Safeguarding

Safeguarding at HIS

The protection and safeguarding of our students is of the greatest importance, and accordingly, HIS follows a detailed set of safeguarding and child protection protocols.

These policies are based on the Council of International Schools (CIS) International Taskforce for Child Protection (ITFCP) recommendations and comply with the Child Welfare Act 1947 (rev. 2016), Child Abuse Protection Act 2000 and the Japanese Civil Code Article 1.

We define safeguarding as actions taken to promote the welfare of children and protect them from harm. Specifically, safeguarding means:

  1. Protecting children from abuse and maltreatment

  2. Preventing harm to children’s health or development

  3. Ensuring children grow up with the provision of safe and effective care

  4. Taking action to enable all children and young people to have the best outcomes.

Designated Safeguarding Lead

Safeguarding is a responsibility of all staff and Board members at HIS, all of whom receive annual training on best safeguarding practices. Should anyone have a safeguarding concern at any point, please contact one of the following people. Our email format is firstname.lastname at hakuba-is.jp.

  • Jovenia Garcia, Faculty Member

  • Lynne Kenney, Co-Principal

  • Tomoko Kusamoto, Founder & Board Chair

Safe Recruitment

A key element of our safeguarding approach is safe recruitment strategies, meaning that we carefully screen applicants to our open positions. This includes multiple reference checks and a comprehensive, global background check process. In addition, all staff are required to agree to our Staff Code of Conduct as a condition of employment, which outlines detailed safeguarding practices and protocols.

Campus Visitors

We love welcoming visitors to our campus, and including current families, prospective students and their families, and educators interested in our methods. In order to do this while protecting the safety of our community, we ask for visitors to follow these guidelines:

  • Please do not take photographs or videos of students

  • Only use the bathrooms designated for staff or adults

  • Please sign in when entering all buildings, and clearly wear the visitor badge and lanyard which will be provided to you after sign-in