JESS awarded safeguarding alliance standard

 #CARE   #INTEGRITY 

02/10/2019

JESS Dubai has become the first school in the UAE to be awarded the Safeguarding Alliance Standard which is the benchmark for outstanding practice in safeguarding excellence.

Safeguarding at schools is of paramount importance and The Safeguarding Alliance has established its Safeguarding Alliance Standard as an inspection and regulatory framework and best practice audit tool to set the benchmark for Safeguarding excellence for any organisation working with children or young people both nationally and internationally.

Achieving the Standard ensures that an organisation can demonstrate safeguarding excellence and that customers, parents and carers can be confident that safeguarding is given the highest priority.

Shane O’Brien, Director of JESS Dubai said, “Safeguarding is a way of life for JESS staff, we have a duty of care to ensure the safety and well-being of our students and staff. Putting our school forward for this standard and undertaking the rigorous audit was imperative for us as we continue to prioritise safeguarding. The audit was a very useful process to highlight areas of excellence and I hope other UAE schools will follow our lead and adopt this standard.”

Emily Konstantas, CEO of the Safeguarding Alliance led the Audit and explained the results.

‘JESS School clearly identified that Safeguarding is at the heart of the organisational ethos. It was evident that Safeguarding remains the ‘Golden Thread’ and a full-time commitment in both operational and strategic practice. JESS drives a controlled and consistent culture of safeguarding excellence throughout the School community. This enables both pupils and staff to thrive in a safe environment.”

“The Audit encompassed all aspects of the JESS community with interviews of staff, students and parents. Feedback was very positive, with students unanimously agreeing that the pastoral care received at JESS provides them with the care needed to excel in other areas of their academic and personal lives. Equally, parents and carers were highly supportive of the School and spoke very highly of JESS’s caring and nurturing ethos and praised the support their children receive in both their academic and personal development.”

The Safeguarding Alliance Standard has been designed to support the School to ensure that Safeguarding is fully embedded in all aspects of both operational and strategic practice. This is achieved through benchmarking against best practice within 6 core areas:•