Title

Child Safeguarding Policy

Document ID
and Location

Policy 1.0

Version

1.3

Prepared byMichelle Rutter – DesignatedSafeguard Lead

Date

22/08/2022

Kyle Morgan Thomas –Deputy Head of School

Date

22/08/2022

Malcolm Mckenzie –Head of SchoolDate

04/11/2022

Safeguarding team – DesignatedSafeguard Lead

Next
Review By

2022/08/02(Name – Title)
Reviewed by(Name – Title)

Approved by(Name – Title)
Review by(Name – Title)

Reviewed on

Amended2022/08/02 by Michelle Rutter
2021/08/01 by Laura Earwood
2020/01/01 by Laura Earwood

2023/03/24 by Michelle Rutter
2024/07/30 by Michelle Rutter

Content
Content
1. Purpose
2. Introduction
3.Definitions and Responsibilities
3.1 Definitions
3.2. Roles
4. Best Practices
4.1 Safe Recruitment and Employment Practices
4.2 School Visitors
4.3 Induction and Training of Staff/faculty
4.4 Contextual Safeguarding
4.5 Young Children on campus
4.6 Promoting awareness of safeguarding issues
4.7 Support to students
5. Peer on peer abuse
6. Managing Safeguarding allegations
6.1 Action following a report of Safeguarding issue
6.2 Options to manage the report of abuse
6.2.1.Manage internally
6.2.2. Reporting to the Police
6.2.3. The need for immediate action
6.3 Types of allegations
6.3.1.Allegations against students
6.3.2. Allegations or concerns about School Staff/faculty
6.3.3. Historical allegations

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1. Purpose
UWC ISAK Japan expects all individuals and groups affiliated with the school community to act
with integrity and to take responsibility for keeping students safe. Whether a student, staff/faculty
member, a service or activity partner, a volunteer, recent alumni, contractor, guest, parent or visitor,
it is our expectation that all will support our students and act with their wellbeing in mind at all
times. This policy guides how we do so.

ScopeThis policy applies to all students of the School (even if they are legally adults) as well as any
children living on or visiting the School.

Policy Statement
Keeping children safe is everyone’s responsibility at UWC ISAK Japan. In keeping with the mission
and values of the UWC movement, we believe that every child and young person, regardless ofage, has at all times and in all situations a right to feel safe and protected.
We are committed to safeguarding processes which include
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protecting students from abuse and neglect,preventing risk of harm to children’s health or development, andensuring children grow up with the provision of safe and supportive care

Introduction

At UWC ISAK JAPAN we expect our community to be honest and act with integrity; to becompassionate and morally responsible; and to help other people. We believe that every child andyoung person, regardless of age, has at all times and in all situations a right to feel safe andprotected. UWC ISAK Japan expects all individuals and groups affiliated with the school community
to act with integrity and to take responsibility for keeping students safe.
We know that learners need a secure and supported environment in which to learn and oursafeguarding policies and procedures are designed to do so. They encompass: student wellbeing;bullying; harassment and discrimination; use of physical intervention / safe handling; meeting theindividual physical, psychological or medical needs of students; drug and substance misuse;educational visits; relationships and sexuality education; online safety; the welfare of residential
students and learners on school expeditions; as well as safe staff/faculty selection processes.
The UWC ISAK Japan Child Safeguarding Policy is aligned with the UWC Safeguarding Standards
and the recommendations of the International Task Force on Child Protection that has set thestandards for safeguarding in schools worldwide.
The aim of the safeguarding approach as set out in this document is for the risk to be reduced as far
as reasonably possible, in a manner consistent with the educational objectives of the UWC
Movement (of personal trust and responsibility, student autonomy, independence and service aswell as personal warmth, which are essential to a UWC education).
This policy is binding for all who have contact with the school community, including staff/faculty,
service and activity partners, volunteers, associated agencies, recent alumni, contractors, guests,
parents and visitors. In keeping with this expectation, applicants for positions at the School must be
willing to undergo child protection screening appropriate to the post, including checks with past
employers.

