The largest section in the EYFS by far is section 3, the section on safeguarding and welfare requirements which shows the weight and severity of this topic for early years practitioners. There is NOTHING more important than safeguarding children. Period. Practitioners are entrusted with the lives of small children, who do not yet understand the dangers of the world and are mostly trusting of all adults. It is a very responsible position to hold, and you only need to look to the serious case reviews of safeguarding gone wrong to appreciate the gravity of the situation.
The safeguarding requirements of early years settings/partitioners and childminders are laid out in detail in their respective statutory frameworks and this article cannot cover all areas in just two pages. Therefore, it is incumbent on ALL practitioners to read and re-read safeguarding advice and documents on a regular basis, regardless of whether they have done it before or not. Times change, circumstances change, and legislation changes. There are regular updates to the law which all practitioners need to be aware of. Apprentices who are under 18 need safeguarding too, and there are always cases where adults may need help, for example, cases of FGM or domestic violence and abuse.
Since safeguarding and child protection is such a large area, we have broken it down into some more manageable areas that you can look at, working through one step at a time.
Safeguarding Policies
All safeguarding practice starts with ensuring that your setting has a policy to follow for different situations. Policies act as guidance, informing your staff and parents/carers how you will deal with situations should they arise. You need a policy for safeguarding and child protection. Many settings have one policy to cover both areas, but you can split them if you wish. Policies should be reviewed regularly and at least once a year, especially when things such as “Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) are updated. KCSIE applies to all maintained school settings but can also act as guidance for other early years settings too and maintained nursery schools “must have regard to KCSIE when carrying out duties to safeguard and promote the welfare of children”.
The guidance should be read alongside other documents which are aimed at early years practitioners, including:
These documents should be used to write your safeguarding and child protection policies since they set out the responsibilities that are legally expected of practitioners. Other policies that you have may also affect safeguarding and may need updating too. This can include policies for:
- Health and safety
- Fire safety
- Anti-bullying
- Animals on site
- Risk assessment
- Handling of medications
- First aid
- Safer recruitment
- Phone and camera/recording equipment use
- Record-keeping and GDPR
- Allegations and complaints
- Prevent duty
- Whistleblowing
- Online safety
- Missing child
- Looked after children
- Late collection of children
- Home visits
This is not an exhaustive list, but it shows how wide-ranging safeguarding is.
The Role Of The DSL
All settings must have a senior member of staff as their nominated Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) who has responsibility for safeguarding in the setting. They will need access to secure record-keeping facilities so that information can be stored securely and kept confidential. They will also need specialist training at regular intervals to achieve a Level 3 DSL qualification. Some settings may also have a Deputy DSL (DDSL) who acts in place of the DSL if they are absent. Childminders act as their own DSL.
DSLs and DSSLs have clear and distinct responsibilities including being able to:
- Gain appropriate child protection/DSL qualifications
- Write or review child protection and safeguarding policies
- Respond appropriately to concerns and signs of neglect or abuse, making referrals to other child protection partners if necessary
- Keep accurate and confidential records
- Liaise with local authority children’s services and other local safeguarding partners which include the police and the integrated care board (healthcare commissioners)
- Provide support, training, and guidance to staff, governors/trustees and parents on an on-going basis about all aspects of safeguarding The DSL should be involved in aspects of policy writing and communicating these policies to your staff and families. Staff should have access to policies at all times and these are usually published on a website or staff intranet.
Remember that governors or a members of a Board of Trustees will also need to have safeguarding training, and it is good practice to have at least one governor or trustee with responsibility for ensuring safeguarding matters are addressed and adhered to.
Safeguarding Protocols
Once you have policies written and approved by any governing body, you can write your protocols from them. Protocols are easy-to-follow instructions on what to do in any situation, such as how to change a nappy, or how to administer medication. It is the responsibility of the DSL to ensure that staff are trained in safeguarding matters including protocols and procedures and that all staff follows these. This may include face-to-face training sessions, online courses or training by other members of staff who teach people what to do. Protocols and procedures should be available for members of staff of staff to use in their day-to-day activities and some settings like to create posters or displays of non-sensitive information for staff to follow. Some protocol examples could be:
- Administration of medications
- Accident prevention
- First aid
- Information and record keeping – what to record and where
- Baby room things to do
- Toilet and intimate hygiene
- Individual protocols for children with special needs or disabilities (SEND)
The EYFS also has other topics to consider under safeguarding and child protection and more details can be found in the relevant EYFS. These are generally to do with:
- People – including safer recruitment procedures to employ suitable people, volunteers, supervision, key person roles
- Training and qualifications – Paediatric first aid, staff:child ratios with qualified personnel
- Premises – statutory HSE requirements, indoor space requirements, equipment, site security
- Food and drink – preparation and food hygiene, allergies, choking hazards, mealtime supervision, food poisoning
Child Protection
There are four types of abuse that are described in the document “Keeping Children Safe in Education”, often referred to as ‘KCSIE’. These are:
Over 50,000 children were on child protection plans last year in the UK. The advice is to always think “it could happen here” and to be vigilant and aware.
KCSIE is updated each year with new safeguarding concerns and it is important that all practitioners understand their roles and responsibilities in regard to safeguarding. In educational settings, all staff are required by law to confirm that they have read Part 1 of the document each year.
