iFairy working template · Policy
Child protection and safeguarding policy
A ready-to-adapt child protection policy for schools in England built from Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025 and Working Together to Safeguard Children 2026. It covers key contacts, roles, recognising and responding to concerns, records and information sharing, child-on-child abuse, online safety and filtering, allegations against staff, training, and review. It points to your local safeguarding partners' procedures and does not replace them.
iFairy working template — not official guidance. Built by reading the official documents listed under "Based on"; each requirement cites the document and section it comes from. Check the current official wording before you adopt it, and adapt it to your setting and your local authority or trust procedures.
| Do you need one? | Governing bodies and proprietors have a legal duty to make arrangements to safeguard and promote pupils' welfare (section 175 Education Act 2002; Independent School Standards for academies and independent schools) and must have regard to KCSIE. KCSIE says schools 'should' have an effective child protection policy, reviewed at least annually and publicly available. In statutory guidance, 'should' must be followed unless there is good reason not to. Schools named as relevant agencies must act in accordance with the local safeguarding partners' published arrangements. |
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| Why this template | KCSIE runs to almost 200 pages. A school's child protection policy needs a short, usable core that staff actually follow, plus the specific contents KCSIE says the policy should have. This template sets out those contents with citations and gives model wording and placeholders, so the DSL can adapt it to local multi-agency arrangements. |
| Review | At least annually, and when KCSIE, Working Together or local safeguarding arrangements change, or after a serious incident or lessons-learnt review. |
| Last checked by iFairy |
1. Purpose, status and local arrangements
Say what the policy is for, which guidance it follows, and that local multi-agency procedures take precedence on process.
Must include
- The child protection policy should describe procedures in line with government guidance and refer to the locally agreed multi-agency safeguarding arrangements put in place by the safeguarding partners.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 98
- Once named as a relevant agency, a school is under a statutory duty to co-operate with the published local arrangements and must act in accordance with them.
“They must act in accordance with the safeguarding arrangements.”
Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 109 - Governing bodies should understand the local criteria for action and local protocol for assessment and reflect them in the school's policies.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 111
- Working Together applies in its entirety to all schools, and schools must also have regard to KCSIE.Source: Working Together to Safeguard Children 2026, paras 4, 269 and 270
Decide and write down
- Which local safeguarding partnership covers the school (and, for trusts, each academy)? Where are its threshold document and referral procedures published?
- Is this policy written for one school, or a trust policy with a local annex for each school?
Starter wording (edit the highlighted parts)
This policy sets out how [School name] safeguards and promotes the welfare of all children. It follows Keeping Children Safe in Education [year] and Working Together to Safeguard Children [year], and the procedures of [name of local safeguarding partnership]. Where this policy and local procedures differ on how to make a referral, staff follow the local procedures, published at [link]. In this policy 'children' means everyone under 18.
2. Key contacts
Put the names and routes staff need on one page. Use local, checked details only.
Must include
- An appropriate senior member of the leadership team should be the DSL, with lead responsibility for safeguarding and child protection, including online safety and understanding filtering and monitoring, written into their job description. The proprietor should not be the DSL.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 102
- Any deputy DSLs should be trained to the same standard as the DSL.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 104
- Governing bodies and proprietors should have a senior board-level lead for safeguarding.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 78
- Maintained schools and academies must appoint a designated teacher for looked-after and previously looked-after children. The DSL should hold the details of a looked-after child's social worker and Virtual School Head.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, paras 190 and 192
Decide and write down
- Who is the DSL, and who are the deputies? How is the DSL available during term time, and who covers out-of-hours activities?
- What are the local children's social care referral route and out-of-hours number, and the LADO contact? Take these from your local authority website, not from this template.
Starter wording (edit the highlighted parts)
Designated safeguarding lead: [name, role, phone, email]
Deputy DSL(s): [names, roles, contact]
Safeguarding governor/trustee: [name, contact]
Chair of governors (for concerns about the headteacher): [name, contact]
Designated teacher for looked-after children: [name]
SENCo: [name]
Local children's social care referrals: [route and number from local authority website]
Out-of-hours: [number]
Local authority designated officer (LADO): [contact]
Local safeguarding partnership procedures: [link]
3. Roles and responsibilities
Make clear what governors, the headteacher, the DSL and every member of staff are each responsible for.