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Safeguarding is not a task that falls on some individuals. All members of our School community
have a duty to safeguard our students and be aware that incidents can happen at any time andanywhere.
Any such policy is only as good as all community members who operate it and who are likely to
become aware of issues. At UWC ISAK Japan we expect all community members to take every
opportunity to share concerns in the interests of students. Early recognition of potential problems isof the essence, as prevention is better than cure.
This policy is connected to the following:a) Handbooks● Faculty● Staff● (All) Employee Guidelinesb) Community Agreementsc) Candidate Recruitment Policy and Proceduresd) Peer on Peer Abuse Policye) Parent/guardian Engagement Protocolf) Guest Policy
These policies together form the “suite” of UWC ISAK JAPAN Child Safeguarding Policies and need
to be available to the members of our community via our website. They are reviewed annually andpresented to the Board for approval.
3.Definitions and Responsibilities
3.1 Definitions
The following definitions are provided to ensure clarity and consistency:

Child
While the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child defines a child as persons under theage of 18 years, at UWC ISAK JAPAN, we define child as any student of the School, or child visitor
to the school. We recognise that some members of our school community are more vulnerable thanothers due to their personal circumstances. We need to remember that there are children bothresident on and who visit the campus. All the processes established to protect students must be
applied equally to younger children who are, in some ways, even more vulnerable.

Safeguarding
Is not just about protecting students from deliberate harm. It is linked to welfare and is what we dofor all children. Safeguarding involves the process of protecting children from abuse and neglect,preventing harm to children’s health or development, ensuring children grow up with the provision ofsafe and effective care.
Child protection
Is part of the safeguarding process. It focuses on protecting individual children where there areconcerns about abuse or neglect. This includes child protection procedures which detail how to
respond to concerns about a child.

Child abuse3Is a serious and complex problem that may occur in the lives of children and young people. It is theterm used to describe different types of maltreatment inflicted on a child or young person. Child
Abuse includes non-accidental physical injury, neglect, sexual abuse and emotional or psychologicalabuse. In its most serious forms, abuse can lead to death or developmental harm to the physical oremotional wellbeing of a child or young person.
Peer-on-peer abuse
While often associated with adults, we need to remember that children can commit abuse on theirown peers.
Physical abuse
Physical abuse may involve hitting, shaking, throwing, poisoning, burning or scalding, drowning,
suffocating or otherwise causing physical harm to a child. Physical harm may also be caused whena parent or carer fabricates the symptoms of, or deliberately induces, illness in a child.
Emotional abuse
Emotional abuse is the persistent emotional maltreatment of a child such as to cause severe andadverse effects on the child’s emotional development. It may involve:
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conveying to a child that they are worthless or unloved, inadequate, or valued insofar as theymeet the needs of another person.
not giving the child opportunities to express their views, deliberately silencing them or“making fun” of what they say or how they communicate.
It may feature age or developmentally inappropriate expectations being imposed on children.
These may include interactions that are beyond a child’s developmental capability as well as
overprotection and limitation of exploration and learning, or preventing the child fromparticipating in normal social interaction.
It may involve seeing or hearing the ill-treatment of anotherIt may involve serious bullying (including cyberbullying) causing children frequently to feelfrightened or in danger, or the exploitation or corruption of children.

Some level of emotional abuse is involved in all types of maltreatment of a child, although it may
occur alone.
Sexual abuse
Sexual abuse involves forcing or enticing a child to participate in sexual activities whether the childis aware or not of what is happening. Minors/children/students cannot consent to any sexual actions
with adults even if they appear to do so. It does not necessarily involve a high level of violence.
The activities may involve physical contact, including assault by penetration (for example rape ororal sex) or non-penetrative acts (such as masturbation, kissing, rubbing and touching outside ofclothing). They may also include non-contact activities such as encouraging children to behave insexually inappropriate ways or grooming a child in preparation for abuse, whether online or offline.
Sexual abuse is not solely perpetrated by adult males, women can also commit acts of sexual
abuse, as can other children (peer-on-peer).

