I teach children. That brings responsibilities that sit above everything else on this website, including the commercial ones. This is how I work and what I would do if I were worried about a child.
The principle
The welfare of the child comes first — before my convenience, before a family’s preference, and before any question of fees or reputation.
Who is responsible
I am. I work alone: there are no other tutors, no staff and no agency behind me. That makes the line of responsibility very short, and it means there is nobody to hide behind. If you have a concern of any kind, it comes to me.
It also means I am not a school. I have no designated safeguarding lead to escalate to, so where a concern is serious I go straight to the local authority.
Checks
I hold an enhanced DBS certificate including the children’s barred list check, issued in May 2026. I am happy to show it to any parent before we begin — please just ask.
I am also applying for my own enhanced check through a DBS umbrella body, so that it belongs to my tutoring rather than to a school, and so that it can be verified independently through the DBS Update Service. I will update this page when it is issued.
How lessons are conducted
- Lessons are online via Microsoft Teams as standard. You will know when they are happening and you are welcome to be in the room, to sit in, or to ask for a session to be recorded.
- In-person lessons take place in an open room with a parent or another responsible adult on the premises.
- I never message a student privately, and I do not connect with students on social media. Arrangements are made through the parent or carer.
- The shared OneNote workbook is visible to you at any time. Nothing about the teaching is hidden from parents.
If I am worried about a child
If something a student says or does gives me cause for concern, I will normally talk to you about it first. The exception is where telling a parent might put the child at greater risk — in that situation I would contact the local authority directly, and I would not promise a child that I could keep a secret.
I would contact Dorset Council’s Family Support and Advice Line on 01305 228558 (Monday to Friday 8am–10pm, weekends and bank holidays 9am–10pm), or the out-of-hours service on 01305 221000. If a child were in immediate danger I would call 999.
If you are worried about me
Raise it with me first if you feel able to. If you would rather not, or if you are not satisfied, you can contact the Local Authority Designated Officer through Dorset Council on the numbers above — that is the route for any allegation about an adult who works with children.
You can also speak to the NSPCC on 0808 800 5000. Your child can speak to Childline on 0800 1111, free, at any hour.
Confidentiality
What a family tells me stays with me, with one exception: if I believe a child is at risk of harm, I will pass that on to the people whose job it is to act. I would tell you I was doing so unless doing that would make the child less safe.
Useful numbers
- Dorset Family Support and Advice Line — 01305 228558
- Dorset out-of-hours service — 01305 221000
- NSPCC — 0808 800 5000
- Childline — 0800 1111
- Police — 101, or 999 in an emergency
Review
I review this statement every year, and immediately if anything changes — a new DBS certificate, a change in how lessons run, or a change in the law.
Safeguarding Statement — V1, 24 August 2026. Emma Wimhurst, Wimborne, Dorset. emma@emmawimhurst.co.uk · 07795 344666