The Designated Safeguarding Lead carries the decisions everyone else in the setting is relieved not to make: whether a concern crosses a threshold, when to pick up the phone to children’s social care, what to do when the allegation is about a colleague. Since the September 2025 EYFS reforms formalised the DSL role, every setting needs a named lead with defined responsibilities, cover arrangements and training that matches the weight of the job — this Level 3 course is that training.
Written for DSLs, deputy DSLs and the managers and owners who appoint them, the course runs across eleven in-depth lessons and works through the whole architecture of the role — from receiving the first concern to servicing a child protection plan, leading early help, overseeing suitability and staying ahead of online and emerging risks — before three worked case scenarios and a 15-question assessment put your judgement to the test.
What you’ll learn
- What the formalised DSL role requires since September 2025 — named lead, defined responsibilities, deputy cover and oversight of the whole-staff two-yearly training cycle
- How to receive and triage concerns with a consistent ladder: immediate danger, medical need, the pattern check, then your local thresholds
- How to make strong referrals and work with children’s social care and multi-agency partners — including information sharing, consent and professional challenge
- How to manage allegations against staff through the LADO route, with suspension treated as neutral and support for everyone involved
- How to keep confidential safeguarding files and lead a safeguarding culture — induction, the training cycle, supervision’s standing questions and honest self-audit
- What happens after the referral — strategy discussions, section 47 enquiries, child protection conferences, core groups and review conferences — and how to lead early help for families below the threshold
- How to oversee safer recruitment and ongoing suitability: enhanced DBS with barred-list checks, staff disclosure duties, regular declarations and supervision of unchecked adults
- How to handle online harms, Prevent and emerging risks — device and imagery policy, staff online conduct, family-context radicalisation concerns and AI-generated imagery — and apply the whole toolkit through worked case scenarios
Successful candidates receive a Designated Safeguarding Lead (Level 3) completion certificate. National Nursery Training is an NFAQ-accredited training provider, so your certificate carries recognised accreditation and provides evidence for compliance, audit and continued professional development.