Neglect
Neglect is the persistent failure to meet a child’s basic and/or physical needs, likely to result inserious impairment of the child's health or development. Neglect may also occur during pregnancy
as a result of maternal substance abuse. Once a child is born, neglect may involve a parent or carer
failing to:

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provide adequate food, clothing and shelter (including exclusion from home or
abandonment);
protect a child from physical and emotional harm or danger;
ensure adequate supervision (including the use of inadequate care-givers);
ensure access to appropriate medical care treatment;
being unresponsive to a child’s basic emotional needs.

3.2. RolesThe following individuals have safeguarding-specific roles.
Nominated Safeguarding Board Member Lin Kobayashi
The Board as part of their due diligence, will carry out an annual review of the safeguarding policy
and procedures are part of this review. The Board is responsible for:
1. Reviewing the procedures for and the efficiency with which safeguarding duties have beendischarged. It is not sufficient that there is a Child Safeguard Policy and the NominatedSafeguarding Lead Board Member shall satisfy themselves if it is being applied in practice.
2. Ensuring that any deficiencies or weaknesses in safeguarding arrangements are remedied
without delay.
3. Approving amendments to safeguarding arrangements in the light of the changing
regulations and/or recommended best practice.
The Safeguarding Board Member should be a person familiar with safeguarding issues and fully
aware of the importance of confidentiality in this connection. The DSL should, in consultation with theHead, keep the Safeguarding Board Member informed of any serious safeguarding issue that arises.
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Contact details: Email: safeguarding.committee@uwcisak.jp
Reports to the Chair of the Board
Responsibilities:
o Receives regular report - number and types of caseso Support the School Safeguarding Lead and Head of School with implementation of
the Safeguarding Policy
o Budget for any Child Safeguarding needs or requirements needs (i.e. training)o Oversee and hold the school accountable for carrying out Child Safeguarding Policy

Head of School, Arden Tyoschin●●●

Contact details: arden.tyoschin@uwcisak.jp
Reports to the Board
Responsibilities:o Initiate the creation of the School Child Safeguarding Committeeo Continue the process of adoption of the Child Safeguarding Policy.
o Provide resources for the annual Safeguarding budget.
o In conjunction with the board members, ensure the safeguarding policy is reviewed
annually for effectiveness and for compliance with latest legislation, or updated
sooner where necessary.
o Makes the decision on whether a community member should be asked to leave

5Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL), Michelle Rutter●

Contact details: Michelle.Rutter@uwcisak.jp●

Reports to the Head of School●

Responsibilities:
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Provides advice and support for staff/faculty on child welfare and safeguarding
Coordinates ‘support team’ following allegations or disclosures of abuse
Responds to disclosures of abuse
Maintains records ensuring confidential storage and transfer of information as
requiredManages the referral and support process
Keeps their line manager informed of all significant safeguarding matters
Raises matters of safeguarding matters generally
Supports the implementation of Japanese policies and procedures and liaising withJapanese Child Protection Services
Supports the implementation of the life skills curriculum around safeguarding andChild protection
Makes recommendations to the head of school, including if a community member
should be asked to leave

Deputy Designated Safeguarding (DDSL) Lead, Kyle Morgan Thomas and Mariana Muniz● Contact details: kylemorgan.thomas@uwcisak.jp and mariana.muniz@uwcisak.jp● Reports to the Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL)● Responsibilities:
o The Deputy DSL is appropriately trained to the same level as the DSL. In theabsence of the Designated Person, the Deputy carries out the functions
necessary to ensure the ongoing safety and protection of the students.
o In the event of a long-term absence of the DSL, the Deputy will assume all of thefunctions above.

Online Safety Lead, Rie Koido● Contact details: Rie.Koido@uwcisak.jp● Reports to the Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL)● Responsibilities:
o The Online Safety Lead provides advice and guidance on the online aspects ofsafeguarding and carries out the functions necessary to ensure the ongoingsafety and protection of the student

School Doctor, Dr. Ueno●●

Reports to Designated Safeguarding Lead
Responsibilities:o Member of Multi disciplinary team as needed

Multi-disciplinary Team●●

Reports to the Designated Safeguarding Lead. May involve the School Senior Doctor,
the school counsellors, house mentors, advisor, external support agencies or anyone
else as deemed necessary in the best interests of the child.
Responsibilities:

