Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE)

Keeping Children Safe in Education is a vital part of safeguarding policy and procedures for education settings. On this page you will learn more about this important statutory guidance from the DfE. You will also find additional support that will help your school to comply with the guidance; helping to create a safe environment for all.

Teacher stood in front of their school with the students playing

What does KCSIE stand for? 

KCSIE stands for Keeping Children Safe in Education. Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) is a key piece of statutory guidance in England which protects children and young people under the age of 18.

What is Keeping Children Safe in Education?

Keeping Children Safe in Education is a key piece of statutory guidance in England. The Department for Education issues and updates the guidance on a yearly basis. The document sets out the legal duties educational settings must follow in order to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people.   

The guidance applies to all staff working in educational settings, including teachers, support staff, and volunteers. All the following organisations should read and follow the KCSIE guidance;  

  • Governing bodies of maintained schools

  • Proprietors of independent schools

  • Management committees of pupil referral units

  • Senior leadership teams

If you work with children, do you need to read and follow KCSIE?

The KCSIE document has different sections. Part one includes safeguarding information suitable for all school staff. School governing bodies, leadership teams and designated safeguarding leads will decide whether you need to read this part. This will depend on whether you work directly with children.

Staff who do not work directly with children read either Part one or Annex A (a condensed version of Part one) of the guidance.

Teacher with their students huddled together

How regularly is the guidance updated?

Over the years the original document has had many updates, usually timed around the start of the academic year. The newest version will come into effect on the 1st September 2024 replacing the 2023 version.

What are the 5 parts of ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’?

Keeping Children Safe in Education document features five key parts.

Part one: Safeguarding information for all staff

  • This section provides key information relevant for all staff. It reiterates the importance of a child-centred, child-first approach to safeguarding. This section is also available as a standalone document.

Part two: The management of safeguarding

  • It lays out the responsibility of governing bodies, proprietors and management committees, headteachers and designated safeguarding leads.

Part three: Safer recruitment

  • This part sets out the legal requirements and best practice for the recruitment process for schools and colleges. This includes selection, vetting and pre- appointment checks and responsibilities that all schools and colleges must follow.

Part four: Safeguarding concerns or allegations made about staff, including supply teachers, volunteers and contractors

  • It covers how schools and colleges should deal with and manage safeguarding allegations or concerns against staff. The section also outlines processes that should be in place to deal with the different thresholds of harm.

Part five: Child-on-child sexual violence and sexual harassment

  • This part of the statutory guidance details how schools and colleges should respond to all signs, reports and concerns of child-on-child sexual violence and sexual harassment.

What do the 6 annexes cover?

Annex A: A shorter version of Part one, for staff that do not work directly with children  

Annex B: Additional information about specific forms of abuse and safeguarding issues  

Annex C: Role of the DSL and deputy  

Annex D: Host families - homestay during exchange visits  

Annex E: Statutory guidance for regulated activity (children) - Supervision of activity with children which is regulated activity when unsupervised  

Annex F: Table of substantive changes from September 2023  

Teacher juggling the 6 annexes

KCSIE references ‘Working together to safeguard children’ what is it?

Working together to safeguard children is the key statutory guidance for anyone working with children in England. The 2023 revision of the guidance focuses on strengthening multi-agency working. It also reiterates the importance of all involved agencies maintaining a child-centred approach. The update includes: 

  • Expectations for multi-agency working

  • New national multi-agency child protection standards

  • Principles of working with parents and carers.

Guidance on KCSIE from Tes 

  • KCSIE 2024

    Keeping children safe in education 2024 updates

    The Department for Education (DfE) has published the draft Keeping children safe in education (KCSIE) guidance 2024, introducing important changes to safeguarding practices in schools and colleges across England.

    Read more Read more
  • KCSIE 2023-Hero image

    5-day guide to KCSIE 2023

    Keeping children safe in education (KCSIE) 2023 is currently in force and all schools and colleges must use it. To help you and all your staff feel confident about some of the key changes that have been made, we've created a free 5-day email guide.

    Read more Read more
  • Students watching their teacher on a screen

    Keeping children safe in education (KCSIE) 2022

    The latest update to Keeping children safe in education (KCSIE) has now come into force and all schools and colleges must use it. Our experts have put together an up-to-the-minute debrief on everything you need to know and how we can help.

    Read more Read more
  • Safeguarding online filtering and monitoring standards DS94572

    Guide to Filtering and Monitoring Standards 2023 

    With the widespread use of technology today, your school needs to implement robust filtering and monitoring systems to protect your community from potentially harmful, inappropriate online content.

    Read more Read more

Advice from Tes Magazine

  • Tes Magazine Key safeguarding changes schools need to know image

    KCSIE 2024: Key safeguarding changes schools need to know

    This year’s update to official safeguarding guidance includes only minor changes in language. Here we outline the key updates.

    Read more Read more
  • Tes Magazine 5 tips for online filtering and monitoring image

    KCSIE 2023: 5 tips for online filtering and monitoring

    With new guidance coming into force on how schools monitor pupils’ internet use, this safeguarding lead explains the key things that leaders should focus on.

    Read more Read more
  • Tes Magazine How do you get staff to engage with KCSiE image

    How do you get staff to engage with KCSiE?

    Every single adult in every school needs to read KCSiE. But how can you make this more than a tick-box exercise? Craig Keady from DRET shares his approach.

    Read more Read more
  • Tes Magazine How can schools stay ahead of emerging safeguarding threats image

    How can schools stay ahead of emerging safeguarding threats?

    The latest Tes Big Debate webinar dissects the findings of a new survey that details a raft of safeguarding issues being seen by schools – and how to address them.

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How we can help

We have great tools that can help you to safeguard the children in your care.

  • Teachers doing safeguarding checks

    Safeguarding training

    Keep your entire school community up to date with the latest safeguarding knowledge with unlimited access to over 80 expert-written online training courses in safeguarding, compliance, health and safety, and wellbeing.

    Read more Read more
  • Teacher safeguarding her pupils

    MyConcern

    Support staff to easily record and monitor safeguarding concerns. Enabling early interventions by identifying trends and patterns and helping to inform decision-making with our case management system, MyConcern, now part of Tes.

    Read more Read more