Children who travel great distances from their homes for their education are vulnerable and merit specific thought when developing safeguarding child protection policies within schools. From a safeguarding perspective there can be added complications relating to the responsiveness of your local authority in supporting international students, and perhaps even corresponding with an overseas agency.

Recent events around the world have highlighted how important it is that schools are prepared to recognise and respond to the safeguarding needs of their international students.

Cost: £185 members      £370 non-members

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Programme:

Session 1
09:00 – 09:45 Welcome and Keynote: Online safety for international students

Chair: Aileen Kane, COO, BSA Group and Director, Sacpa

Karl Hopwood, Independent Esafety Expert and Executive Committee Member, Sacpa
Stacey Hart, Managing Director, Stacey Hart Therapy

Session 2
10:00 – 10:45 Affluent neglect: drugs, money and setting boundaries

Chair: Caroline Nixon, International and Membership Director, BSA Group and Director, BAISIS

Craig Middleton, Assistant Head Pastoral, DDSL, Millfield School
Chris Seal, Headmaster, Shrewsbury Riverside International, Bangkok
Sarah Proudlove, DSL/Deputy Head, Mill Hill International

Session 3
11:00 – 12:00 Securing mental health intervention for international students

Chair: Claire Dan, Head of Safeguarding, Sacpa and BSA Group

Jane Graham R.S.C.N, Director of Health and Wellbeing, BSA Group and Director, Hieda
Rosie McManus, Lead Nurse, Kings College Canterbury

12:00 – 13:00 Lunch

Session 4
13:00 – 13:45 Developing in-house safeguarding services

Chair: Ammy Davies-Potter, Director of Guardianship and Inclusion, BSA Group

Claire Dan, Head of Safeguarding, Sacpa and BSA Group
Magnus Cowie, Deputy Head Pastoral, Marlborough Malaysia College
John Taylor, Foundation Head of Boarding, Mill Hill Foundation

Session 5
14:00 – 14:45 Exploitation and the language barrier: spotting safeguarding concerns in non-native speakers of English

Chair: Aileen Kane, COO, BSA Group and Director, Sacpa

Sarah McManus, Border Force Senior Officer, Safeguarding and Modern Slavery Team
Jacqui Amos, Operational Lead – Study Operations, UK Visas and Immigration
Hazar El-Chamaa, Partner, Immigration Team, Penningtons Manches Cooper
Dr Helen Wright, International Education Advisor

Session 6
15:00 – 16:00 Managing safeguarding concerns with international students

Chair: Ammy Davies-Potter, Director of Guardianship and Inclusion, BSA Group

Sunny Jiang, Managing Director, OPDS (BSA Certified Agent and Guardian)
Ian Smith, Principal, Brooke House College
Paul James, Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) and Co Chair, Eastern Region LADO Group

16:00 Close

Speakers:

Aileen Kane, COO, BSA Group and Director, Sacpa

Aileen is Director of Sacpa and has a background in the education and charity sectors. Having recognised a lack of safeguarding parity across the UK, Aileen was a key figure in the independent education sector’s implementation of a self-reporting tool for the mandatory reporting of abuse. Alongside her role at SACPA, she is also COO of the BSA Group working closely with government departments including DfE, Home Office, DIT, MOD and FCO, as well as local authorities and other agencies. She was a board member of the DfE’s former Boarding Schools Partnership group which placed vulnerable children into boarding schools and heads up BSA’s work to find places for refugee children escaping from conflict countries. Aileen is also the safeguarding trustee for a children’s charity.