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To support any student affected and help the School deal with the issue in a
professional manner.
To inform Crisis management Team when needed7

4. Best Practices
Reporting concerns
Faculty and staff members should report concerns using MyConcern.
Those members of the community without access to MyConcern can report instances to:
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A trusted adult on campus who will communicate the concern to the safeguarding team
The Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) and Deputy Safeguarding Lead (DDSL)
safeguarding@uwcisak.jp,
The allegation or concern is in regards to the DSL or DDSL, in which case it should be
addressed to the Head of School.
If the allegation or concern is in regards to the Head of School, it should be addressed to
the Safeguarding Committee of the board at safeguarding.committee@uwcisak.jp.
If the allegation or concern is in regards to a board member (including members of the
Safeguarding Committee), it should be reported to the UWC international Officesafeguarding@uwc.org.

Visitors to UWC ISAK Japan are often struck by the familiarity and even closeness that exists
between many adults and students, which is part of the UWC spirit and which can improve thequality of living and learning in our community.
The use of first names between staff/faculty and students is accepted common practice. We seek
clarity of preferred names and pronunciation with all members of our School community. Somestudents and staff/faculty may initially experience discomfort with this and we show sensitivity tothis. When in doubt, seek consent.
With so many people living and working so far from home, an atmosphere of being acommunity/family is appreciated by many. This is the reason for the residential experience, offering
opportunities for living and learning together whether it is sharing an advisory meal, a Project Week
trip, a class, etcetera. At UWC you find fewer boundaries between students and adults than at manyother academic institutions. For this reason, we should be especially vigilant about appropriate
parameters and clearly agreed-upon forms of communication between adults and students. Whatfollows is a summary of guidance tips:
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One-to-one tutorials should always take place in full view of others. This would typicallybe in a room where a student and adult can be clearly seen through a window or open
door. Staff/faculty are strongly advised not to be in a room one-to-one with a student
unless necessary professional circumstances apply. If this situation does arise
staff/faculty are asked to inform the safeguarding via MyConcern.
Apart from House Mentors, staff/faculty should never conduct one-to-one tutorials or
meetings in their homes. Members of staff/faculty are, however, most welcome and to
invite groups of three or more students into their homes for scheduled activities (forexample, for advisory groups). House Mentors may well have students coming to seethem in their home individually, in which cases it is preferable to have a friend with themor to have another adult somewhere in their housing. It is accepted that this is notalways possible. If this situation does arise staff/faculty are asked to inform thesafeguarding team immediately and log it after on MyConcern .
Students should not be visiting staff/faculty accommodation after Check-In except incase of an emergency. Members of staff/faculty may not host students overnight.
Members of staff/faculty should be wary of conveying individual students in their cars. If
this situation does arise staff/faculty are asked to inform the log it on MyConcern.
Exceptions to this would apply to staff/faculty driving students in an emergency situation.

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Where physical contact is needed with individuals, they should do so only in full view ofothers and in accordance with their particular professional guidance and consent.
No inappropriate touching or unnecessary physical contact should be made withstudents. Whilst a friendly hug or tap on the shoulder in full view of others is acceptablewith consent, excessive handling, cuddling or kissing (for example) are not.
Staff/faculty members should never initiate hugs or physical contact (although they canreciprocate a hug) without first establishing consent with the student.
Staff/ faculty should remain professional at all times around students in both conduct
and speech. Adults should remain sensitive to any discomfort expressed verbally or
nonverbally by the student and discuss any concern with the safeguarding team.
Staff/faculty should never be alone with students in secluded areas unless they havebeen searching for the student.
Staff/faculty should never engage in rough, physical or sexually provocative games withstudents.
Sexually suggestive remarks should never be made by staff/faculty in the presence ofstudents.
Staff/faculty should never share sleeping accommodation with students (e.g. On ProjectWeek, OED trips). Unless under exceptional circumstances (e.g. medical need or mental
health need approved by DSL)
Unless there are exceptional, urgent circumstances, electronic communication withstudents should always be made via School systems (email, Hangouts, ManageBac
and so on). No member of staff/faculty and board should be connected with students via
social networks such as Facebook/ Linkedin/ Instagram until after the student has
graduated from UWC ISAK Japan.
If a member of staff/faculty feels that they may have overstepped that fine line between
good staff/faculty-student relationships and inappropriate behaviour (for example acomment that might be misconstrued), this should be reported to the DSL/DDSL assoon as possible.
For staff/faculty on residential duties or supervising trips, they should only enter student
bedrooms after having knocked on the door and announced their presence. At night
they should only enter student bedrooms when needed to conduct their duties,
including for disciplinary or safety reasons.
All staff should be aware of indicators, which may signal that children are at risk.
Unexplained gifts or new possessions could also indicate that children have been
approached by, or are involved with, individuals within an inappropriate relationship.

