Safeguarding

Safeguarding Policy

Last Updated: March 2026

Your Tutor Guide Ltd provides tutoring services to children and young people in Years 10–13 (typically aged 14–18). Safeguarding is at the centre of everything we do. This policy sets out our legal duties, our standards, and how to report a concern.

Legislation	Requirement	Status
Online Safety Act 2023 (fully implemented 2026)	Duty of care — prevention of Priority Harms and illegal content	Implemented
Online Safety Act 2023	Risk assessment for services accessible to children	Implemented
Worker Protection Act 2023	Proactive duty to prevent third-party harassment of staff/tutors	Implemented
Keeping Children Safe in Education (2025)	Enhanced DBS checks and safer recruitment	Implemented
Children Act 1989 / 2004	Welfare of the child as paramount consideration	Implemented

1. Our Duty of Care

Under the Online Safety Act 2023, which is fully implemented as of 2026, digital services that may be accessed by children have a statutory duty to:

• Take proactive steps to prevent users from encountering Priority Harms and illegal content.
• Conduct risk assessments proportionate to the nature and reach of the service.
• Operate with transparency about the safety measures in place.

Your Tutor Guide takes this duty seriously. Although our website is a static informational site with no user-generated content, community features, or messaging functionality, we maintain robust safeguarding standards across all aspects of our service — online and offline.

2. Prevention of Priority Harms

Priority Harms under the Online Safety Act 2023 include (but are not limited to):

• Child sexual exploitation and abuse (CSEA) material
• Grooming and sexual communication with a child
• Harassment, bullying, and threatening behaviour
• Fraud and financial exploitation
• Content promoting self-harm or suicide

How we prevent these harms

Measure	Detail
No user-generated content	Our website does not permit public posts, comments, messaging, or file sharing. There is no mechanism for users to contact each other through our platform.
Enhanced DBS checks	Every tutor must hold a valid Enhanced DBS certificate before being approved. We verify certificates directly and conduct ongoing monitoring.
Personal vetting	Every tutor is personally interviewed by the founder. We do not allow self-listing or unverified sign-ups.
Monitored agency email	All communication between families and the agency is routed through a monitored agency email address, providing an auditable trail.
Agency-arranged sessions	Tutoring sessions are arranged and supervised by the agency. Tutors do not independently contact families outside of approved channels.
Code of Conduct	All tutors sign a Code of Conduct covering professional boundaries, acceptable communication, and mandatory reporting obligations.

3. Tutor Safeguarding Standards

Every tutor working with Your Tutor Guide must meet the following requirements before they are matched with a student:

1. Enhanced DBS Check — a valid Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service certificate, including a check against the children’s barred list.
2. Identity verification — confirmed through government-issued ID.
3. Personal interview — conducted by the founder to assess suitability, subject expertise, and safeguarding awareness.
4. Safeguarding training — completion of recognised safeguarding awareness training (Level 1 minimum) before first session.
5. Code of Conduct — signed agreement covering:
   • Professional boundaries with students and families
   • Appropriate communication channels (agency email only)
   • Mandatory reporting of any safeguarding concerns
   • Prohibition of unsupervised social media contact with students
6. Ongoing monitoring — regular performance reviews and renewed DBS checks as required.

If a tutor fails to meet any of these standards, they will be immediately suspended from the service pending investigation.

4. Harassment Protection

Under the Worker Protection Act 2023, employers (and engaging organisations) have a proactive duty to take reasonable steps to prevent third-party harassment of their workers.

Your Tutor Guide extends this duty to all tutors working through our agency:

• Clear escalation path — tutors can report any harassment from clients, students, or third parties directly to the Designated Safeguarding Lead.
• Zero tolerance — we operate a zero-tolerance approach to harassment of tutors. Any substantiated complaint will result in immediate suspension of the client relationship.
• Support and follow-up — tutors who experience harassment will be offered support and kept informed throughout any investigation.
• Preventative measures — all sessions are arranged through the agency, and families are informed of our conduct expectations at the point of engagement.

5. Report a Concern

Anyone — parents, students, tutors, or members of the public — can report a safeguarding concern. You do not need to be certain that abuse or harm has occurred. If something feels wrong, report it.

Step 1 — Contact the Designated Safeguarding Lead

Send an email to: safeguarding@yourtutorguide.co.uk

Step 2 — Provide details

Please include as much of the following as you can:

• Your name and contact details (you may report anonymously, but this may limit our ability to investigate)
• The nature of the concern — what happened or what you observed
• The name(s) of the person(s) involved, if known
• The date(s) and time(s) of the incident(s)
• Any supporting evidence (screenshots, messages, etc.)

Step 3 — 48-hour internal triage

Once we receive your report:

Timeframe	Action
Within 4 hours	Acknowledgement sent to the reporter confirming receipt
Within 24 hours	Initial risk assessment conducted by the Designated Safeguarding Lead
Within 48 hours	Triage completed — decision made on next steps (internal resolution, external referral, or both)

Step 4 — Escalation to external authorities

Where the concern involves potential criminal activity, risk of significant harm to a child, or meets statutory reporting thresholds, we will refer the matter to the appropriate external body:

• Police — 999 (emergency) or 101 (non-emergency)
• Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) — for allegations against people who work with children
• NSPCC Helpline — 0808 800 5000
• Childline — 0800 1111
• CEOP (Child Exploitation and Online Protection) — ceop.police.uk

We will cooperate fully with any external investigation and will not attempt to conduct our own investigation where doing so could compromise an external process.

6. Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL)

The DSL is responsible for:

• Receiving and acting on all safeguarding concerns
• Conducting initial risk assessments and triage
• Making referrals to external authorities where required
• Maintaining confidential safeguarding records
• Ensuring all tutors receive appropriate safeguarding training
• Reviewing and updating this policy annually

If the DSL is unavailable, concerns should be directed to: hello@yourtutorguide.co.uk

7. Record Keeping & Confidentiality

• All safeguarding reports are recorded securely and stored separately from general business records.
• Access to safeguarding records is restricted to the DSL and, where necessary, external authorities.
• Information is shared on a strict “need to know” basis to protect the privacy and dignity of all parties.
• Records are retained in accordance with statutory requirements and our Privacy Policy.

8. External Resources

If you or someone you know needs help, the following organisations provide confidential support:

Organisation	Contact	Purpose
NSPCC	0808 800 5000 · nspcc.org.uk	Concerns about a child’s safety
Childline	0800 1111 · childline.org.uk	Support for children and young people
CEOP	ceop.police.uk	Online child exploitation
Samaritans	116 123 · samaritans.org	Emotional distress and crisis support
Police	999 (emergency) / 101 (non-emergency)	Criminal matters and immediate danger

9. Policy Review

This policy is reviewed at least annually, or sooner if there is a change in legislation, a safeguarding incident, or a significant change to our service. The next scheduled review is March 2027.