Safeguarding: Recognising and Responding to Concern

You may think that you need proof before raising a safeguarding concern. You may also believe that helping means questioning someone in detail, confronting the person suspected of causing harm or promising complete secrecy. These responses can increase risk or interfere with a later assessment.

Safeguarding protects rights, safety and wellbeing Safeguarding means protecting health, wellbeing and human rights while helping people live free from abuse, neglect and exploitation. It applies to children, young people and adults who may be unable to protect themselves from particular risks. Safeguarding is broader than responding after serious harm has occurred. It also includes prevention, early help, safe organisational practices and coordinated action between services. You may encounter a concern as a family member, friend, neighbour, volunteer, colleague, carer or person using a service. You do not need to hold a safeguarding role before you can pass on a genuine concern. A concern is not the same as proof A safeguarding concern means that something has made you question whether a person is safe or receiving appropriate care. One observation rarely proves abuse or neglect. A bruise may have an accidental explanation. A change in behaviour may reflect illness, grief, fear or several factors together. However, lack of certainty is not a reason to ignore a concern. Safeguarding systems exist so that trained professionals can gather information, assess risk and decide what action is proportionate. Your task is not to reach a verdict. It is to communicate what you saw, heard or were told. Concerns can emerge in several ways You may become concerned because someone tells you directly about harm, someone hints at harm without describing it clearly, you observe an injury, unsafe environment or poor care. A person's behaviour or emotional state changes markedly, accounts from different people do not fit together. You notice repeated incidents rather than one isolated event, someone appears frightened, controlled, isolated or unable to speak freely, essential food, medicines, supervision or healthcare appear to be withheld. Money, possessions or benefits appear to be taken or controlled, or a service repeatedly provides degrading, unsafe or neglectful care. These are prompts for further safeguarding consideration. They are not diagnostic tests. Patterns and context matter Safeguarding assessment considers the whole pattern: what happened, when and where it happened, whether it has happened before, the person's usual behaviour and function, the explanation offered, the relationship between the people involved. Whether someone appears afraid or controlled, whether other people may also be at risk, and whether support needs or communication barriers affect the person's ability to seek help. A single incident may still be serious. Equally, several individually minor concerns may reveal an important pattern when information is brought together. Accurate recording and appropriate information sharing help services recognise these patterns. If someone tells you about harm A disclosure may be direct, partial, hesitant or indirect. The person may stop, change the subject or later appear uncertain. Your first response can affect whether they feel heard and whether the information remains reliable. You should stay calm, give the person time to speak, listen without showing disbelief or shock, acknowledge that telling you may have been difficult, use the person's preferred communication method. Take what they say seriously, check only what is necessary to understand immediate safety, and explain that you may need to share the concern with someone who can help. You should not demand a complete account before acting. Listening is not the same as interviewing A safeguarding conversation should not become an interrogation. Avoid repeatedly asking the person to retell events, suggesting what you think happened, asking questions that contain the expected answer, pressing for names, dates or graphic detail that you do not need. Testing whether the account remains identical, trying to catch someone out, asking several people to question the person separately, or conducting your own investigation. Limited, open clarification may sometimes be needed. Examples include asking whether the person feels safe now or whether anyone needs urgent medical help. Formal investigation belongs to trained safeguarding, social care or police professionals. Do not confront the person suspected of causing harm Confrontation may increase danger, cause evidence to be destroyed, lead to intimidation or retaliation, prevent the person at risk from speaking freely, alert someone who may remove a child or adult, or interfere with a police or safeguarding investigation. Do not notify a suspected person before taking advice when doing so could increase risk. Professionals should follow their local procedure on informing parents, carers, relatives or staff members. Check immediate safety first Ask yourself: is anyone being harmed now? Is there a weapon, serious threat or immediate violence? Does anyone need urgent medical treatment? Is a child or dependent adult currently alone or without essential care? Could the person be removed, taken abroad or placed at greater risk soon? Is it safe for you to remain present? Are other people in the setting at risk? Call 999 when there is immediate danger, a serious crime in progress or an urgent medical emergency. NHS