4.1 Safe Recruitment and Employment Practices
Refer to Recruitment policy and procedure
4.2 School Visitors
Refer to Guest policy
4.3 Induction and Training of Staff/faculty
Every member of the staff/faculty, including part-timers, voluntary, peripatetic and temporary
staff/faculty working in the School will receive appropriate induction training on their responsibilities
in being alert to the signs of abuse (including bullying) and neglect and on the procedures forrecording and referring any concerns to the DSL/DDSL. Therefore, training in safeguarding will bemandatory during the induction process and include:a) Reading a copy of this Policy and signing safeguard training Log via MyConcern.

9b) Ensuring that all staff/faculty are aware of the identity of the DSL and DDSL, how thecontact and in what cases should they be contacted.
c) Explaining the way in which disclosures and other student protection issues should be
addressed.
d) A promotion of the awareness of the need to be alert to any indication of safeguarding
issues and how to respond to them.
e) An introduction to the Staff/Faculty code of conduct in the Staff/Faculty Handbook.
f) Documented completed safeguarding course of the school’s choosing
4.4 Contextual Safeguarding
The school must be a safe place for all students. This covers all aspects of school Health & Safetyincluding fire safety and crisis management, medical concerns, resource use. Please also note thefollowing key points:
1. Doors should have clear glass windows, any film or blinds must still allow occupants to be visible
from outside the room. On occasions where the physical environment does not allow for this, themeeting should be declared/documented in advance and/or the door kept open. In circumstanceswhere privacy is important, such as counseling, the orientation of the room to the window should
provide for discretion without compromising safeguarding standards.
2. Bathrooms for adult use are available in the KAC office and the upper floor of Asama building and
TAC. Adults must not use the same bathrooms as students. In cases where it is necessary to entera student allocated bathroom, such as to attend to a behavioural or health and safety issue, leave
the door open and announce your reason for entering the space as a warning to other students
using the bathroom. Where possible in such situations avoid being alone.
3. If adults are in a one to one situation with students in a room, (e.g in boarding, on expeditions or
trips) ensure the door remains open, or move to a more public space where possible/appropriate.
4. Adults should avoid entering student bedrooms. For Residential Team members in cases where
entering the bedroom is necessary such as to attend to an unwell student or at check in when astudent has already gone to sleep, adults should knock on the door, state who you are and thereason for entering the room and ask for permission to enter. As best practice try to have anotherstudent with you so that you are not alone with a student while in their bedroom.
5. Adults should avoid entering the student houses after curfew. In cases where entering a student
house after curfew is necessary, adults should be accompanied where possible and should clearlystate the purpose of the visit before entering. For the residential team this may be necessary to carryout their duties checking on student wellbeing and behaviour.
6. Adults should not allow students into their homes for socialising. As a residential campus there
may be occasions where students enter faculty/staff housing e.g. advisory, small house session withhouse/duty mentor or emergencies etc, there should always be more than one student present. The
meeting should also be declared/documented in advance e.g. advisory time slot. In the event that ateacher finds themselves at home with one student they should immediately inform the DSL and log
on MyConcern.
7. Adults may take students off campus for events such as advisory outings, appointments etc. If
only one student is present they must sit in the backseat and the trip must be documented (e.g.
MyConcern)
8. Residential and facilities team will announce themselves when entering student houses. If a
student is inviting an adult into the house who is not on the residential or facilities teams (e.g.
parents, off campus faculty), they will seek permission from their house for the visitor in advance.

