OUTLINE
The safeguarding of children is everyone’s responsibility. The purpose of the Kloodle
Safeguarding policy is to provide guidance for the protection of children whenever they are using
Kloodle. Kloodle operates a child-centred and coordinated approach to safeguarding. Partner
schools, college and employment providers must recognise their responsibility in promoting safe
on-line behaviour and adhere to Kloodle’s safeguarding policy at all times.
SUMMARY
- Kloodle profiles are private and not viewable by external people other than teachers, Kloodle staff and employers at the express permission of the student
in question (where appropriate) - Students cannot interact with each other on Kloodle
- Kloodle content cannot be shared on external platforms
-
Kloodle will never share data with organisations other than educational establishments the student is either a member of currently
or is transferring to (for example from school to college), employers who have been vetted and signed the Employer Code of Conduct and where
permission has been granted and with Kloodle staff to ensure effective delivery of our product.
OUTLINE
This document is intended to be used as a formal safeguarding guideline to support users and
should be used in conjunction with individual institution’s current e-safety and safeguarding
policies.
According to HM Government, a child is recognised as anyone who has not yet reached their 18th
birthday. The situation is more complex for teenage students who have reached the age of 18
whilst still attending a college. For this category, 18 year olds should still be treated as ‘children’
under safeguarding policies.
For the purpose of this document, ‘institution’ refers to any educational establishment where
Kloodle is used by children. This includes, schools, sixth form colleges and Further Education
providers. ‘Employment Provider’ refers to any employer related organisations, apprenticeship
providers and other training providers that offer post-education career / work related opportunities
via Kloodle.
BENEFITS
Kloodle takes on-line safety very seriously and all decisions made regarding the development of
our platform and subsequent use by educational establishments, places children’s safety at the
heart of our policies. We believe in the educational benefits of using Digital Technology within the
classroom as a forum for spreading best teaching and learning practice. Effective internet access
for pupils and students should be seen as an entitlement on the basis of educational need and an
essential resource for staff – particularly, those managing employability, skills validation, careers
and pastoral matters. Institutions that recognise online safety issues and plans accordingly, will
help to ensure appropriate, effective and safe use by all.
Kloodle benefits students in education by:
- encouraging students to reflect on their educational journey to date and record acquired skills
and achievements; - allowing students to identify gaps or shortages in their skill-set;
- providing schools with a forum to liaise with business and early stage careers providers to
raise aspirations; - establishing responsible on-line behaviour;
- encouraging best practice collaboration in connecting students with relevant providers and
opportunities; - allowing students to access their profile wherever and whenever is convenient.
ON-LINE SAFETY
RESPONSIBILITIES OF INSTITUTION
By entering into a contractual relationship with Kloodle, all staff and students agree to Kloodle’s
Terms and Policies of Use, including full understanding of and compliance with our Data
Protection Policy and Service Level Agreement. It is each institution’s responsibility to ensure that:
- all users are introduced to Kloodle with clear explanations of Kloodle’s purpose and
benefits and an understanding that profiles may be viewed by future employers, subject to student and / or staff permission; - all users understand that it is their responsibility to provide honest and truthful
representations of themselves for the purpose of interacting with future providers of any
sort; - adequate provision is provided in ensuring all users understand how to use the internet
and social media safely; - all users set an appropriate password which shouldn’t be shared with others;
- all users are provided with clear boundaries on responsible and professional use of
interactive platforms; - all users interact with the chat support facility appropriately and responsibly;
- all staff using Kloodle have undergone advanced DBS checks in line with individual
educational establishment’s safeguarding policies; - we are provided with the name and direct contact details of the institution’s Safeguarding
Officer; - any content deemed inappropriate is immediately reported to Kloodle.
ROLE OF STAFF
It is important that staff feel confident using Kloodle and that they recognise Kloodle’s core aim is
to benefit students’ future employment prospects by creating an environment where they can best showcase their skill development.
By raising students’
career aspirations, broadening students’ future career horizons and providing an online platform
from which students are encouraged and taught to evidence employability related skills,
institutions are able to add significant value.
Kloodle recognises that the
use of technology in the classroom is still approached with caution by some staff. Kloodle’s formal
safeguarding policy and structured, documented operational support procedures are designed to
alleviate concern and ensure smooth and successful use of the platform.
Kloodle reminds institutions that it is their responsibility to:
- ensure all staff users are introduced to Kloodle with clear explanations of Kloodle’s
purpose and benefits and an understanding that user profiles may be viewed by future
employers, where appropriate and in the best interests of the student concerned; - provide adequate staff training regarding the use of Kloodle;
- remind staff of their responsibility regarding the institution’s latest e-safety policy, including
confidentiality of information; - make staff aware that Kloodle newsfeeds are monitored by the institution’s admin and can
be traced to individual users (when used either on or off site); - enforce all measures as outlined in their respective e-safety and safeguarding policies;
- if staff discover any inappropriate content, they must report it to the institution’s Admin or Kloodle
immediately.
