Safeguarding: Operation Encompass
 What Is Operation Encompass? Operation Encompass is a national operation that directly connects the Police with schools and early years settings to secure better outcomes for children who are subject or witness to police-attended incidents of domestic abuse. Provision of support within the school/early years environment means children are better safeguarded against the short-, medium- and long-term effects of domestic abuse. Operation Encompass was initially set up as a charitable organisation in 2011. Since inception it has facilitated effective interventions to many thousands of children who've experienced domestic abuse. Operation Encompass is a police and education early information sharing partnership enabling schools and early years settings to offer immediate support to children and young people experiencing domestic abuse. Information is shared by the police through our Education Researcher with the school/setting's trained Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) via phone call or Email on the morning of the next school day after officers have attended a domestic abuse incident, thus enabling appropriate support to be given, dependent upon the needs and wishes of the child. The phone call/ email will only inform the Designated Safeguarding Lead that the Police have attended an incident and will request that the school/setting is mindful of that in their care and responses to the child throughout the school day. Children experiencing domestic abuse or witnessing it happen in the home are negatively impacted by this exposure. Domestic abuse has been identified as an Adverse Childhood Experience and can lead to emotional, physical and psychological harm. Operation Encompass aims to mitigate this harm by facilitating immediate support, making a child's day better and giving them a better tomorrow. Operation Encompass believes that children are victims of domestic abuse in their own right and should be acknowledged as such. What does Operation Encompass do? Operation Encompass provides an efficient, confidential channel of communication between police forces and Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs) within schools and early years settings through our Education Researcher. This enables the immediate and discrete recognition of the child's situation by the DSL, ensuring the provision of a secure, supportive and emotionally connected environment by the school/setting so that the wider effects of abuse are ameliorated. Encompass ensures that all incidents of domestic abuse are shared with schools and early years settings, not just those where an offence can be identified. |
