We are here for you
Bury College is committed to providing a safe, welcoming, and supportive environment for all students, staff, and visitors.
Our safeguarding team is here to support students, parents and carers, and the wider community. If you have a safeguarding concern, please contact us:
Safeguarding team: 07713 312773
Email: safeguarding@burycollege.ac.uk
If someone is in immediate danger, call 999.
Raising a safeguarding concern
Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility. If you are concerned that a child or young person is at risk of harm, abuse, or neglect, it is important to report your concerns, even if you are unsure.
If there is no immediate danger and you need advice or information, you can contact:
- Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH): 0161 253 5678
- Out of hours: 0161 253 6606
- NSPCC helpline: 0808 800 5000
- To report a concern anonymously: email mcsreply@manchester.gov.uk or call 0161 234 5001.
If you are concerned about an adult with care and support needs who may be experiencing, or at risk of, abuse or neglect, contact Bury Adult Social Care on 0161 253 5151 or email adultcareservices@bury.gov.uk. For out-of-hours support, call 0161 253 6606. If someone is in immediate danger, call 999.
Mental health and wellbeing
Looking after your mental health and wellbeing is important. Bury College offers a range of support to help students manage their wellbeing throughout their time at College, with advice and support also available to parents and carers.
Find out more about the mental health and wellbeing support available at Bury College on our Mental Health and Wellbeing page.
Further support and advice is also available from the following organisations:
Find local services and support for mental health and emotional wellbeing at The Bury Directory.
Call 116 123 for free, confidential support, any time.
Call 0808 800 5000, email help@nspcc.org.uk or visit the NSPCC website.
Call 0300 123 3393, text 86463 or email info@mind.org.uk.
Parents and carers looking for advice about depression can visit the YoungMinds depression guidance.
Access free online suicide prevention training through the Zero Suicide Alliance. The short training course takes around 20 minutes.
Online safety
The internet and digital technology are an important part of everyday life, learning, and communication. At Bury College, we want students to enjoy the opportunities technology provides while understanding how to keep themselves and others safe online.
We take a whole-college approach to online safety. Through our Skills for Life tutorial programme, students learn about online risks and how to make safe and responsible choices. Topics include social media, online relationships, harmful content, misinformation and disinformation, online bullying, sharing images, digital wellbeing, and the safe and responsible use of generative artificial intelligence (AI).
Our staff receive regular safeguarding and online safety training so they can recognise concerns and provide appropriate support.
The College also uses filtering and monitoring systems on its networks and devices to help identify potentially harmful or inappropriate online activity. Where a concern is identified, this is reviewed and appropriate action is taken. This may include speaking with the student, providing support and, where necessary, referring the concern through our safeguarding procedures.
How parents and carers can help
Parents and carers have an important role in helping young people stay safe online. We encourage families to have regular, open conversations about what young people are doing online, who they are communicating with and what they should do if something makes them feel worried, uncomfortable, or unsafe.
It can also be helpful to talk about:
- Privacy and security settings on apps and devices.
- Recognising scams, misinformation, and AI-generated content.
- Being careful about sharing personal information, photographs, and videos.
- Respectful behaviour and relationships online.
- The permanence of information shared online.
- Asking for help if something goes wrong.
If you are concerned about something that has happened to your child online, please encourage them to speak to a trusted member of College staff or contact the College safeguarding team.
Useful online safety support
Practical advice for parents and carers about social media, parental controls, harmful content, and online wellbeing.
Advice and reporting support where there are concerns about online sexual abuse, grooming, or inappropriate contact with a child.
Young people under 18 can report sexual images or videos of themselves that have been shared online and seek to have them removed.
Guidance for parents and carers covering social media, gaming, screen time, online relationships, parental controls, and emerging technologies.
Resources and advice to help children, young people, parents, and professionals use technology safely and responsibly.
Generative AI
Generative AI tools can provide useful opportunities for learning, but young people also need to understand their limitations and potential risks. AI-generated information may be inaccurate or misleading, and AI can also be misused to create fake images, impersonate individuals, or produce harmful content.
We encourage students to think critically, check information against reliable sources, protect their personal information, and use AI responsibly. Concerns relating to the misuse of AI are treated as part of the College's wider online safety and safeguarding arrangements.
Sexual harassment and misconduct
If you are a victim of or witness to sexual harassment or misconduct within the College, you can report your concerns to the safeguarding team:
Email: safeguarding@burycollege.ac.uk
Telephone: 07713 312773, 9am - 4.30pm
If you have experienced or witnessed something outside of College, our staff can still provide support and help you access appropriate services.
If you are in immediate danger, call 999. For non-emergency incidents, contact Greater Manchester Police on 101 or report a crime online.
Criminal and sexual exploitation
Child exploitation can take many forms and may not always be obvious. Understanding the signs and knowing where to seek help can help parents, carers and young people stay safe.
If you are concerned about a child or young person, please contact the College safeguarding team or report your concerns to the appropriate safeguarding service.
Parents and carers can find further information and guidance through these organisations and resources:
- Action for Children - child exploitation
- The Children’s Society - Child Sexual Exploitation toolkit for parents and carers
- Catch On - Parents Pack
- LiveSafe - criminal exploitation and gangs
Operation Encompass
Bury College is part of Operation Encompass, a national scheme that operates jointly between education settings and police forces.
Operation Encompass enables the police to share information with the College when a child or young person has experienced domestic abuse or other incidents that may affect their wellbeing. This allows us to provide appropriate support.
Our police force also shares information about children who are missing from home so that we can better understand and support their needs when they return.
If you would like to discuss this further, please contact the safeguarding team on 07713 312773 or email safeguarding@burycollege.ac.uk.
Respect
At Bury College, we emphasise the importance of respecting staff, students, and visitors, as well as their property and the facilities of the College.
We want everyone to help create an environment where people feel safe, valued, and able to achieve their full potential.
Prevent
Bury College is committed to the Government's Prevent strategy, which aims to safeguard people from being drawn into terrorism, extremism, and radicalisation.
As part of this commitment, we promote the fundamental British Values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, and mutual respect and tolerance.
Fundamental British Values
Bury College promotes the fundamental British Values of:
- Democracy
- The rule of law
- Individual liberty
- Mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs and for those without faith
These values underpin our College community and are reflected throughout our curriculum and wider student experience.
Students are encouraged to share their views through student surveys, learner voice forums, and student representation on key groups, including the governing board.
Safeguarding and Prevent policy
Bury College is committed to creating and maintaining a friendly, welcoming, and safe working environment for all.
You can find further safeguarding information in our leaflets:
For further information about the College’s approach to safeguarding and Prevent, please see our Safeguarding and Prevent Policy, available through the College’s Legal page.
If you have a safeguarding concern, please contact the Safeguarding Team on 07713 312773 or email safeguarding@burycollege.ac.uk.
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