If a member of staff is concerned about any aspect of Kloodle use, they should contact their
institution’s designated Kloodle Admin. If the concern regards the Admin role, they should refer to
a Senior Post holder at the institution. If in either case, this pertains to child safety, the matter
should be referred to the institution’s Safeguarding Officer.
ROLE OF DESIGNATED ADMIN REPRESENTATIVE
In using Kloodle, institutions agree to provide Kloodle with the name of a person designated as
Admin. Institutions may wish to appoint more than one member of staff as their Kloodle
designated Admin rep, Kloodle is happy to accommodate this as required. Kloodle recommends
that the person designated as ‘admin’:
- has read and understood the Service Level Agreement and Data Protection policy;
- regularly monitors the institution’s newsfeed at periods in-line with their e-safety policy;
- understands that they have control of the institution’s privacy settings and has
responsibility for setting this according to the institution’s wishes; - has the responsibility to report accounts that are felt to contain content that is offensive,
derisory to others or incites violence (including terrorism) of any kind (please see Incident
Response Process); - communicates concerns of any kind with Kloodle in a timely manner.
ROLE OF STUDENT
Kloodle is designed to be a student-led platform which introduces students to a wide range of
employer organisations, allows students to “follow” organisations’ news and learn about their
industry sectors, as well as undertaking tasks set by both local and national employers.
In addition, Kloodle facilitates communication and interaction between
employment providers and students, in the context of both general employer engagement/learning about
the organisation and in the context of specific career opportunities. These interactions are monitored by
Kloodle and the institution. Employers who access Kloodle have signed the Kloodle Code of Conduct. No contact will occur
between employers and students under 16 years of age. Where employer contact is facilitated. Permission will be sought and
staff made aware.
Institutions are responsible for making users aware of the following:
- users clearly understand what Kloodle is and how the platform can benefit them;
- users understand that profiles may be viewed by future employers, where appropriate, and that it is their
responsibility to update their profile as they see fit; - users understand that they are responsible for all information that is included on their
profile; - users understand that it is their responsibility to provide honest and truthful
representations of themselves for the purpose of interacting with future providers of any
sort; - users understand the need to respect other individuals and their intellectual property when
using Kloodle; - users should set an appropriate password which shouldn’t be shared with others;
- all users interact with the live support facility appropriately and responsibly;
- if users discover any inappropriate content, they must report it to staff immediately .
INCIDENT RESPONSE PROCESS (EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS)
On-line safety is central to the relationship that Kloodle facilitates between students and
educational users and employment providers. However, in the event that occasions may arise
where student users, staff or Admin believe that Kloodle is not being used appropriately and in
accordance with Kloodle’s Safeguarding Policy, then the response may take one of two routes. If
the transgression is minor, this may be dealt with by the staff member or Admin as part of
standard sanctioning and as part of an educational process which is already established and
outlines appropriate on-line behaviour. In the unlikely event that institutions have more serious
safeguarding concerns regarding Student, Staff, Admin or Employment Provider usage, Kloodle
must be informed immediately via the misuse reporting procedure.
Kloodle commits to taking any reported concerns seriously and to initiate an Incident Response
Process (IRP) within 1 hour of receiving any reported concerns. The IRP is designed to quickly
assess and act on any such concern. At our earliest knowledge of any raised concern, Kloodle
will immediately:
- request an accurate and detailed typed outline of the concern by the institution’s
designated Admin; - request a copy of the institution’s e-safety and safeguarding policy.
If the concern regards Admin or staff misuse, Kloodle will immediately suspend any accounts that
are involved in the IRP until investigations are concluded. If the concern involves staff or Admin
misconduct, this will be reported to the Safeguarding officer at the institution and if deemed
necessary, we will seek police intervention.
If the concern raised involves student misuse, Kloodle will immediately suspend any accounts
that are involved in the IRP until investigations are concluded. If the misuse is regarded as falling
under the category of the institution’s Safeguarding or e-safety policy, it will be the institution’s
responsibility to sanction the student. If the student has included any content that is offensive,
derisory to others or incites violence of any kind, we will communicate with the institution’s
Safeguarding Officer and may take the action to seek police intervention. Kloodle has the right to
suspend or terminate any accounts if other users’ safety is compromised.
Kloodle has the right to:
- report any Intercom messages to the institution which Kloodle deems as abusive or
inappropriate; - suspend any account that is involved in an IRP;
- terminate any account that is deemed to contain content that is offensive, derisory to
others or incites violence of any kind (including terrorism), without any licence refund; - seek police intervention if deemed necessary. Early contact may be made to establish the
legal position and discuss strategies.
Disclaimer
Kloodle cannot accept liability for any material contained on users’ profiles. Nor can Kloodle
accept liability for the accuracy of any material contained on users’ profiles.
Kloodle cannot accept liability for the accuracy of any information contained on Opportunity
Providers’ employment or experience templates or hyperlinks. Nor can Kloodle accept liability for
the content of any associated Opportunity Providers’ sites.
Kloodle has made every effort to ensure that the information contained in this document is
accurate and up to date. If any errors are brought to our attention, or amends are required, we
shall address them as soon as is practically possible.
© 2017 Kloodle. All rights reserved.