The Academy and Merton Early Help Offer - How do I get support?
Early Help means providing support as soon as a problem emerges, at any point in a child’s life.
The Academy recognises that Early Help is more effective in promoting the welfare of children, than reacting later and therefore is central to the Academy’s safeguarding ethos.
Although Early Help is led by the DSL, the Academy has an Early Help Team, who work full time to support vulnerable children and parents/carers at the Academy. This team enables us to work more closely with external agencies, provide support to families and strengthen contextual safeguarding.
Meet the Early Help Team
*Please note Early Help services are continually reviewed and subject to change
The Academy offers a wide range of Early Help support to ensure that students are equipped with the information and advice needed to help safeguard themselves and overcome any challenges that they may face; this could be either in or out of the Academy setting.
Our Early Help strategy and offer outlined below mirrors Merton’s new Safeguarding Children Partnership Early Help Strategy.
Some of the support offered by our Early Help Team includes peer mentoring, 1:1 support, self-esteem and resilience programmes, lunchtime clubs and safeguarding workshops to raise awareness of topics such as knife crime, healthy relationships, and child sexual and criminal exploitation. Our aim is to give students the confidence needed to make good choices in life.
Early Help Support - Where can Students Seek Support?
The Learning Zone
The Learning Zone has been designed to support the educational needs of vulnerable students in the Academy. It provides a quiet, safe working space at lunch time and during after school enrichment activities; it is required throughout the day for SEND support and intervention.
The Intervention Zone
The Intervention Zone is a designated room in the Academy for workshops, intervention sessions and 1:1 support and advice sessions. It serves all students, but also provides targeted intervention for the most vulnerable students.
It is open at KS3 and 4 lunch times for students to seek support and advice from the Academy Early Help Team about anything that is worrying them.
Students can also spend lunchtimes in the Intervention Zone socialising with their peers and taking part in structured activities, or attend drop-in sessions run by the Early Help Team or external agencies such as Off The Record.
Local Authority Safeguarding Partnership’s and Early Help Support
Merton
More information about safeguarding children and young people in Merton can be found on the Merton Safeguarding Children Partnership (MSCP) website
Early Help referrals will be made if there is not an immediate safeguarding concern via the LA Early Help referral system: Merton fsd@merton.gov.uk
Croydon
More information about safeguarding children and young people in Croydon can be found on the Croydon Safeguarding Children Partnership (CSCP) website
Early Help referrals will be made if there is not an immediate safeguarding concern via the LA Early Help referral system: Merton earlyhelp@croydon.gov.uk
Lambeth
More information about safeguarding children and young people in Lambeth can be found on the Lambeth Safeguarding Children Partnership (LSCP) website
Early Help referrals will be made if there is not an immediate safeguarding concern via the LA Early Help referral system: 02079269079/ helpandprotection@lambeth.gov.uk