Karl Hopwood, Independent Esafety Expert and Executive Committee Member, Sacpa

Karl is an independent esafety expert. He is a member of UKCCIS (UK Council for Child Internet Safety) and sits on the UKCCIS evidence group and education working group as well as on the advisory board for the UK Safer Internet Centre and the education advisory board for CEOP. He also sits on Twitter’s trust and safety council where he represents the Insafe network. Karl has worked for a number of key players in the UK and abroad including CEOP (Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre), BECTA (British Educational and Communications Technology Agency), the European Commission, the UN and several Local Authorities within the UK and in Europe. As an ex-primary headteacher, he continues to work closely in schools across Europe with children, young people, parents and teachers to develop safer online behaviours and the promotion of digital literacy. Karl has been employed for the last 13 years as an in-house consultant for INSAFE which is the coordinating node of the EU Better Internet for Kids programme where he is responsible for the coordination of safer internet helplines across Europe. He also works with the Boarding Schools’ Association, IAPS and the National Union of Teachers. Karl is the Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Marie Collins Foundation, a charity which supports young people who have been sexually abused and exploited online and is also a trustee of Childnet International.

Stacey Hart, Managing Director, Stacey Hart Therapy

I am Stacey Hart, a therapist, trainer, children’s author and group facilitator. I have been practising for over 20 years, and I am a registered member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP)

I provide therapy and counselling services. I am an expert on counselling for childhood bereavement and family breakdown. I am also a winner of the Family Law Award for Best Support Service which was for akidspace, a counselling service for children who had experienced family breakdown. For the last 12 years I  managed all the training needs at one of the country’s leading bereavement charities. I also have worked as a trauma specialist in schools and corporations and have lectured at universities.

My vast experience belongs in grief, family breakdown and parenting, spending over 20 years as a therapist specialising in the above.

I am often asked to comment in National Press including The Guardian, The Independent, The Telegraph, Express and The Mail.  I am a consultant for DK books and have written 2 titles for the online platform Thinkably.

I have made numerous appearances on National Television including This Morning and Sky News as well as being a regular on BBC Radio.

Caroline Nixon, International and Membership Director, BSA Group and Director, BAISIS

Caroline has worked in international education for 30 years. As Caroline Nixon Education, she has worked on many successful projects including helping UK schools to establish new overseas branches, advising an international school opening in the UK, assisting an educational group to set up a guardianship agency, and advising schools on academic and pastoral provision for their international students.

Before becoming a consultant, Caroline was Principal of Taunton School International and set up a new school for international children aged 8-14. She was also responsible for the international marketing of, and admissions into, Taunton School.

Caroline is also Director, BAISIS (British Association of Independent Schools with International Students), a member of the British Council International Education Advisory Group, and a member of the advisory group to the British Government’s All-Party Parliamentary Group for International Students.

Craig Middleton, Assistant Head Pastoral, DDSL, Millfield School

Craig has an Industrial Chemistry degree, PGCE and is a member of the Royal Society of Chemistry (MRSC). He first starting teaching at Uppingham School and then moved onto teaching at The Grammar School at Leeds and was a Housemaster for 120 day boys and then subsequently joined Millfield School in 2006. He is currently the Assistant Head (Pastoral and Staff) and has held numerous other roles within Millfield, from being Head of Department, Head of Faculty, Assistant Housemaster in a Sixth form girls house, Housemaster in a girls 13-18 house and also Senior Housemaster. He has also worked for the BSA for over 10 years as a course tutor and as an accredited consultant, delivering training and webinars within and outside of the UK. Alongside his role managing numerous areas within the pastoral side of the school, namely all the boarding/day houses and staff, he is also a member of the safeguarding team and responsible for oversight of guardianship arrangements’

Chris Seal, Headmaster, Shrewsbury Riverside International, Bangkok

Chris has spent two decades living and working in independent boarding schools, both as a teacher of PE and History, and as a Head / Deputy Head, and has consulted all over the UK, Malaysia, China and South Korea.

Sarah Proudlove, DSL/Deputy Head, Mill Hill International

Sarah has been Deputy Head at The Mount, Mill Hill International since April 2015. Throughout her career she has dedicated herself to supporting the academic development and wellbeing of international pupils in British independent schools. Previously Head of EAL at two different boarding schools, Sarah has experience of training teachers in supporting the needs of international pupils both in and outside of the classroom.

