Safeguarding

The Safeguarding module provides a secure system for raising, tracking, and managing child protection concerns. It supports the full safeguarding workflow from initial concern through triage, investigation, action, monitoring, and closure. Access is restricted to designated safeguarding team members.

Accessing Safeguarding

1. Log in as a school administrator or designated safeguarding team member.
2. Navigate to Safeguarding from the sidebar.

Restricted Access

The Safeguarding module is only visible to users who have been granted safeguarding team access. If you do not see it in the sidebar, contact your school administrator.

Safeguarding Dashboard

The dashboard provides an overview of safeguarding activity:

• Statistics cards — Open concerns, your assigned concerns, overdue reviews, and unassigned concerns.
• Status and urgency breakdowns — A visual breakdown of concerns by status and by urgency level.
• Quick actions — Links to record a new concern or view the full concern list.

1. 1Record Concern opens the form to raise a new concern.
2. 2The Concerns tab opens the full concern list.
3. 3Statistics cards summarise open, assigned, overdue and unassigned concerns at a glance.

Concern Statuses

Concerns progress through a defined workflow:

Status	Description
Draft	Being composed but not yet submitted
Submitted	Raised and awaiting triage
Triaged	Reviewed and prioritised by the safeguarding lead
Under Investigation	Being actively investigated
Action Taken	Investigation complete, actions have been implemented
Monitoring	Ongoing monitoring after initial actions
Closed	Resolved and closed

Urgency Levels

Each concern has an urgency level:

Level	Description
Low	No immediate risk; can be reviewed in due course
Medium	Some concern; review within a few days
High	Significant concern; review within 24 hours
Critical	Immediate risk; requires same-day action

Raising a Concern

1. Click Record Concern from the dashboard or concern list.
2. Search for the student — Type the student's name to find them.
3. Fill in the concern details:
   • Category — Select the type of concern (e.g., physical abuse, emotional abuse, neglect, bullying, online safety, self-harm).
   • Urgency — Set the urgency level.
   • Description — Provide a detailed account of the concern using the rich text editor. Include dates, times, locations, and what was observed or disclosed.
   • Location — Where the incident occurred (optional).
4. Choose to Save as Draft (to continue editing later) or Submit (to send to the safeguarding team).

Recording Concerns

Record facts, not opinions. Note exactly what you saw or were told, using the child's own words where possible. Avoid interpreting or investigating — that is the role of the safeguarding team.

1. 1The form for recording a new safeguarding concern.
2. 2Concerns are confidential — only relevant safeguarding staff can see them.
3. 3Search for the student the concern is about.

Managing Concerns

Viewing the Concern List

The Concern List page shows all concerns you have access to. Use the tabs and search to narrow the view:

• All Concerns / My Assigned / Unassigned / Overdue Review / Closed — Quick-filter tabs by workflow status and assignment.
• Search — Find concerns by student name.

Concern Detail View

Click on a concern to see its full detail, which includes:

• Concern information — Student details, category, urgency, description, and location.
• Case notes — Detailed notes added during the investigation.
• Attachments — Supporting documents and evidence.
• External referrals — Records of referrals to external agencies.
• Linked concerns — Related concerns for the same student or incident.
• Visibility settings — Who can see this concern.

1. 1Triage starts the next status-change step for this concern.
2. 2Assign hands the concern to a safeguarding team member.
3. 3Export Data generates a document with the concern details.
4. 4Tabs switch between case notes, attachments, external referrals, linked concerns and visibility.

Changing Concern Status

1. Open the concern detail page.
2. Click the appropriate status action button:
   • Triage — Mark the concern as triaged after initial review.
   • Open Investigation — Begin a formal investigation.
   • Record Action — Document actions taken.
   • Start Monitoring — Move to ongoing monitoring.
   • Close — Close the concern with a resolution outcome.
3. Add notes explaining the status change.
4. Click Continue to confirm.

1. 1Set or confirm the urgency level for this concern.
2. 2Optionally assign the concern to a team member as part of the status change.
3. 3Continue confirms the status change.

Assigning a Concern

1. Open the concern detail page.
2. Click Assign.
3. Select the safeguarding team member to assign the concern to.
4. Click Assign to confirm.

Case Notes

Case notes provide an immutable, timestamped record of all observations, decisions, and actions related to a concern.

Adding a Case Note

1. Open the concern detail page.
2. Scroll to the Case Notes section.
3. Type your note using the text editor.
4. Click Add Note.

Immutable Records

Case notes cannot be edited or deleted once created. This ensures a complete and tamper-proof audit trail. Take care with what you write, as it becomes a permanent record.

Attachments

You can attach files to a concern as supporting evidence:

1. Open the concern detail page.
2. Go to the Attachments section.
3. Upload files as needed.

External Referrals

When a concern needs to be referred to an external agency (e.g., local authority children's services, police, health services):

1. Open the concern detail page.
2. Go to the External Referrals section.
3. Record the referral details:
   • Agency type — MASH, local authority, police, health services, or other.
   • Agency name and contact details.
   • Referral date and reference number.
   • Status — Pending, acknowledged, under assessment, or outcome received.
4. Update the referral status as you receive responses from the agency.

Linked Concerns

If multiple concerns relate to the same student or incident, you can link them together:

1. Open the concern detail page.
2. Go to the Linked Concerns section.
3. Search for and select related concerns.

Linked concerns appear on both sides of the link, making it easy to see the full picture.

Closing a Concern

1. Open the concern detail page.
2. Click Close Concern.
3. Select the resolution outcome:
   • Resolved — No Further Action
   • Resolved — With Ongoing Support
   • Resolved — External Agency Handling
   • Unsubstantiated
4. Add closing notes.
5. Confirm the closure.

Reopening a Concern

If new information emerges after a concern has been closed:

1. Open the closed concern.
2. Click Reopen.
3. Provide a reason for reopening.
4. The concern returns to active status.

Concern Visibility

Control who can access each concern:

1. Open the concern detail page.
2. Go to the Visibility tab.
3. Manage which safeguarding team members can see this concern.

By default, concerns are visible to the safeguarding lead and the person who raised them.

Exporting Concern Records

For compliance or external reporting:

1. Open the concern detail page.
2. Click Export Data.
3. Choose the export format.
4. The system generates a document containing the concern details, timeline, case notes, and referral information.

Tips

• Report promptly — Raise concerns as soon as possible while details are fresh.
• Be factual — Record what was observed or disclosed, not interpretations.
• Review the dashboard regularly — Check for unactioned concerns and overdue reviews.
• Maintain confidentiality — Only discuss concerns with those who need to know. Use the visibility settings to restrict access.
• Keep referral records up to date — Update external referral statuses as you receive communications from agencies.