ASCL summary questions for the exploratory evaluation framework safety, safeguarding and radicalisation

1. ascl.org.uk
An Exploratory Evaluation Framework:
safety, safeguarding and radicalisation
Summary of exploratory questions

2. ascl.org.uk
The following questions are a summary of the exploratory questions contained
within ASCL’s guidance:
An Exploratory Evaluation Framework: safety, safeguarding and radicalisation
These questions are relevant to all school leaders and staff in all schools and
colleges, and are intended as the start of a process of evaluation of the school
or college’s policies, processes and practices.
Please also refer to ASCL’s guidance:
Statutory Duties Related to Safety, Safeguarding and Radicalisation
NB this framework in itself is not sufficient to ensure compliance across the
range of statutory duties

3. ascl.org.uk
Safety and Safeguarding
• Is our safeguarding policy, including whistleblowing policy, up to date?
• Is our Single Central Record in order and up-to-date?
• Should we review referrals to the designated person for safeguarding? Have
any allegations against professionals been referred to the designated officer?
• Have we recently reviewed records of staff training on child protection?
When was the designated safeguarding lead last trained?
• Do staff and governors know the designated safeguarding lead and are
familiar with the statutory guidance?

4. ascl.org.uk
Safety and Safeguarding
• Are we confident about our safer recruitment procedures? Are procedures in
place for checks through the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS), criminal
record checks and barred lists checks?
• Are there processes in place to do the appropriate checks on external speakers
and volunteers?
• Should our procedures for dealing with relevant staffing issues be reviewed?
• Do we have an e-safety policy and a coordinated team approach to e-
safeguarding?
• When did we last do a risk assessment? Does it need updating? Do we have a
procedure for regularly monitoring online activity?

5. ascl.org.uk
Radicalisation
• Have we carried out a risk assessment for our school or colleges, shared
with local partners?
• Have the SLT and staff received training?
• Are there young people in our school or college who may be susceptible to
radicalisation? Have we liaised with the local Channel panel or Prevent
coordinator?
• Are there proscribed individuals and/or groups in the community the
school/college serves?

6. ascl.org.uk
Radicalisation
• Are in-school faith groups practising in our school or college being guided
and supervised by a member of staff? Are they promoting beliefs and
practices consistent with British values?
• If students are vulnerable to radicalisation, do we know what action to
take? Have we consulted with our local policy community support officer or
Channel panel officer?
• NB there is no requirement for an extremism and radicalisation policy but
other safeguarding policies should refer to radicalisation as a potential
concern or form of abuse.

7. ascl.org.uk
Equalities
• Do we regularly record assessments made about the equalities impact in
any key decisions?
• Do any recent decisions about the delivery of the curriculum and any
implications for protected groups need to be re-assessed?
• Are there concerns that in our commitment to be culturally sensitive to the
community our school/college serves, we may be going too far and
breaching curriculum breadth and/or compromising equalities legislation?
• Where lessons, assemblies or other activities are segregated on the basis
of, for example, gender or disability, can we justify this on secure,
educational grounds? Do our students understand the educational reasons
for any segregation?

8. ascl.org.uk
Equalities
• Is our uniform policy sensitive to the needs of different cultures, races and
religions, without compromising important school policies, such as safety or
discipline?
• Are we confident that our religious education curriculum is appropriate,
complies with the local SACRE (for non-faith schools), and prepares students for
life in a diverse world?
• Does our daily act of worship reflect the values of the curriculum, promote
behaviours and beliefs which support British values and support students’
spiritual, moral, social and cultural development?
• Have we published our equalities objective/s? Are we confident that we are
actively promoting equalities in our school/ college?

9. ascl.org.uk
British values
• How well do we ensure that the curriculum actively promotes the
fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty
and mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs?
Can we provide evidence against each of these?
• Could any of our policies, processes or practices contravene democracy
(even if unintentionally), the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual
respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs?
• What more can or should we be doing to improve tolerance and harmony
between different cultural traditions and encourage respect for
democracy?

10. ascl.org.uk
Curriculum
• Is our curriculum broad and balanced, does it comply with legislation and
provide a wide range of subjects?
• If someone external to our school/ college were to visit, would they find
any instances of narrowness in the curriculum we provide?
• Do we promote tolerance of and respect for people of all faiths (or those of
no faith), cultures and lifestyles through the effective spiritual, moral, social
and cultural development of pupils?
• Is this reflected in how schools engage pupils in extra-curricular activity
within their local community?

11. ascl.org.uk
Curriculum
• For schools without a religious character, is a balanced approach to
religious education that is broadly Christian offered, but which takes
account of the teaching and practices of the other principal religions
represented in Britain?
• Do we offer a rounded programme of assemblies that help to promote
students’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, providing clear
guidance on what is right and wrong?
• When was our PSHE curriculum last reviewed and how does it link to issues
of safety?
• Do we have a comprehensive and developmental e-safety curriculum for
students? Can we evidence this?

12. ascl.org.uk
Governance
• Do governors understand the boundaries of their role? Is a statement clearly outlining the
responsibilities and behaviours of governors and senior leaders required?
• Can we evidence how governors carry out their statutory duties, such as safeguarding?
• Can we evidence that the governing body considers the impact of its decisions on protected
groups and in light of equalities legislation? Will this stand up to scrutiny?
• Can we demonstrate how governors ensure that they and the school promote tolerance of and
respect for people of all faiths (or those of no faith), cultures and lifestyles, and support and help
within the school and more widely in the community?
• If we encounter a problem with a governor or governors who overstep their role, attempt to
narrow the curriculum or promote the views or beliefs of a single group, is there a process for the
governing body to deal with this, based on the Governors Handbook?
• Has the governing body reviewed its membership and constitution? Has it undertaken a skills
audit? Has the governing body considered commissioning an external review of governance to
support it to become more effective?

13. ascl.org.uk
This paper does not provide a complete or comprehensive
framework that will ensure compliance with all general
and specific duties set out in each of the
legislative frameworks referred to in the guidance.
It should be used in conjunction with the relevant
statutory guidance.
Association of School and College Leaders
130 Regent Road, Leicester LE1 7PG
T: 0116 299 1122 E: info@ascl.org.uk W: www.ascl.org.uk December 2015