behaviour, taking place on Thursday 27^th November, 10am – 12pm.  Information on the venue is attached and all parents are welcome.

Kind regards

Miss S Totty
Interim Headteacher