109. Off campus incidents that have an impact on on campus will be handled as per the safeguarding
policy4.5 Young Children on campus
As a boarding school there are many times where young children are on campus. This often
includes children of faculty and staff. Children should never be in student bedrooms and should only
be in student houses with the permission of the child's parents/guardians and permission from all
students residing in the house.

4.6 Promoting awareness of safeguarding issues
The School curriculum and pastoral programme are designed to foster the spiritual, moral, socialand cultural development of all our students. All residential/teaching faculty play a vital role in thisprocess, helping to ensure that all students relate well to one another and feel safe and comfortablewithin the School. We expect all the teaching and medical staff to lead by example and to play a fullpart in promoting an awareness that is appropriate to their age amongst all our students on issues
relating to health, safety and wellbeing.
All School staff/faculty have an important role in ensuring that students always adhere to thestandards of behaviour set out in the Community Agreements and in reinforcing our Peer on Peer
Abuse Policy. If there are concerns about a student which falls short of requiring action under thiscode, such concerns should be shared by contacting the student support team directly
support.team@uwcisak.jp. The DSL must consider ways in which to ensure that the students areaware of ways in which they should report any matter that causes them concern. This should include
ensuring that the issue is addressed regularly during student meetings and may include the use ofdifferent resources (online and offline) to ensure students know that any safeguarding issue is always
treated seriously.

4.7 Support to students
The School supports students in the following ways:
1. Employment of two full-time Counsellors who are qualified. An on-call counsellor isavailable 24/7 in case of emergencies, the counsellor can be contacted via the on duty
residential team.
2. Training is provided to Residential Assistants specifically covering the importance ofoffering support to vulnerable students. They are trained and supported by the Counsellor
and residential staff/faculty.
3. House Mentors receive specific training to be particularly aware of safeguarding issues.
4. All School staff/faculty receive specific training in handling disclosures following this Policy.
5. UWC ISAK Japan notice boards will display advice on where students can seek help andstate clearly who to contact.
6. The School works continually on promoting a trusting and open relationship between
staff/faculty and students, with the staff/faculty expected to remain open and aware ofsafeguarding issues.
7. Advisory groups are small by design and offer a key student-staff/faculty relationship thatcan facilitate disclosures.
8. The House Mentors and counsellors provide sessions for all students on emotional life
skills including decision-making, consent and communication.

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5. Peer on peer abuse
Refer to Peer on Peer abuse policy
Interaction agreement may be used when supporting students
Any kind of historical allegations against a member of staff/faculty, a volunteer, a board member, astudent, a parent or any other person connected to the School should be reported tosafeguarding@uwcisak.jp and will be considered by the DSL/DDSL in consultation with the Head inorder to decide how they will be handled.
There are some occasions where information must be shared above the safeguarding team. The
community member involved would be informed of this before it takes place. More details can befound the the Escalation Procedure document
6. Managing Safeguarding allegations
6.1 Action following a report of Safeguarding issue
Following an incident, we will consider:●●●●

The wishes of the victim in terms of how they want to proceed. This is especially important in
the context of sexual violence and sexual harassment;
The nature of the alleged incident(s), including: whether a crime may have been committed
and consideration of harmful sexual behaviour;
The power imbalance between the community members.
Are there ongoing risks to the victim, other children, adults or school staff; and other related
issues and wider context?

Follow up Actions
Refer to Peer on peer abuse policy for student follow up actions.
Refer to Procedures for Dealing with a Safeguarding Allegation or Concern
Community members sharing campus:
Whilst the school establishes the facts of the case:●

The perpetrator may be removed from campus.