Claire Dan, Head of Safeguarding, Sacpa and BSA Group

Claire is Head of Safeguarding for the Sacpa and BSA Group, leading on the provision of safeguarding advice and support to members and the development and delivery of CPD and safeguarding consultancy services. Claire is a safeguarding specialist and leader with a background in education welfare, youth justice, and early help contexts which have involved a strong focus on diverse and collaborative partnerships, professional development and supervision of front-line safeguarding colleagues, and leading multi-disciplinary teams and projects. Since 2006, Claire has been involved with Luton Safeguarding Children Board as a lead multi-agency safeguarding trainer, developing and delivering single and multi-agency safeguarding training, pieces of bespoke consultancy work, and providing a range of safeguarding consultancy on a freelance basis.

Jane Graham R.S.C.N, Director of Health and Wellbeing, BSA Group and Director, Hieda

Trained at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Sick Children, Jane has 27 years of nursing background; 17 of which is in trauma and intensive care. Whilst in PICU, she had a number of different roles. Nine years of that included a role as a specialist retrieval nurse (CATS) that entailed travelling around the country to stabilize and bring back critically unstable children. To do this she learned advanced nursing and basic medical skills in resuscitation, all medical conditions, and trauma.

She went on to teach these skills to student nurses, qualified nurses and junior doctors as the Practice educator on intensive care. This role also involved lecturing regularly at South Bank University. She has been a DSL for Safeguarding at an independent boarding school where she was Lead Nurse. She is also an instructor for Qualsafe, an awarding body approved by the HSE.

Rosie McManus, Lead Nurse, King’s College Canterbury

Trained at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Sick Children Rosie came to school nursing in the independent sector 16 years ago. With a passion for boarding pastoral and health care Rosie has developed an interest in the understanding and development of the health needs of boarding school students. Passionate about the nurse’s role in the delivery of the PSHE curriculum, Rosie is currently the Senior Nurse and Health Centre Manager for a large independent school in the South East, she has a Masters in Medical Ethics and Law, is a NUCO trainer and has a keen interest in the development of the school nurse role.

Rosie came to school nursing in the independent sector 16 years ago. With a passion for boarding pastoral and health care Rosie has developed an interest in the understanding and development of the health needs of boarding school students. Passionate about the nurse’s role in the delivery of the PSHE curriculum, Rosie is currently the Senior Nurse and Health Centre Manager for a large independent school in the South East, she has a Masters in Medical Ethics and Law, is a NUCO trainer and has a keen interest in the development of the school nurse role.

Ammy Davies-Potter, Director of Guardianship and Inclusion, BSA Group

Ammy is Director of Guardianship and Inclusion and a member of the BSA Foundation Trust. She joined the Group in 2020 following a career in education and was latterly a Deputy Head of an all-girls boarding school. Ammy is a member of the ISC inclusion group and is currently studying for a Masters in Inclusive Education.

Magnus Cowie, Deputy Head Pastoral, Marlborough College Malaysia

Magnus is a native of the north of Scotland and was previously the Deputy Head Pastoral at Trent College, an independent boarding and day HMC school, prior to which he taught overseas. He graduated in Maths and Computer Science from Glasgow and has an MEd from Manchester and a PGCE from Jordanhill College of Education. He has over 20 years experience as an ISI inspector of Educational Quality, Boarding, Regulatory Compliance and international schools under BSO. He also serves on COBIS Teams for school Accreditation reviews. He has presented at many conferences on the topic of wellbeing and how schools can apply positive psychology to help the overall community to flourish. Magnus is married to Gillian, a modern linguist, and has two daughters in their 20s, Marianne and Jane both working in UK. He is a keen diver, with over 500 dives worldwide, enjoys golf, cooking, reading and football.

