Safer Recruitment in Education
Safe and effective recruitment is one of the strongest safeguards a school or college has against abuse. This course is designed for anyone responsible for hiring people who work with children in an education setting, covering the practices, checks and legislation that underpin safer recruitment, including how to handle allegations against staff once someone is in post.
Description
This course has been updated to comply with and include changes from Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) 2026 and Working Together to Safeguard Children (WTSC) 2026 legislation. This legislation came into force on 1st September 2026 and was published by the Department for Education.
Safer recruitment is designed to help those responsible for hiring in education identify, deter or reject individuals who may pose a risk to children. This course covers the full recruitment process, from job specifications and advertising through to interviewing, pre-employment checks and induction, using real safeguarding case studies, including the Bichard Inquiry, to show what happens when recruitment practices fail.
It covers the legislation that underpins safer recruitment, including the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006, the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012, and the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026, which sets out enhanced DBS requirements specific to education settings. It also covers DBS checks in detail, including the different levels of check and when each applies, and how to recruit fairly and lawfully when a candidate has a spent or unspent conviction.
New to this course is a dedicated module on managing allegations against staff once someone is already employed, covering the role of the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO), referrals to the DBS, confidentiality, and how to handle a resignation or settlement agreement without compromising a safeguarding investigation.
Who should take this course?
This course is for anyone involved in recruiting staff or volunteers to work with children in an education setting, or in managing a safeguarding concern about existing staff. This includes:
Headteachers and senior leaders
HR staff and recruiting managers
Governors and governing bodies
Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs)
What does this training cover?
What safer recruitment is, and the legislation that underpins it
Best practice for job specifications, advertising, application forms and shortlisting
References, interviews and pre-employment checks
DBS checks, including the different levels of check and when each applies
Recruiting candidates with spent or unspent convictions
Managing allegations against staff, including referrals to the DBS and the LADO process
Safer Recruitment in Education Course Certificate and Assessment
After completing all the course materials and passing the online assessment, learners will be able to download and print a Virtual College certificate, which they can keep for their records.
At the end of this course, you will need to complete a test that consists of 10 multiple choice questions. Learners are required to achieve a 75% pass mark, and - if necessary - may attempt the test three times at no extra cost. If learners do not achieve the 75% pass mark, further attempts may be given by contacting our support team.
Duration
This course takes around 2 hours to complete. As it's all online, you can complete it at your own pace, in stages, with your progress recorded throughout and as long as you like spent on each section.