Must include
- Governing bodies and proprietors have strategic leadership responsibility and must ensure they comply with their legal duties and have regard to KCSIE. Headteachers should ensure the adopted policies are understood and followed by all staff.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 76
- Staff who work directly with children should read at least Part one of KCSIE; staff who do not should read Part one or Annex A.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, Summary, 'School and college staff'
- The DSL is expected to refer cases to children's social care, the Channel programme, the DBS and the police as required, and to liaise with the headteacher, the LADO and other staff.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, Annex C, 'Manage referrals' and 'Working with others'
- Schools should play their full part in local arrangements, including responding to safeguarding audits requested by the local authority or safeguarding partners.Source: Working Together to Safeguard Children 2026, para 83
Decide and write down
- Who checks that every member of staff has read Part one or Annex A, and how is this recorded?
- How does the DSL report to governors, and how often?
Starter wording (edit the highlighted parts)
The governing body [trust board] has overall responsibility for safeguarding and appoints [name] as safeguarding governor. The headteacher makes sure all staff understand and follow this policy. The DSL takes lead responsibility for safeguarding and child protection, as set out in KCSIE Annex C. All staff read [Part one / Annex A] of KCSIE each year and confirm this in writing.
4. Recognising abuse, neglect and exploitation
Help staff know what to look out for, including in groups for whom signs are easily missed.
Must include
- Staff should keep an 'it could happen here' attitude and act in the child's best interests.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 49
- Children may not feel ready or know how to tell someone, and may not recognise their experiences as harmful. This should not stop staff showing professional curiosity and speaking to the DSL.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 17
- The policy should reflect the extra barriers to recognising abuse of children with SEND or certain health conditions, such as assuming indicators relate to the child's condition.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, paras 201 to 203
- Absence from education for prolonged periods or on repeat occasions can be a vital warning sign. The school's response to persistently absent pupils should support identifying abuse.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 177
- Teachers have a legal duty to report to the police if they discover that an act of FGM appears to have been carried out on a girl under 18.
“If a teacher, in the course of their work in the profession, discovers that an act of FGM appears to have been carried out on a girl under the age of 18, the teacher must report this to the police.”
Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 42
Decide and write down
- Which local risks (for example county lines, online exploitation, domestic abuse notifications) does your local partnership highlight?
- How will the DSL and SENCo work together when a concern involves a pupil with SEND?
Starter wording (edit the highlighted parts)
All staff are trained to recognise the signs of physical, emotional and sexual abuse, neglect and exploitation, including signs that happen online and outside the home, as described in KCSIE Part one and Annex B. We are especially alert to children with SEND, looked-after and previously looked-after children, children with a social worker, and children who are absent from school repeatedly or for long periods.
5. What to do if you are worried about a child
Give every adult a short procedure they can follow immediately.
Must include
- Staff should act on concerns immediately, follow the child protection policy and speak to the DSL or a deputy.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, paras 50 and 51
- Staff should never promise a child they will not tell anyone, and should reassure victims that they are being taken seriously and will be supported and kept safe.
“Staff should never promise a child that they will not tell anyone about a report of any form of abuse, as this may ultimately not be in the best interests of the child.”
Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, paras 15 and 16 - If the DSL or deputy is unavailable in exceptional circumstances, this should not delay action: speak to a senior leader and/or take advice from children's social care, then tell the DSL as soon as possible.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 53
- Where a child is suffering or likely to suffer harm, a referral to children's social care (and the police if appropriate) should be made immediately, following the local referral process.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, paras 52 and 57
- The referrer should follow up if children's social care does not respond, and should consider local escalation procedures if the child's situation does not improve.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, paras 62 to 65
- Listen to the child, take what they say seriously, and explain what action you are taking.Source: What to do if worried a child is being abused, para 29
Decide and write down
- How do staff tell the DSL: in person, by phone, or via an online system? What if it is after school or on a trip?
- What does your local partnership say about when to call the police and when to seek consultation with children's social care?
Starter wording (edit the highlighted parts)
If you are worried about a child:
1. If a child is at immediate risk of harm, contact the police and children's social care straight away, then tell the DSL.
2. Listen and stay calm. Do not promise to keep a secret. Do not ask leading questions.
3. Tell the DSL or a deputy straight away, in person or by phone, and record the concern on [system] the same day.
4. If the DSL and deputies cannot be reached, speak to [senior leader] or contact children's social care on [local number]. Do not delay.
5. The DSL decides whether to provide support in school, start early help, or refer to children's social care, following [local partnership] procedures.
6. Records, child protection files and information sharing
Set out what is recorded, how it is kept and passed on, and the basis for sharing information.
