Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy

Contact Head Office Safeguarding

Safeguarding & Child Protection

At babyballet, the safety and wellbeing of every child is at the heart of everything we do.

We are committed to providing a safe, nurturing and inclusive environment where babies, toddlers and young children can enjoy learning, movement, music and dance while feeling secure, valued and protected.

Every child who attends a babyballet class, workshop or event has the right to feel safe and to be protected from harm. Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility, and we take all safeguarding concerns seriously.

 

If you are concerned about a child

If you have a concern about the safety or wellbeing of a child who attends babyballet, please do not ignore it.

You do not need to be certain that abuse or harm has taken place before raising a concern. If you are unsure whether something is a safeguarding concern, it is always better to report it than to do nothing.

If a child is in immediate danger

If you believe a child is in immediate danger or at risk of serious harm, call 999 immediately.

Once emergency services have been contacted, inform the relevant Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) and babyballet Head Office as soon as possible.

UK Emergency services: 999

How to report a safeguarding concern

1. Contact your local babyballet school

Every babyballet franchise has a Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) responsible for safeguarding within their area.

Your local babyballet franchise should usually be your first point of contact for a safeguarding concern.

Find your local babyballet school and contact details: Find your local babyballet school

 

2. Contact babyballet Head Office

You can contact babyballet Head Office directly if:

  • you would prefer to speak to someone outside your local babyballet franchise;
  • you wish to raise a concern about your local Designated Safeguarding Lead;
  • you do not feel comfortable raising your concern locally; or
  • you would like to report a safeguarding concern directly to Head Office.


babyballet Head Office Safeguarding Team

Email: safeguarding@babyballet.co.uk

You can also contact one of our Head Office Designated Safeguarding Leads directly:

All three Head Office DSLs can be contacted via safeguarding@babyballet.co.uk and this is the recommended and fastest route.

 

What happens when you report a concern?

Safeguarding concerns may come to our attention in a number of ways, including something a child says, something an adult observes, a change in a child’s behaviour or wellbeing, concerns about an adult’s behaviour towards a child, or information shared by a parent, carer or another member of the public.

When a concern is raised, babyballet will:

  • take the concern seriously;
  • ensure the immediate safety and wellbeing of the child is considered;
  • record relevant information accurately and factually;
  • refer the concern to the appropriate Designated Safeguarding Lead;
  • seek advice from safeguarding professionals where necessary; and
  • make referrals to Children’s Social Care, the Police or other appropriate statutory agencies where required.

Our staff are not investigators and are not responsible for determining whether abuse has occurred. Their responsibility is to recognise concerns, record information accurately and report concerns promptly so that the appropriate safeguarding professionals can determine the next steps.

 

Concerns about a babyballet teacher, franchisee or other adult

We take concerns about the behaviour of adults working with children extremely seriously.

If your concern relates to a babyballet teacher, franchisee, volunteer or another adult working with children, please report it immediately to the relevant Designated Safeguarding Lead.

If your concern relates to the local Designated Safeguarding Lead, please contact babyballet® Head Office directly:

safeguarding@babyballet.co.uk

Where concerns relate to an adult working with children, the appropriate safeguarding procedures will be followed, including seeking advice from the relevant Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) where applicable.

 

Our commitment to safeguarding

babyballet is committed to:

  • providing safe, inclusive and nurturing environments for children;
  • maintaining appropriate professional boundaries;
  • ensuring physical contact used within dance teaching is appropriate, proportionate and explained;
  • promoting a culture where children, parents, carers and staff feel able to raise concerns;
  • using safer recruitment procedures;
  • ensuring appropriate safeguarding training for those working with children;
  • responding promptly and appropriately to safeguarding concerns;
  • working in partnership with Children’s Social Care, Police, Local Safeguarding Partnerships and other relevant safeguarding agencies; and
  • regularly reviewing and improving our safeguarding practice.

We recognise that many of the children who attend babyballet are babies and very young children who may not be able to communicate concerns verbally. Our safeguarding approach therefore includes being alert to non-verbal communication, changes in behaviour, distress and other indicators of a child’s wellbeing.

 

Photography, filming and online safety

We take the privacy and safety of children seriously.

Photography and filming by parents, carers, guardians or authorised minders during babyballet classes is generally not permitted. Where photography or filming is permitted, appropriate arrangements will be put in place to ensure that other children are not captured without consent.

Where babyballet uses photographs or video for promotional purposes, appropriate consent will be obtained in advance.

 

Read our full Safeguarding & Child Protection Policy

Our Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy sets out our full safeguarding procedures, responsibilities and reporting processes across the babyballet® franchise network.

The policy includes information on:

  • safeguarding roles and responsibilities;
  • safer recruitment;
  • recognising abuse and other safeguarding concerns;
  • reporting and responding to concerns;
  • managing allegations against staff;
  • confidentiality and information sharing;
  • safeguarding record keeping;
  • photography, filming and online safety;
  • safeguarding training and awareness; and
  • policy review and governance.

It also contains our safeguarding reporting flowchart and safeguarding documentation.

Download the babyballet Safeguarding & Child Protection Policy – Version 1.1, August 2026

Important!

If you are concerned about a child’s immediate safety, do not wait to read the full policy or contact babyballet Head Office. Call 999.

For all other safeguarding concerns, please contact your local babyballet Designated Safeguarding Lead or the babyballet® Head Office Safeguarding Team at safeguarding@babyballet.co.uk.

If you are unsure whether a concern is a safeguarding issue, please report it. It is always better to share a concern than to do nothing.