All staff members should be aware of systems within their school or college which support safeguarding and these should be explained to them as part of staff induction.

This should include:

• the child protection policy;

• the staff behaviour policy (sometimes called a code of conduct); and

• the role of the designated safeguarding lead. Copies of policies and a copy of Part one of this document (Keeping children safe in education) should be provided to staff at induction.

All staff members should receive appropriate safeguarding and child protection training which is regularly updated. In addition all staff members should receive safeguarding and child protection updates (for example, via email, e-bulletins and staff meetings), as required, but at least annually, to provide them with relevant skills and knowledge to safeguard children effectively.

All staff should be aware of the early help process, and understand their role in it. This includes identifying emerging problems, liaising with the designated safeguarding lead, sharing information with other professionals to support early identification and assessment and, in some cases, acting as the lead professional in undertaking an early help assessment.

All staff should be aware of the process for making referrals to children’s social care and for statutory assessments under the Children Act 1995 that may follow a referral, along with the role they might be expected to play in such assessments.