Working together to safeguard children

This guidance is for:

• statutory safeguarding partners (health, local authorities, and police)
• directors of children’s services
• education providers and childcare settings
• social workers
• health professionals
• police (including British Transport Police)
• adult social care services
• housing and homelessness services
• Prison and Probation Services
• children’s homes
• secure establishments (secure training centres and young offender institutions)
• youth offending teams
• UK Visas and Immigration, Immigration Enforcement, and Border Force
• Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass)
• the armed services
• Channel panels
• voluntary, charity, social enterprise (VCSE) and faith-based organisations, and private sectors
• sports clubs and organisations

It applies to:

• all organisations and agencies that have functions relating to children
• all education providers and childcare settings

Statutory guidance is issued by law. You must follow it unless there’s a good reason not to.

Working together to safeguard children 2023

The guidance was updated in 2023, with a focus on:

• strengthening multi-agency working across the whole system of help, support and protection for children and their families
• keeping a child-centred approach while bringing a whole-family focus
• embedding strong, effective and consistent multi-agency child protection practice

The update includes:

• principles for working with parents and carers that centre the importance of building positive, trusting and co-operative relationships to deliver tailored support to families
• expectations for multi-agency working that apply to all individuals, agencies and organisations working with children and their families across a range of roles and activities
• new national multi-agency child protection standards that set out actions, considerations and behaviours for improved child protection practice and better outcomes for children

Statutory framework

The updated statutory framework sets out the legislation relevant to safeguarding. It should be read alongside the statutory guidance.

GuidanceAdditional for children and young peoplematerials

Practitioners can usealso theshare followingand resourcesuse with children, young people and their families:

• Working together to safeguard children: an illustrated guide for children, young people and their families
• the short accompanying animated video
• a toolkit of resources

All children should be helped, supported and protected when things are difficult. The illustrated guide, animated video and toolkit explain to children, young people and their families how individuals, organisations and agencies work together to help, support and protect them.

These materials were co-produced with children and young people, along with the Department for Education’s Social Care Advisory Board, facilitated by the National Children’s Bureau.

Practitioners canwho requestwould like to use the toolkit bycan emailing:email workingtogether.statutoryguidance@education.gov.uk. to request this.

RelatedImproving guidancepractice with children, young people and families

Improving practice with children, young people and families provides advice for local areas on embedding ‘WorkingWorking together to safeguard children’children and the Children’s social care:care national framework.framework.