Question about safeguarding?

[insanityscratching]

I've had an email from dd's school from the person responsible for safeguarding. The SENCo had initially forwarded her my parental contribution for dd's Annual Review claiming that the school had not been made aware previously that dd was self harming. The email was an accusatory one implying that I had been somewhat negligent keeping this from the school

Obviously I was able to forward the email that I had sent to SENCo that she replied to and a copy of the communication book where I had also informed the school proving that the SENCo had most definitely been made aware more than a month previously.

So my question is this, if the SENCo didn't act on the communication and refer it to the person responsible for safeguarding can I raise it as a breech of safeguarding at the Annual Review?

It's going to be a messy one anyway as currently the school are putting more effort into covering their backs than they have put into providing the support in her statement and seeing as the whole gamut are now attending I figure I may as well get everything out there.

I would start by saying this could just be that the SENCO forgot that this email had been passed onto the person responsible for safeguarding, so they did do what was necessary.
However from the tone of your email I get the impression that this is not the only issue you have with the school.
If the SENCO did not pass on the disclosure about self harming to the responsible person, who I would expect to be either the head teacher or a deputy head depending on the size of the school, then that is a failure of process. What that means is that relevant school staff were not apparently alert to the possibility of self harming with your child. Given that you have clearly signed posted the issue to more than just the school I am not sure it constitutes a breech of safeguarding in the context of failing to pass on a disclosure.
What it does say about the school is that they are very lax in their paperwork and in how they are responding to need. It needs to be a warning to them that they have not got a system that works and that they need to do something about it.
Having said that the subject of self harming will have to be aired and you should be questioning whether the school system does work correctly. The need for appropriate safeguarding easily trumps the blushes of the school in this situation.

Thank you as you have rightly guessed there are many issues not least being that the SENCo is somewhat lax and some of the TA's seem to know it and take liberties shall we say.
I have already had a formal complaint found in my favour when a TA invented concerns and attributed them to me and raised them with a teacher. It was easy to prove that the TA had invented them especially as she documented them in the liaison book. The SENCo dismissed my complaint and I was forced to raise it with the HT.
The reason I'm infuriated is that the SENCo denied knowledge of the email when in fact she replied to it, not to address the self harm but to reprimand me for criticising the TA's lack of support which ensured dd came home bleeding.
I intend to raise the lack of care shown to dd and think that the SENCO's failure to alert the person responsible for safeguarding for more than six weeks reflects this.

Should perhaps clarify that the communication book is to provide the link between home and school. I alert school to anything they need to know and the TA's /teachers/ SENCo are supposed to do likewise.
In the communication book I alerted them to dd's self harm and advised that it was to be seen as a cue that her anxiety was overwhelming and advised on how they could help dd.
What should happen, but didn't/ hasn't is that the TA's are supposed to raise anything significant with the relevant teacher or SENCo. My email direct to the SENCo was a mopping up measure.

It seems that I won't have to raise anything after all as the assistant HT emailed today to say that she will be investigating matters raised as a result of my email so maybe now the Learning Support department will be put under scrutiny. It's gutting to think that until the concern that I might raise questions about safeguarding at the Annual Review the SENCo and TA's were not challenged on the inadequate support and poor communication despite my many emails of complaint. But at least now I am hopeful that there won't be the denials and stonewalling I've experienced previously and I can have a go at securing proper support for dd.

well done op. let's hope the investigation is fruitful, rather than just leading to more covering-up.