A quick guide to the KCSiE 2026 changes

We’ve been poring over the final KCSiE 2026 Statutory Guidance and comparing this to last year’s KCSiE, the consultation and the draft. For everyone who wants to know the main changes we’ve set them out below in a quick summary.

You can also download our KCSiE 2026 Final Version Changes Guide PDF.

The consultation proposed some major changes, updated in the draft and with only slight changes now to the final version. Unfortunately, it’s likely there will be another iteration once the information sharing guidance is published, perhaps at the end of the month. We of course will keep you up to speed with all the changes.

Today you’ll find the term prejudice-based harm in several places in the statutory guidance. You’ll need to include this in your policies, feature the prevalence and the impact of such abuse from other young people in your training and consider how you promote and evidence “an inclusive, anti-discriminatory culture” in your setting. The definition of sexual abuse and assault has been aligned to Working Together 2026, new guidance on homelessness and knife possession has been referenced, and there has been work preparing for the changes on information sharing. EYFS are reminded staff cannot start without a DBS check (schools have slightly more prerogative on this).

In detail…

New paragraph 17 – prejudice-based harm:

“All staff should recognise that children may experience prejudice-based harm, including racism, faith-based prejudice, and other forms of discrimination. Such experiences may affect a child's welfare, wellbeing, mental health, and willingness to seek help. Staff should be alert to the signs and impact of prejudice-based harm and ensure that concerns are considered within safeguarding practice where appropriate.”

And paragraph 32:

"All staff should recognise that racism, faith-targeted abuse, and other forms of discriminatory behaviour may have a significant impact on a child’s welfare, wellbeing and sense of safety and should be considered within safeguarding practice where appropriate."

And paragraph 37:

Child-on-child abuse is most likely to include, but may not be limited to:

• discriminatory behaviour, including racism, faith-targeted abuse, and other prejudice-based incidents.

And paragraphs 119 and 193 (part 2):

Schools and colleges should promote an inclusive, anti-discriminatory culture where racism, and other forms of discriminatory behaviour are recognised, challenged and addressed as part of their safeguarding responsibilities.

Amended definition paragraph 28 – Definition of sexual abuse:

Sexual abuse: involves forcing, causing or inciting a child to take part in sexual activities, not necessarily involving violence, whether or not the child is aware of what is happening. The activities may involve physical contact, such as acts of penetration, whether that is with part of a person’s body or an object (e.g. rape or assault by penetration), and non-penetrative acts such as masturbation, kissing, rubbing, and touching outside of over clothing. Sexual abuse may also include noncontact activities, such as involving children in looking at, or in the production of, sexual images, watching sexual activities, encouraging children to behave in sexually inappropriate ways, or grooming a child in preparation for abuse. Sexual abuse can take place online as well as offline, and technology can be used to facilitate offline abuse. Sexual abuse is not solely perpetrated by adult males. Women can also commit acts of sexual abuse, as can other children. Children can be sexually abused within the family, an institution or a community setting, and are more likely to know their abuser than not. The sexual abuse of children by other children is a specific safeguarding issue in education and all staff should be aware of it and of their school or college’s policy and procedures for dealing with it. There are specific offences for children under 13, who can never provide valid consent to sexual activity and there are specific offences which make clear that sexual activity with a child under 16 is an offence, regardless of whether they agreed to that activity.

Information sharing

New guidance to be published shortly – likely to lead to amendments to KCSiE. Some changes now…

• Simplification that practitioners where appropriate can share special category data without the need for consent. This has been kept quite simple, then refers to the legislation and obligations around confidentiality in a footnote. This then talks about getting advice where unsure.

• The seven golden rules reference has been removed – we can anticipate a change here.

EYFS – may not start work under supervision

Where a school or college allows an individual to start work in regulated activity relating to children before the DBS certificate is available, it should ensure that the individual is appropriately supervised and that they carry out all other checks, including a separate children’s barred list check,86 see paragraphs 340-341. Where schools are also subject to the EYFS framework, individuals must not be permitted to begin working within the settings covered by the EYFS framework until the school or maintained nursery school has received the applicant’s enhanced DBS certificate including barred list information. (Paragraph 326 Sep 1, reiterated in paragraph 386)

Homelessness

New Temporary accommodation notification duty – guidance now issued.

Specific statutory guidance for local authorities on the temporary accommodation duty comes into force on 1 September 2026 and can be found here.