John Taylor, Foundation Head of Boarding, Mill Hill Foundation

John J. Taylor read Classical Studies and English at the University of St Andrews before completing his PGCE. A former Housemaster, Principal and Head of Boarding in top UK boarding schools and overseas, John holds a BSA Level 4 Accredited Boarding Practitioner award and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts. In 2000, John led the boarding team at DLD College London to winning the TES Boarding School of the Year award. John currently serves as Foundation Head of Boarding for the Mill Hill School Foundation, where he sits on the leadership teams of both Mill Hill School and Mill Hill International and serves as a DSL. From this August, John will be joining the leadership team at MPW London to take up the position of founding Vice Principal Boarding, where he will lead the implementation and development of their first ever boarding house.

Sarah McManus, Border Force Senior Officer, Safeguarding and Modern Slavery Team

Jacqui Amos, Operational Lead – Study Operations, UK Visas and Immigration

Hazar El-Chamaa, Partner, Immigration Team, Penningtons Manches Cooper

Hazar is a partner in the immigration team and heads Penningtons Manches Cooper’s private wealth immigration offering.  She qualified in 2006 and joined the firm the same year.  With over 15 years’ immigration experience she advises high net worth individuals looking to relocate to the UK, working alongside colleagues in the private wealth team to provide a full service covering tax, family and real estate.

Also recognised for her expertise in the education sector, Hazar’s clients include universities, independent schools and large private education providers, whom she assists on all aspects of compliance, risk management, restructuring and business strategies. She is experienced in providing global immigration solutions to large multinational organisations from a wide range of sectors including retail, sports, entertainment and technology. She advises on immigration, citizenship and EU law, appeals, judicial review applications and challenges to Home Office decisions which affect sponsors. Fluent in Arabic, she has contacts throughout the Middle East, in particular the UAE, and regularly visits the region.

Hazar is a frequent speaker on immigration law and gives training on compliance with sponsorship licence duties under Tier 4 and Tier 2 as well as with prevention of illegal working legislation. She is an elected trustee of the Immigration Law Practitioners Association (ILPA) and has provided training for ILPA, the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) and the Boarding Schools Association. Hazar is recommended by Chambers HNW and The Legal 500 and is included in the Citywealth Leaders List 2018 for immigration.

Dr Helen Wright, International Education Advisor

Dr Helen Wright is a distinguished former BSA Head (and former GSA President and Vice-Chair of ISC) with over 20 years’ experience in boarding education. She is also a globally well connected and internationally recognised educationalist, and since leaving Headship in 2014, she has developed a portfolio of non-executive and consultancy roles in the UK and international education sector, including as a challenging executive coach and school leadership recruitment specialist.

Sunny Jiang, Managing Director, OPDS (BSA Certified Agent and Guardian)

Together with husband Larry Field, Sunny has managed Overseas Personal Development Services Ltd (OPDS) since 1996. The company offers guardianship, placement and tutoring services. The main market is China and has an office in Beijing.

Sunny is a trained teacher and well acquainted with the needs of guardian students.  The multi-cultural and bilingual team in both locations in Beijing and UK offers a professional, efficient, passionate and comprehensive services to families.

Ian Smith, Principal, Brooke House College

Paul James, Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) and Co Chair, Eastern Region LADO Group

Paul James specialises in position of trust, duty of care, and safeguarding culture.  Paul is a qualified social worker and has spent the last 13 years as a Local Authority Designated Officer.  He has a depth of experience, having experience leading with partners on a range of complex and sensitive cases involving national and international press coverage and the provision of evidence for Criminal and High Courts.

Paul has a particular interest and skill in the development and delivery of training and coaching for safeguarding practitioners across a range of specialist safeguarding topics.  Having trained developed and facilitated training for a Local Safeguarding Children Board and thereafter Safeguarding Partnership as well as on a consultancy basis.  Paul has most recently authored and delivered a range of programmes focussing on allegations management, low-level concerns and maintaining cultures of safety for a range of audiences including health professionals, education professionals, third sector, criminal justice agencies as well as smaller organisations providing services for children and families.

Paul sat on the advisory committee for the Catholic Church in respect of safeguarding children, he is a Safeguarding and Chair of Governors at a local school, volunteers for a local SEND Parent Partnership Board and is co-chair of the Eastern Region LADO group.