Must include
- All concerns, discussions, decisions and reasons should be recorded in writing, kept confidential and secure, ideally in a separate child protection file for each child. Records should include a summary of the concern, how it was followed up and resolved, and the actions, decisions and outcome.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 66
- When a child leaves, the DSL should transfer the child protection file to the new school as soon as possible, within 5 days for an in-year transfer or within the first 5 days of a new term. It should go separately from the main pupil file, in secure transit, with confirmation of receipt.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 121
- Data protection law does not prevent sharing information to keep children safe.
“Fears about sharing information must not be allowed to stand in the way of the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.”
Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 55 - Consent is not needed to share information about a child where there is a risk of harm, though a lawful basis is. Share only relevant, accurate and necessary information, and record the reasons for every decision whether you share or not.Source: Information sharing advice May 2024, The seven golden rules, rules 3, 6 and 7
Decide and write down
- Which system holds child protection records, and who has access?
- How will you confirm receipt of files sent to, and requested from, other schools?
Starter wording (edit the highlighted parts)
Concerns are recorded on [system/form] the same day, with facts, the child's words where possible, and the date, time and name of the person recording. The DSL keeps a separate child protection file for each child concerned, accessible only to [roles]. When a pupil moves school, the DSL sends the file securely and separately within the KCSIE timescale, and obtains confirmation of receipt.
7. Child-on-child abuse
Include the specific content KCSIE says the policy must cover on abuse between children.
Must include
- The policy should include: procedures to minimise risk; well-promoted, accessible systems for children to report; how allegations are recorded, investigated and dealt with; support for victims, perpetrators and others affected; and recognition that abuse may be happening even if there are no reports.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 157
- It should state a zero-tolerance approach and that abuse is never passed off as 'banter', 'just having a laugh', 'part of growing up' or 'boys being boys'.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 157
- It should list the forms child-on-child abuse can take, including bullying and cyberbullying, relationship abuse, physical abuse, sexual violence and harassment, sharing of nudes and semi-nudes (with the school's approach), upskirting, and initiation or hazing.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 157
Decide and write down
- How can pupils report (trusted adults, online form, worry box), and how do you check pupils know?
- How will you support both the victim and the alleged perpetrator when they are in the same classes?
Starter wording (edit the highlighted parts)
We recognise that children can abuse other children, including online, and that it may be happening here even if it is not reported. We do not tolerate it and never dismiss it as banter or part of growing up. Pupils can report to [any adult / named staff / online form]. Reports are recorded and passed to the DSL, who follows KCSIE Part five for sexual violence and harassment and the UKCIS advice for incidents involving nude or semi-nude images.
8. Online safety, filtering, monitoring and mobile technology
Reflect the school's online safety approach in the child protection policy, as KCSIE requires.
Must include
- The child protection policy should reflect the school's approach to online safety, including appropriate filtering and monitoring on school devices and networks, and the school should have a clear policy on mobile and smart technology.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 137
- Under the DfE filtering and monitoring standards, schools should assign roles and responsibilities, review provision at least annually, block harmful content without unreasonably affecting teaching, and have effective monitoring.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 142
- A senior leader and a governor should be made responsible for meeting the standards. The DSL should check reports, respond to concerns raised by filtering and monitoring, and give governors assurance.Source: Filtering and monitoring core standard, section 'Identify and assign roles and responsibilities to manage your filtering and monitoring systems'
Decide and write down
- Who are the responsible senior leader and governor for filtering and monitoring, and when was the last annual review?
- Where is your mobile phone policy, and does it match this policy?
Starter wording (edit the highlighted parts)
Our approach to online safety is based on the 4Cs in KCSIE: content, contact, conduct and commerce. [Senior leader] and [governor] are responsible for filtering and monitoring. The DSL reviews monitoring reports [weekly] and acts on concerns. Provision is reviewed at least annually with IT support. Pupils' use of mobile phones is covered by our [mobile phone policy].
9. Concerns and allegations about staff, and whistleblowing
Make sure staff know where to take a concern about an adult, including the headteacher.
Must include
- Concerns or allegations about staff, supply staff, volunteers or contractors should go to the headteacher. Concerns about the headteacher go to the chair of governors or proprietor, or directly to the LADO where there is a conflict of interest or the headteacher is the sole proprietor.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 70
- Concerns that do not meet the harm threshold should be shared under the school's low-level concerns policy (KCSIE Part four).Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 71
- Appropriate whistleblowing procedures should be in place. Staff who cannot raise concerns internally can use other channels, including the NSPCC Whistleblowing Advice Line.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, paras 72 to 74
Decide and write down
- Where are your staff code of conduct and low-level concerns procedure, and do they match this section?
- Who is the case manager for allegations, and who deputises?
