Safeguarding Statement
InterGreat Education Group remains unwavering in its commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. We anticipate all staff, volunteers, homestays, and associates to embrace this commitment. The well-being of every young person under the care of InterGreat Education Group is paramount, ensuring they feel secure and shielded from any form of abuse or neglect.
At InterGreat Education Group, we firmly believe that:
- Guardians and Homestays contribute significantly to preventing abuse.
- All children inherently have the right to protection from harm.
- Children, including those who may have experienced abuse, require support tailored to their individual needs.
- Children should feel safe both in school and when staying with their guardian or homestay.
Policy Aims
This policy is meticulously crafted to offer clear guidelines to all members of the InterGreat Education Group team in cases of an absent or missing child or young person.
The primary objectives of the policy are to expedite the location of the child or young person through the quickest and safest means possible, ensuring their return to an approved location. InterGreat Education Group commits to prompt and appropriate responses to reports of unauthorised absence and missing children and young people. Following each report, the organisation will assess and update the procedure as needed to minimise any future risks.
In situations where a child or young person is absent or missing, they may be susceptible to various forms of serious harm, including abuse, exploitation, radicalization, and trafficking. The commitment to protecting children and young people from such risks is explicitly outlined in the InterGreat Education Group Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy. In cases where there is a potential concern regarding trafficking, exploitation, radicalization, or involvement in criminal activity, InterGreat Education Group will promptly engage with the Police (Prevent) and the Local Safeguarding Children Partnership.
Aligned with the National Policing Improvement Agency's 'Interim Guidance on the Management, Recording, and Investigation of Missing Persons 2013,' this policy facilitates the determination of whether a student is absent or missing. Additionally, it furnishes a model and framework for response, encouraging collaborative efforts with other agencies to reduce recorded incidents of missing or absent people.
Relevant Government Guidance
InterGreat Education Group dutifully fulfils local and national responsibilities as outlined in various documents, including:
Keeping Children Safe in Education — 2026
- Keeping children safe in education - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
- Working Together to Safeguard Children (2026)
- Working Together to Safeguard Children 2026 (www.gov.uk)
- Statutory Guidance on Children who run away or go missing from home or care (January 2014)
- Statutory guidance on children who run away or go missing from home or care (publishing.service.gov.uk)
- What to do if you’re worried a child is being abused (2015)
- Stat guidance template (publishing.service.gov.uk)
Children Missing Education — September 2025
- Children missing education: statutory guidance for local authorities and schools – September 2025
- HSE Health & Safety Executive
- www.hse.gov.uk
- HSE Risk Assessment leaflet available to download from:
- Managing risks and risk assessment at work – Overview -HSE
- Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (ROSPA)
- www.rospa.com
- Interim Guidance on the Management, Recording, and Investigation of Missing Persons (2013)
- Strategy and Governance – Investigation of Missing Persons, Unidentified/bodies and hospers- Policy Equality Impact Assessment (met.police.uk)
- ACPO (2009). Collection of Missing Persons Data: A code of practice for the Police Service：
- https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/243597/9[private emergency contact supplied to families and schools].pdf
- ACPO Guidance on the Management, Recording, and Investigation of Missing Persons (2nd Edition)
- https://www.app.college.police.uk/app-content/major-investigation-and-public- protection/missing-persons/
- Office of the Children’s Commissioner (2012). Briefing for the Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, Secretary of State for Education, on the emerging findings of the Office of the Children’s Commissioner’s Inquiry into Child Sexual Exploitation in Gangs and Groups：
- Briefing for Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, Secretary of State, on the emerging findings of the Office of the Children’s Commissioners Inquiry into Child Sexual Exploitation in Gangs and Groups (ioe.ac.uk)
Definitions
Absent: A person not at a place where they are expected or required to be.
If the student is not in the place they are expected to be, but there are no other contextual factors suggesting apparent risk, generally, students would be categorised as ‘absent’ if not in the place expected for under 1 hour.
