Early Years

A practitioner must be designated to take lead responsibility for safeguarding children in every setting. Childminders must take the lead responsibility themselves. The lead practitioner is responsible for liaison with local statutory children’s services agencies, and with the Children’s MARS Board. They must provide support, advice and guidance to any other staff on an ongoing basis, and on any specific safeguarding issue as required. The lead practitioner must attend a child protection training course that enables them to identify, understand and respond appropriately to signs of possible abuse and neglect.

Providers must train all staff to understand their safeguarding policy and procedures and ensure that all staff have up to date knowledge of safeguarding issues. Training made available by the provider must enable staff to identify signs of possible abuse and neglect at the earliest opportunity, and to respond in a timely and appropriate way. These may include:

• significant changes in children’s behaviour
• deterioration in children’s general well-being
• unexplained bruising, marks or signs of possible abuse or neglect
• children’s comments which give cause for concern
• any reasons to suspect neglect or abuse outside the setting, for example in the child’s home or that a girl may have been subjected to (or is at risk of) female genital mutilation
• inappropriate behaviour displayed by other members of staff, or any other person working with the children, for example: inappropriate sexual comments; excessive one-to-one attention beyond the requirements of their usual role and responsibilities; or inappropriate sharing of images

Providers must have regard to the government’s statutory guidance Working Together to Safeguard Children and to the Prevent duty guidance for England and Wales. All schools are required to have regard to the government’s Keeping Children Safe in Education statutory guidance, and other childcare providers may also find it helpful to refer to this guidance. If providers have concerns about children’s safety or welfare, they must notify agencies with statutory responsibilities without delay. This means the local children’s social care services and, in emergencies, the police.

Registered providers must inform Ofsted or their childminder agency of any allegations of serious harm or abuse by any person living, working, or looking after children at the premises (whether the allegations relate to harm or abuse committed on the premises or elsewhere). Registered providers must also notify Ofsted or their childminder agency of the action taken in respect of the allegations. These notifications must be made as soon as is reasonably practicable, but at the latest within 14 days of the allegations being made. A registered provider who, without reasonable excuse, fails to comply with this requirement, commits an offence.