These actions are in the best interests of both parties and should not be perceived to be a judgmenton the guilt of the alleged perpetrator.
6.2 Options to manage the report of abuse
6.2.1.Manage internally
1. In some cases of abuse, for example, one-off incidents, we may decide that it would beappropriate to handle the incident internally, perhaps through utilising faculty/staff handbook. It is theaim to provide pastoral support such as prescribed counselling. This decision will be made based on
the principle that lapses in safeguarding are never acceptable and will not be tolerated. Alldecisions, and discussions around making these decisions will be recorded and stored by thesafeguarding team on MyConcern.
2. In line with 1 above, we may decide that the individuals involved do not require statutory
interventions but may benefit from early help. Early help means providing support as soon as aproblem emerges, at any point in a victim’s life. Providing early help is more effective in promoting

12the welfare of children than reacting later. Early help can be particularly useful to address
non-violent harmful sexual behaviour and may prevent escalation of sexual violence.
3. Where an individual has been harmed, is at risk of harm, or is in immediate danger, we will makea referral to the Multi Disciplinary Team following agreed protocols.
Where statutory assessments are appropriate, the designated safeguarding lead or a deputy will beworking alongside, and cooperating with, the relevant lead counsellor. Collaborative working will
help ensure the best possible package of coordinated support is implemented for the victim and,
where appropriate, the alleged perpetrator and any others that require support.
6.2.2. Reporting to the Police
Any report to the police will generally be made through the Multi Disciplinary Team as above. The
designated safeguarding lead (and their deputy) will follow local processes for referrals.
Where a report of rape, assault by penetration or sexual assault is made, the starting point is thereport this will be passed on to the police.
When a report has been made to the police, the school will consult the police and agree what
information can be disclosed to staff and others, the alleged perpetrator, parents or carers as
appropriate. They will also discuss the best way to protect the victim and their anonymity.
When there is a criminal investigation, we will work closely with the relevant agencies to support all
children involved (especially potential witnesses). When required, advice from the police will besought in order to help us.
Whilst protecting children and/or taking any disciplinary measures against alleged perpetrators, wewill work closely with the police (and other agencies as required), to ensure any actions the schoolor college take do not jeopardise the police investigation.

6.2.3. The need for immediate action
It is vitally important that the community receives the right help at the right time to address risks andprevent issues escalating. Early signs of abuse and neglect should be acted upon without delay andclear records kept. Information must be shared quickly, and inaction challenged.
Throughout the process the views of the student/s should be listened to and concerns should bereassessed when situations do not improve. There is a need to differentiate between thesafeguarding of students who have suffered or are likely to suffer significant harm and those whoneed additional support. Although decisions to seek support for a student would normally be taken
in consultation with the parents and the student/s, there is no consent required where there arereasonable grounds to believe that the student is at risk of significant harm.
Examples where UWC ISAK Japan would not need consent from the student and/or parents to takeaction:
1. A serious allegation is made against a staff/faculty member or other adult, or
2. There is reasonable cause to suspect a child or student is suffering, or is likely to suffer
significant harm, or
3. It appears that a criminal offense may have been committed,
The Head of School (or in their absence the Deputy Head) shall be informed immediately. The
Head will decide, in consultation with the DSL/DDSL, immediately and in any event within 24
hours, whether the allegations shall be reported to the Japanese Police or any other relevant

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Japanese authority.
6.3 Types of allegations
6.3.1.Allegations against students
Where an allegation is made of abuse by one or more students against another and there is areasonable cause to suspect that a student or students is/are suffering or are likely to suffer
significant harm, the DSL will regard all the students as being at risk. For example, a bullying
incident should be treated as a safeguarding concern when there is “reasonable cause to suspectthat a child is suffering or likely to suffer significant harm”. Where there is no reason to suspect orfear significant harm, the peer on peer abuse policy should be consulted. See Peer on Peer abusepolicy6.3.2. Allegations or concerns about School Staff/faculty
Any concerns about the behaviour of any School staff/faculty towards a student should be discussedwith the DSL or DDSL as soon as possible.
Any allegations of abuse and/or neglect must be reported to the DSL/DDSL immediately and in any
event, within 24 hours.

6.3.3. Historical allegations
Any historical allegations should be reported to safeguarding@uwcisak.jp
Historical allegations are categorised in two categories:
Past teacher - past student - handled by Multidisciplinary team
One member is current - handled by Multidisciplinary team
In confronting a safeguarding issue the following procedure will be used to ascertain the facts in theissue.
Procedures for Dealing with a Safeguarding Allegation or Concern

This policy has been approved by the Board
Date: 8th November 2022
Safeguarding lead board member: Lin Kobayashi

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