Missing: Anyone whose whereabouts cannot be established and where the circumstances are out of character or the context suggests the person may be subject to crime or at risk of harm to themselves or another.
If the student is absent from the place they are expected to be for over one hour without contact, we would categorise this young person as ‘missing’.
If there are risk factors or external contextual factors that increase concerns about the student’s welfare or safety, this may be categorised as ‘missing,’ even in cases where students have not been absent for over one hour. InterGreat Education Group deals with absent and missing students initially in the same way (as detailed in the flow chart (Appendix 2). Any student who is presenting as ‘absent’ or ‘missing’ should have their concerns raised in exactly the same manner, with a Director or DSL to determine whether any ‘absent’ students progress to a ‘missing student.’ For the purposes of InterGreat Education Group’s procedures, any student who has been ‘absent’ for one hour would be escalated to ‘missing’ at this point.
The 'absent’ category should comprise cases in which people are not presently where they are supposed to be, and there is no apparent risk. Absent cases should not be ignored and must be monitored over periods of time with escalation to ‘missing’ should sufficient time or change in circumstances present.
Prevention
In order to minimise the risk of children and young people going missing while under the care of InterGreat Education Group (for example at half term, exeat, or during a suspension/expulsion), we undertake to put the following measure in place as far as is practical:
- Ensure the accommodation in which children and young people in our care are staying (for example when staying with a host family) are secure and take steps to prevent unauthorised persons entering these premises.
- Ensure that children and young people are appropriately supervised according to their age when visiting unfamiliar areas.
- Assessing a child and young person’s stage of development to ensure the required level of supervision is in place.
- Educating children and young people in our care about how to keep safe.
- Advise children and young people about what to do if they find themselves lost.
- With appropriate parental consent, have an up-to-date photograph of each child and young person under InterGreat Education Group’s care.
Responsibilities and Relevant Contacts
The Designated Safeguarding Lead, holds the primary responsibility for supervising the documentation of unauthorised absences or cases of missing students. Contact information:
The Designated Safeguarding Lead - Terence Murray:
- Phone (+44) 0203 856 8180 / [private emergency contact supplied to families and schools]
- Email dsl@intergreat.com
Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead - Alex Lindon-Morris:
- Phone: (+44) 0203 856 8180
- Email: alex.lm@intergreat.com
The senior member of staff on duty at the time of the report is responsible for ensuring the completion of all the necessary stages of the following procedure upon the report of an unauthorised absence or missing student. It is important to remain calm and to follow the appropriate steps without delay.
Procedure: Absent Student
- Report: Inform DSL and complete the ‘Absent or Missing Student Risk Assessment‘ (paper version available in Appendix 1) Cause for Concern Form – InterGreat Education Group to determine if the child or young person is absent or missing. The absence of a child or young person, together with full notes of any decision taken, must be recorded in their file.
- Communication: If the decision is that the child or young person is absent, the senior member of staff should:
- Try to contact the child or young person by phone (leave a message if no answer), text, email, and social media. This must be repeated every 20 minutes.
- Make contact with the child or young person’s school to gather relevant information about their whereabouts and coordinate efforts.
- Contact the child or young person’s parents, agent (if applicable), and Homestay to collect any additional information.
- Additional Measures:
- Review flight and airport transfer details if applicable.
- Request the Homestay to conduct a search of the house and garden.
- Review information in the InterGreat Education Group database about the child or young person.
- Escalation: If the absent student remains uncontactable for 1 hour, escalate the case to ‘missing.’ Reassess the risk assessment at this time. Any change in contextual information may also prompt escalation to ‘missing’ according to DSL assessment.
- Police Report: The senior member of staff makes a Missing Person report to the police (101 or 999 dependent on risk level) with detailed information.
- Parent and School Communication:
- Inform the parents of any report made to the police, updating them every 3 hours.
- Inform the child or young person’s school, updating them every 3 hours.
- Daily Review: Review all unauthorised absence and missing student reports daily until the incident is resolved.
