The short answer
Keeping children safe in education (KCSIE) 2026 came into force on 1 September 2026, replacing the September 2025 version. The DfE published it on 7 July 2026. Its own summary of changes is Annex C, which says the update “reflects substantive changes that strengthen or clarify existing content”, changes to multi-agency working ahead of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act, the Casey Audit “where appropriate”, and new content on violence against women and girls.
| Change | Where in KCSIE 2026 | Our detailed guide |
|---|---|---|
| All staff read Part one in full; condensed Annex A withdrawn | Who this guidance is for; Annex C | Who needs to read what |
| Supervised volunteers now in regulated activity | Paragraphs 383 to 390 | Safer recruitment checks 2026 |
| Nudes and semi-nudes, including AI-generated | Paragraphs 23, 165, 193, 530 | Sharing nudes and semi-nudes |
| Filtering and monitoring review wording | Paragraph 173 | Filtering and monitoring |
| New mobile phone policy section | Paragraph 170 | Mobile phones guidance |
| DSL cover arrangements | Paragraph 129 and Annex B | What is a DSL? |
| Family Help terminology and referrals | Part one; paragraphs 585 to 587 | Early help and Family Help |
| Part five rewritten around the HSB continuum | Paragraphs 529 onwards | Harmful sexual behaviour |
| Trainee teachers named in Part four | Paragraphs 77 to 79, 455 to 459 | When to contact the LADO |
| New medical conditions and allergies section | Paragraph 252 | Supporting pupils with medical conditions |
The annexes have also been renumbered. The role of the DSL is now Annex B (it was Annex C). “Further information” is now Annex A (it was Annex B). The old Annex E on supervision of regulated activity has been removed.
Throughout the guidance
- One term for nudes. KCSIE replaces “indecent”, “sexting” and “youth produced sexual imagery” with “making or sharing of nudes or semi-nudes”, and adds an explainer that covers images “digitally altered or wholly generated using artificial intelligence”. See our nudes and semi-nudes guide.
- Family Help language. “Early help” is split into “universal services and community-based early help” and “the targeted early help level of Family Help”, to match Working Together 2026. See early help and Family Help.
- Definitions. The definitions of sexual abuse (now matching Working Together), sexual assault and assault by penetration are updated, there are more references to misogyny, and “child-on-child abuse” is retitled “child-on-child abuse (including harassment and violence)”.
- Early years. Schools with nursery or reception classes should read section 3 of the EYFS statutory framework alongside KCSIE.
Part one: all staff
- Who reads it. Staff who don’t work directly with children now read Part one too, as the condensed version has gone. See who needs to read what.
- Abuse and exploitation. Part one adds modern slavery, stalking and financial exploitation, says emotional abuse can include verbal abuse, gives clearer examples of sexual abuse, and expands the child criminal and sexual exploitation content, including that most sexual abuse is committed by people known to the victim. The mental health (from paragraph 47) and serious violence (from paragraph 51) sections are “substantially updated”.
- Concerns about adults. Staff concerns about colleagues, including supply staff, trainee teachers, volunteers and contractors, go to the headteacher, who “will consider whether an onward referral to the LADO is required” (paragraph 78). See when to contact the LADO.
Part two: management of safeguarding
- DSL cover. Schools should put “robust cover arrangements” in place for when the DSL is unavailable, for example “a confidential shared mailbox or equivalent system” (paragraph 129).
- Information sharing and data protection. “Data protection laws” now include the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 (paragraph 104). Paragraph 144 points to the new statutory information sharing duty, which came into force on 30 September 2026. See the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act guide.
- Online safety and AI. The “contact” and “conduct” risks now include generative AI applications and AI-generated explicit images (paragraph 165), with links to DfE guidance on generative AI in education (paragraph 167). See filtering and monitoring.
- Filtering and monitoring. The annual review should be carried out by the senior leader responsible, with the DSL and IT support, and should include recorded checks that filtering works on all internet-connected devices (paragraph 173).
- Mobile phones. A new section says all schools should be mobile phone-free by default (paragraph 170). The duty itself comes from the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act. See mobile phones guidance.
- New sections on sport, premises and boarding. These set out the Equality Act single-sex sport exception (paragraphs 97 to 102), the rules on toilets and changing rooms by biological sex (paragraphs 107 to 116), and boarding and residential accommodation (from paragraph 199).
- Vulnerable groups. There are new sections on young carers (paragraph 248) and safeguarding children with medical conditions (paragraph 252), which says a medical or allergy incident does not on its own warrant a safeguarding referral. The section on children who are LGB or gender-questioning has been updated (paragraphs 253 to 284), and the role of virtual school heads in attendance is highlighted.
- Other updates. Reasonable force now reflects the restrictive interventions guidance (paragraphs 206 and 207), and there are updates on alternative provision, mental health support and the child protection policy contents (paragraph 193).
Part three: safer recruitment
- The supervision exemption has gone. Following the Crime and Policing Act 2026, volunteers who teach, train, instruct or supervise children on more than 3 days in 30, or overnight, are in regulated activity even if supervised. Existing volunteers brought into regulated activity on 1 September 2026 must have their barred list status checked (paragraphs 383 to 390). See safer recruitment checks 2026.
- Work experience has been rewritten for the same reason (paragraphs 406 to 410).
- Smaller changes. The DBS Update Service can be joined within 30 calendar days of the certificate’s issue date (paragraph 328). References to the TRA Employer Access Service now say “Check a teacher’s record”. The guidance clarifies DBS checks for self-employed people (paragraph 372) and categories of visitors (paragraph 377). Homestay, formerly Annex D, has moved into the main text.
Part four: concerns about staff
Trainee teachers are named throughout. Schools share safeguarding responsibilities with agencies and other third parties, but still gather the facts and manage the process (paragraph 455). Where a concern is about a trainee teacher, the same expectations apply, and teacher training providers are expected to follow the procedures set for supply agencies (paragraph 459).
Part five: child-on-child sexual violence and harassment
Annex C says Part five has been “substantially rewritten to highlight the progressive continuum from harmful sexual behaviour through to sexual violence”. It makes clear that every incident of sharing nudes or semi-nudes needs a safeguarding response, consensual or not (paragraph 530), adds content on consent, and adds a new section on referrals to Family Help (paragraphs 585 to 587). See harmful sexual behaviour and child-on-child abuse.
Annexes A and B
Annex A adds a section on the temporary accommodation notification duty, expands cybercrime, and updates domestic abuse, Operation Encompass and serious violence content. Annex B, the DSL role, adds the cover arrangements and more on information sharing. See our Operation Encompass guide.