England advises using 101 for reporting a crime when there is no immediate danger. Do not place yourself in danger while trying to intervene. You cannot promise complete secrecy You can explain that you will respect the person's privacy. However, you should not promise that nobody else will be told. Safeguarding may require information to be shared with people who can assess risk or provide protection. A useful explanation is: "I will only share this with people who need to help keep you or someone else safe." This is different from broadcasting the information or discussing it casually. Consent remains important, but safety may require sharing Where it is safe and appropriate, professionals should explain what information they plan to share, who may receive it, why sharing is necessary, and what may happen next. The rules differ between child and adult safeguarding. An adult's wishes, capacity and personal outcomes are central to adult safeguarding. However, information may still need to be shared when there is serious danger, coercion, a crime, risk to other people or another legal or professional duty. Information should be relevant, proportionate and shared through secure routes. Record facts, not conclusions A safeguarding record should distinguish between what you personally observed, what the person said, what another person reported, your professional or personal concern, and any immediate action taken. Record as soon as possible: the date, time and location, who was present, the person's own words where possible, relevant behaviour or non verbal communication. Visible findings without speculative interpretation, questions you asked and answers given, who you contacted, advice received, and actions taken. Do not rewrite the account to make it sound more formal. Do not add assumptions about motive or guilt. For children and young people, NICE states that records should accurately reflect their words and that leading questions should be avoided. Pass the concern to the correct service The route depends on who is at risk and where they live. Possible routes include local children's social care, local adult safeguarding services, the police, a healthcare organisation's safeguarding team, a school or organisation's designated safeguarding lead, an emergency duty team outside normal hours, or a regulator where organisational care is unsafe. Professionals must follow their employer's safeguarding policy and local multi agency procedure. If an internal contact is unavailable and delay would increase risk, they should use the external safeguarding or emergency route. Members of the public can contact the relevant local authority safeguarding service directly. Escalate when the response does not address the risk Passing on a concern does not always end your responsibility. Seek further advice or escalate when immediate risk remains, important information was misunderstood, a referral was not accepted despite continuing concern, the situation has deteriorated. New information becomes available, you believe local procedure has not been followed, or someone asks you to suppress or alter a genuine concern. Escalation should remain factual and focused on safety rather than personal disagreement. Safeguarding is a coordinated process Safeguarding may involve health services, social care, police, education, housing and voluntary organisations. No single person usually has the entire picture. Information that seems limited in one setting may become important when combined with information held elsewhere. Multi agency working does not mean sharing every detail with everyone. It means giving relevant information to the agencies responsible for assessment and protection. A report does not predetermine the outcome Possible outcomes include advice or monitoring, early support for a family, healthcare assessment, a care review, domestic abuse support, police investigation, a formal safeguarding enquiry, advocacy, practical protection measures, or no further safeguarding action after assessment. Raising a concern does not automatically mean that a child will be removed or an adult will lose control over decisions. The aim is to understand the risk and choose a proportionate response. Continue treating the person with respect After raising concern: do not repeatedly question the person, do not gossip about the report, avoid making promises about the outcome, continue normal, respectful communication. Explain delays or next steps when you are authorised to do so, ask whether the person needs communication, advocacy or emotional support, and record any further relevant information. A person should not be reduced to the safeguarding concern raised about them. Local procedures and professional judgement still apply This lesson provides a general educational framework. It does not replace local safeguarding policies, multi agency referral thresholds, employer procedures, professional codes, legal advice, police or social care assessment, or clinical judgement. Safeguarding law and referral arrangements differ across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Use the procedure for the place where the person at risk is located.

Your role is to notice, respond and pass on concern, not to prove what happened. A safe response connects six steps: notice a concerning sign, check whether anyone is in immediate danger, listen calmly without investigating, explain what you may need to do next, record facts accurately, and follow the correct local safeguarding route.