Operation Encompass is a national initiative which enhances communication between the police and schools where a child is at risk from domestic abuse. Operation Encompass is in place in the majority of police forces in England and Wales and has been recognised by the inspection bodies of both police and education.

Operation Encompass is a process used to inform schools when the police have attended an incident of domestic abuse, where domestic abuse incidents have occurred in the homes of their pupils since the previous school day.

Operation Encompass will complement existing safeguarding procedures

How will it work?

All schools will have an identified key adult or adults; in most schools, this will be the existing safeguarding lead. Police will share information with the Safeguarding Hub, providing a list of children of school age each morning who have been affected by a domestic abuse incident the previous day. Staff from the Safeguarding Hub will identify the school the child attends and email the school before 9 am, and inform the Head teacher or a Designated Safeguarding Lead that a child at their school has been affected by a DV incident. The school will be informed of the name of the child and that there was an incident. Basic information will be given at that point. The staff in contact with those pupils will then be in an informed position to support them in a way that is right for that particular child or young person, either with silent or overt support

What is the school professional meant to do with this knowledge?

The single most critical factor in how children cope with exposure to domestic violence is the presence of at least one loving and supportive adult in their lives. Children without any support, who are isolated or lack nurturing adults in their lives, are more negatively affected by their exposure to domestic abuse. Knowing that the child has had this experience puts the school in a better position to be supportive and understanding of the child’s needs and possible behaviours.

The Head teacher or DSL will share this information on a need-to-know basis, e.g. the form teacher.

The initial approach is that the sharing of information should not, in itself, provoke a proactive response to individual children by the school/professional, but inform their response to any presenting behaviour. Sometimes, staff will talk to the child and reassure them that they know. This can be a relief to a child, as it gives them tacit permission to talk about how they feel and what has been happening to them. The key aim of this process, however, is to ensure that the child is offered sensitivity and understanding following a distressing incident.

Norfolk Community Primary have signed up to this initiative as we are committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of our students.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the Designated Safeguarding Lead, Cath Whittingham or the safeguarding liaison officer, Jo Squiers.