Procedure: Missing Student
- Report: Inform DSL and complete the ‘Absent or Missing Student Risk Assessment‘ (paper version available in Appendix 1) Cause for Concern Form – InterGreat Education Group to determine if the child or young person is absent or missing. The absence of a child or young person, together with full notes of any decision taken, must be recorded in their file.
- Police Notification: If the decision is that the child or young person is missing, immediately report to the police (101 or 999 in emergencies).
- Gather Information: The senior member of staff ensures the following information is gathered for the initial police report.
- Parent and School Communication:
- Inform the parents of any report made to the police, updating them every 3 hours.
- Inform the child or young person’s school, updating them every 3 hours.
- Police Interaction:
- The senior member of staff handling the incident must update the police if any contact is made with the child or young person.
- Daily Review: Review all unauthorised absence and missing student reports daily until the incident is resolved.
Contact with the Press and Media
The police are responsible for advising the press and media regarding missing children or young people. InterGreat Education Group staff should not release any details to the press or media and must refer any contact to the relevant police force. Any queries should be directed to a Director with no comments made.
Procedure once the Child or Young Person is Found
The police are responsible for ensuring the safe return of the child or young person reported as missing. Return interviews are conducted by InterGreat Education Group’s DSL, Terence Murray, for absent students. In cases of abuse allegations, the Local Safeguarding Children Partnership must be contacted, and the DSL informed. All relevant parties informed of the child or young person being absent or missing must be contacted immediately upon their return.
If a child or young person has been absent or missing more than once, a formal review of the required guardianship level will be assessed in consultation with the parents.
Appendix 1: Absent/Missing Child Risk Assessment (automatically prompted for on created of a Cause for Concern – Absent/Missing Child)
Date
Reported By
Full Name of Child/Young Person
Absent or Missing (If contact is not made with student within 1 hour of initial report, student to be treated as missing)
Details of Contact Attempts (Every 20 minutes by phone, text, email and social
media - please record all communication)
Date & Time student absent/missing - start
Date & Time student absent/missing - end
Gender
School
Host Family
What are the circumstances in which the child/young person is absent/missing.
Please note as much information as possible
History: Has this student been absent/missing before?
When and where was the child/young person last seen?
Where is the child/young person supposed to be currently?
What was the temperament of the child/young person when last seen?
Does the child/young person have any medical conditions or take any medication? If so, do they have their
medication with them?
Other Factors contributing to risk
calculation
Level of Risk presented
total time student absent/missing
Physical Description (Height, Build, Ethnicity, Eye colour, Hair Colour & Style, Glasses/Contact Lenses, Distinctive
Features)
Please supply as much information as possible about what the child/young person was last seen wearing (Top/Sweater/Shirt/T-Shirt, Coat/Jacket. Trousers/Shorts/Skirt, Shoes/Trainers/Boots, Headwear/Gloves/Scarf, Other identifiable clothing)
Action Taken (Reported to DSL)
DSL/Director Report on Outcome/Further Action Taken (Parents/School/Authorities/Airports)
Appendix 2: absent or missing student response sequence
Act on the risk immediately. The one-hour absent-student escalation below must never delay a police referral where a student is already missing or at risk.
- Notify the DSL and complete the confidential absent/missing-student risk assessment.
- For an absent student with no immediate risk, try to contact the student every 20 minutes. Obtain contextual information from parents, the school, homestay and agent as appropriate; ask the school or homestay to search relevant grounds.
- Review student and travel information and continue attempts to establish contact. Consider relevant travel providers where there is a flight risk.
- If contact or confirmed whereabouts have not been established within one hour, use the missing-student procedure. Escalate earlier whenever the risk requires it.
- Contact police on 999 or 101 as appropriate, and provide the full missing-student report, student-care information and context for their risk assessment.
- Update parents, school and relevant people about the police report. Provide regular updates, at least every three hours while the incident continues.
- Review the report daily until resolved. Immediately report any subsequent contact with the young person to police, and follow the return and welfare procedures set out in this policy.