KCSIE 2025 guidance is here!

The DfE has published the draft guidance for 2025-26

The Department for Education has published a draft of its Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) guidance for 2025.

After a detailed consultation period, schools had expected a far-reaching update to the draft guidance. However, this update is more in line with the ‘technical’ changes that have taken place for the last few years.

The 2025 draft guidance largely includes updated terms, wording and corrections, alongside links to resources such as the Plan technology for your school guidance and the Generative artificial intelligence (AI) in education policy paper.

The final version of KCSIE will be released in September 2025 and the DfE says it will aim to include links to revised guidance on relationships, sex and health education, alongside guidance on gender questioning children.

9 headline points for schools from KCSIE 2025

1. DSLs are now explicitly referenced in relation to filtering and monitoring (para 102).
2. Victims must never be blamed or shamed (paras 3, 16, 473, 488, 535).
3. Clarification on safeguarding information provided to staff. KCSIE 2025 confirms that schools can decide whether staff receive Part One (the full safeguarding overview) or Annex A (a condensed summary), depending on their role.
4. Staff training in online safety. This is restated throughout the guidance and is essential in every setting.
5. Stronger emphasis on repeated or prolonged absence as a safeguarding concern (para 177).
6. Early help and professional curiosity (para 18). Staff must feel confident in raising subtle concerns and work collaboratively to provide early support. There’s also an expanded list of children who may need early help.
7. Trusted relationships remain key to safeguarding (Annex C).
8. Teachers’ Standards (2012) are highlighted in paragraph 10. This reinforces safeguarding as integral to every educator’s practice.
9. Mental health as a safeguarding issue (para 43). Staff should understand that changes in behaviour or wellbeing may be symptoms of wider safeguarding concerns.

As the KCSIE guidance emphasises each year, safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility – and school leaders play a vital part in making sure that all staff are fully trained and understand their role in keeping children safe.