Starter wording (edit the highlighted parts)
If you have a concern about any adult working or volunteering at the school, tell the headteacher, [name]. If the concern is about the headteacher, tell the chair of governors, [name and contact]. Low-level concerns are shared under our [staff code of conduct / low-level concerns policy]. You can also contact the LADO directly on [contact]. Our whistleblowing procedure is at [link].
10. Training, publication and review
Show how staff and governors are trained and how the policy is kept current and made available.
Must include
- All staff should receive safeguarding and child protection training, including online safety and filtering and monitoring, at induction, with updates as required and at least annually.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, paras 123 and 124
- Governors and trustees should receive safeguarding and child protection training, including online, at induction, updated regularly.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 79
- The DSL and any deputies should update their training at least every two years and undertake Prevent awareness training.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, Annex C, 'Training, knowledge and skills'
- The policy should be reviewed at least annually and be publicly available. Parents should know that referrals about suspected abuse or neglect may be made, and what the school's role is.Source: Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 98 and Annex C, 'Raising awareness'
Decide and write down
- What is the training calendar for staff, the DSL, deputies and governors, and where is attendance recorded?
- How do staff contribute to the annual review of this policy?
Starter wording (edit the highlighted parts)
All staff and volunteers receive safeguarding training at induction, followed by updates at least annually, in line with [local partnership] advice. The DSL and deputies refresh their training at least every two years. This policy was approved by [governing body/trust board] on [date], is published at [URL], and will be reviewed by [date].
Checklist
- Replace every placeholder with checked local contacts from the local authority and safeguarding partnership websites, then test the numbers. (Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, paras 110 and 111)
- Confirm the DSL's role, including online safety and filtering and monitoring, is explicit in their job description. (Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 102)
- Give every member of staff this policy, the staff code of conduct, the behaviour policy and KCSIE Part one or Annex A at induction, and record that they have read them. (Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 99)
- Publish the policy on the school website. (Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 98)
- Hold more than one emergency contact for each pupil where reasonably possible. (Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, para 101)
- Record the annual filtering and monitoring review. (Filtering and monitoring core standard, section 'Review your filtering and monitoring provision at least annually')
- Check the policy against your local safeguarding partnership's model policy or audit tool, if it publishes one. (Working Together to Safeguard Children 2026, para 83)
- Diary the next annual review, and a check each summer for the new KCSIE edition.
Watch out
- KCSIE: this template is based on KCSIE 2025 (in force from 1 September 2025). DfE normally publishes a new edition each September. As of 4 October 2026, check GOV.UK for KCSIE 2026 and update every paragraph reference here, because numbering changes between editions.
- Working Together: the 2026 edition (March 2026) replaces Working Together 2023. KCSIE 2025 was written when the 2023 edition was current, so some of its cross-references point to 2023 content. Use the current edition for multi-agency process.
- 'What to do if you're worried a child is being abused' dates from March 2015. Use it for practitioner advice only, and take processes from KCSIE and your local partnership.
- Do not copy thresholds, referral timescales or phone numbers from another area's policy or from a commercial template. Local criteria for action and referral routes are set by your local safeguarding partners.
- This template does not cover safer recruitment (KCSIE Part three) or the detail of managing allegations (Part four). Make sure those procedures exist and are cross-referenced.
- Early years provision in schools must also meet the EYFS safeguarding requirements, including a policy covering mobile phones and cameras in the setting (Working Together 2026, para 271).
Based on these official documents
Main source
Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025
Statutory guidance (September 2025): what all staff must know and do (Part one), policy contents and governance (Part two), allegations against staff (Part four), child-on-child abuse, online safety, filtering, and the DSL role (Annex C). Locators are KCSIE paragraph numbers.
Supporting source
KCSIE 2025 Part One
The standalone Part one that all staff working directly with children should read. Paragraph numbers match the full document.
Main source
Working Together to Safeguard Children 2026
Multi-agency statutory guidance (March 2026), which replaces Working Together 2023: schools' place in local safeguarding arrangements and information sharing.
Supporting source
Working Together to Safeguard Children 2023 — statutory framework
Listed only so readers of the 2023 framework find this template. Working Together 2026 replaces Working Together 2023, and nothing here is cited from it.
Supporting source
Information sharing advice May 2024
The seven golden rules for sharing information. Non-statutory advice.
Supporting source
What to do if worried a child is being abused
Practitioner advice on listening to a child and recording. Non-statutory and dated 2015, but KCSIE still tells schools to read it alongside KCSIE.
Supporting source
Filtering and monitoring core standard
Roles for filtering and monitoring and the annual review (DfE digital standards, updated 17 April 2026).