26 September, 2024

BIS Hanoi launches a Student Safeguarding Team to empower students in child protection

Last week, our newly formed student safeguarding team got together for the first time to discuss what their important roles are going to be this year in order to increase the support to our students at BIS Hanoi.

The team, established earlier this month, aims to raise awareness of safeguarding and child protection by empowering students to recognise potential concerns and know how to refer and report them.

During this level 1 safeguarding training, led by Mr Wright (Head of Year 9) who formed this team, alongside Ms Byron (Head of Year 8) and Mr Greenwood, our counsellor, our students - over 60 in total, gathered together to learn more about the fundamentals of safeguarding. The students are made up of new tutor representatives, previous tutor representatives who volunteered back in June to be part of this new team, or current mental health champions, and therefore we have a huge breadth of students from Years 7-13.

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The training covered topics such as the difference between safeguarding and child protection, the importance of confidentiality, how to react and manage oneself during a disclosure, asking useful follow-up open questions, and how to report to an adult in school. Students were also introduced to a new referral form, which they and all students can use to make a disclosure, either for themselves or their peers.

Following the training, students are now more aware of what to look out for in classrooms, corridors, and general conversations that may raise concerns. They will receive further training later in the year and will be awarded certificates as part of their commitment to safeguarding the school community.