Part three of KCSIE 2026 has four sections: the recruitment and selection process; pre-appointment checks, regulated activity and recording; other checks for staff, volunteers and others; and ongoing safeguarding and the legal reporting duties on employers (paragraph 285).
In practice it covers:
- the job description, advert and application form, including the safeguarding responsibilities of the post and a statement that it is an offence for a barred person to apply (paragraphs 290 to 292)
- shortlisting, self-declarations, online searches and references taken up before interview
- the mandatory checks, such as identity, an enhanced DBS check with barred list information, right to work, prohibition and, where relevant, section 128 and childcare disqualification
- recording the checks on the single central record
Training. Governors and proprietors should make sure that people involved in recruiting staff have safer recruitment training covering at least Part three (paragraph 288). In maintained schools and pupil referral units, regulations require at least one person on each interview panel to have done safer recruitment training (paragraph 289).
2026 brought changes to references, overseas checks and volunteers. Our guide covers them in detail.