What the role is
The governing body of a maintained school, or the trust board of an academy, has strategic leadership responsibility for the school’s safeguarding arrangements (KCSIE 2026, paragraph 84). It must comply with the law, have regard to KCSIE, and make sure policies, procedures and training are effective.
Paragraph 86 says boards should have a senior board-level lead to take leadership responsibility for safeguarding. Most schools call this person the safeguarding governor or link governor. In a trust, it may be a trustee, with link governors on local committees.
The role is strategic. The safeguarding governor:
- does not manage concerns about children or take part in casework
- doesn’t need to see named child protection records to do the job
- helps the board test and assure itself that safeguarding works, as paragraph 87 puts it, through questions, visits and reports
The whole board keeps responsibility for safeguarding. The link governor helps it do that.
Training and reading
All governors and trustees should have safeguarding and child protection training, including online safety, at induction, and it should be updated regularly (paragraph 87). The training should help them give “strategic challenge” and check that the school’s policies and procedures are effective.
The DfE governance guides for maintained schools (section 7.8) and academy trusts (section 7.10) say all governors, trustees and the governance professional should read and follow Part two of KCSIE, “The management of safeguarding”.
What the board is responsible for
Most good questions come from the duties Part two gives the board. The board should make sure:
- there is a whole-school approach to safeguarding (paragraph 119)
- there is an effective child protection policy, reviewed at least once a year and published (paragraph 123)
- a senior leader is appointed as DSL, with the time, funding, training and support they need, and there is robust cover when the DSL is away (paragraphs 127 to 130)
- all staff have safeguarding training at induction and updates at least once a year (paragraphs 153 to 154)
- the school has appropriate filtering and monitoring, reviewed at least once every academic year (paragraph 173)
- safer recruitment is in place and effective (paragraph 126 and Part three)
- the school takes part in local multi-agency safeguarding arrangements and follows them (paragraphs 132 to 137)
What a DSL’s report to governors should include
KCSIE doesn’t prescribe a format or frequency. Most boards get a written report from the DSL each term and a fuller annual report. The board needs enough to carry out its strategic duties under Part two and to show the “strategic oversight” Ofsted’s safeguarding standards look for.
| Item | What to include | Why it matters / source |
|---|---|---|
| DSL team and cover | Who the DSL and deputies are, their time, training dates, and how concerns are picked up when the DSL is away | Robust cover, such as a confidential shared mailbox, is new in KCSIE 2026 (paragraphs 127 to 130). DSL training is updated at least every two years (Annex B). |
| Concerns | Counts by category and year group, compared with last term and last year, and any clusters | Shows whether the board’s arrangements work. Ofsted expects leaders to learn from cases and incidents (toolkit, safeguarding). |
| Referrals and outcomes | Referrals to children’s social care, Family Help and the police, outcomes, and any escalations | Social care should decide next steps within one working day, and referrers should escalate if a child’s situation doesn’t improve (KCSIE paragraphs 70 to 73). Use “Family Help”, the Working Together 2026 term for targeted early help. |
| Children with a social worker | Numbers on child in need and child protection plans, and looked-after children | The DSL should hold this information and use it to decide on support and on responses to absence (paragraphs 217 to 219). |
| Absence and children missing education | Persistent and severe absence for these groups, children missing education, and removals from roll | Absence can be a warning sign of neglect and exploitation (paragraph 221). See persistent and severe absence. |
| Online safety | Date and findings of the filtering and monitoring review, who led it and whether checks were recorded, plus online incidents, including AI-generated images | The board should make sure the review happens at least once every academic year, led by the SLT member responsible, with a record kept (paragraph 173). KCSIE’s online risks include explicit images “generated using AI” (paragraph 165). |
| Child-on-child abuse | Numbers and themes, including sexual harassment and the sharing of nudes | A “not met” standard in the Ofsted toolkit if leaders don’t fulfil these responsibilities. KCSIE Part five. |
| Staff training | The percentage of staff with induction training, who have read Part one, and who have had this year’s update | All staff should be trained at induction and updated at least once a year (paragraphs 153 to 154). |
| Governor training | Who has had safeguarding training, and when it was last updated | All governors and trustees should be trained at induction, with regular updates (paragraph 87). |
| Safer recruitment | When the single central record was last checked, gaps found and fixed, and panel training | Part three and paragraph 126. Ofsted reviews the single central record early on day 1. |
| Allegations and low-level concerns | Numbers, themes and LADO referrals, with no staff names in board papers | Low-level concern records should be reviewed for patterns and wider cultural issues (paragraph 522). |
| Pupil voice | What surveys, pupil groups and reporting routes tell you about whether pupils feel safe | The child’s wishes and feelings should shape decisions (paragraph 120). Ofsted’s standard is that pupils “are kept safe and feel safe” and their voices are heard. |
| Policies and the audit | When the child protection policy was last reviewed, and progress on the section 175 audit action plan | The policy is reviewed at least once a year (paragraph 123). Audits go to the governing body (Working Together 2026, paragraph 83). |
Keep it anonymous
Board papers are shared widely and kept for years, so report counts and themes, never names. Small numbers can still identify a child, for example “one child protection plan in Year 3” in a one-form-entry school. Many schools give “fewer than 5” instead of an exact figure, or combine year groups or categories. Governors don’t need named records to do their job, and if a governor asks about a case, the DSL can talk about the process without identifying the child.
Checking it against Ofsted
A useful test for the board is whether the report would let it say, with evidence, that each of Ofsted’s safeguarding “met” standards applies. Our guide to how Ofsted judges safeguarding lists them. Our free safeguarding governor visit template turns the same areas into a checklist for visits. NGA members can also use the National Governance Association’s safeguarding monitoring tool.
Questions to ask
These are a starting point. Ask for evidence, not just a yes.
Leadership and the DSL
- Who is our DSL, and who are the deputies? Is the role in their job descriptions?
- Does the DSL have enough time and support? What would they change?
- What happens when the DSL is off sick or on leave? How do concerns reach someone without delay?
- When did the DSL team last complete formal training, and when is the next refresh due?
Policies
- When was the child protection policy last reviewed? What changed for KCSIE 2026?
- Is it on the website? Do staff know where to find it?
- Does the staff code of conduct cover low-level concerns, allegations and whistleblowing?
Staff knowledge and training
- How many staff have read Part one of KCSIE 2026, including staff who don’t work directly with children?
- How do we know staff understand it, not just that they signed it?
- What safeguarding updates have staff had this year?
Concerns and referrals
- How many concerns were raised this term, and in which categories? How does that compare with last year?
- How quickly are urgent concerns picked up?
- How many referrals did we make to children’s social care, and did we get outcomes? Have we ever needed to escalate a disagreement?
- How many pupils have a social worker, and how do we support their education?
Safer recruitment and allegations
- Is the single central record complete? When was it last checked, and by whom?
- Has everyone on interview panels had safer recruitment training?
- How many low-level concerns and allegations about staff have there been? Were they handled in line with Part four?
Online safety
- When was filtering and monitoring last reviewed? Who carried out the review, and what did it find?
- Are filtering checks recorded on every type of device?
- How are pupils taught about online risks, including AI-generated images?
Pupils and parents
- How do pupils report a worry? Do they know who to go to?
- What do pupil and parent surveys tell us about whether pupils feel safe?
Working with others
- What does the local safeguarding partnership expect of us? Have we completed the annual safeguarding audit it asks for?
Visits and reports
KCSIE doesn’t set a number of visits. Many boards ask the link governor to visit at least once a term and write a short note for the full board.
Keep notes free of pupils’ names and other identifying details. Cover what you looked at, what is working, what could be better and what you will follow up. Working together to safeguard children 2026 (paragraph 83) says schools should report the safeguarding audits that local safeguarding partners ask for to their governing bodies and proprietors. That report is a natural thing for the link governor to review.
What Ofsted asks governors
Ofsted’s operating guide says inspectors meet those responsible for governance. They also ask the chair of governors, or a trustee in an academy, how the board would manage concerns or allegations about the headteacher. The chair has that role under KCSIE Part four, because they act as case manager when the allegation is about the head. A safeguarding governor should know that process as well.