National Professional Qualification for Headship (NPQH) Safeguarding and Statutory Responsibilities Syllabus

What is the NSPCC whistleblowing advice line for?

It provides a confidential channel for staff who do not feel able to raise safeguarding concerns internally, or who feel their concern has not been taken seriously by their employer.

What procedure must be followed when an allegation is made against a member of staff?

The Part 4 KCSIE 'managing allegations' procedure: the headteacher (or chair of governors if the allegation is against the head) must contact the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) on the same day, ideally before taking further action.

What does LADO stand for and what is its function?

Local Authority Designated Officer: provides advice and manages allegations against adults who work with children, coordinating the process and liaising with police and social care as needed.

What are the 'harm test' thresholds used to assess whether an allegation against staff should be referred?

Whether the person has: behaved in a way that has harmed, or may have harmed, a child; possibly committed a criminal offence against or related to a child; behaved towards a child in a way that indicates they may pose a risk of harm; or behaved in a way that indicates they may not be suitable to work with children (transferable risk).

What body must be informed if a member of staff is dismissed or leaves due to harming a child, and why?

The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). Schools have a legal duty to make a referral where they consider a person has harmed, or poses a risk of harm, to a child, so the person can be considered for barring.

What document sets out the standards of professional conduct expected of headteachers in England?

The Headteachers' Standards 2020 (non-statutory), built around ethics and professional conduct plus ten standards across four domains: school culture, teaching, curriculum and assessment, behaviour, and additional headship domains (organisational management, continuous school improvement, working in partnership, governance and accountability).

What are the four 'headship domains' added to the Headteachers' Standards beyond the teaching standards?

Organisational management; continuous school improvement; working in partnership; and governance and accountability.

Which Act provides the legal framework for a school's responsibilities and powers, and underpins the duty to safeguard?

Principally the Education Act 2002 (section 175 places a duty on governing bodies of maintained schools to safeguard and promote welfare); academies are bound by equivalent provisions in the Education and Skills Act 2008 and their funding agreement.

What does section 175 of the Education Act 2002 require?

It requires local authorities and governing bodies of maintained schools and FE colleges to make arrangements to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. (For academies the equivalent duty is in section 157.)

What is the single central record (SCR) and what must it contain?

A statutory record schools must keep of pre-appointment vetting checks for all staff, including identity, right to work, DBS (and barred list) checks, prohibition checks, qualifications and references.

What is the statutory minimum notice an employer and a teacher must give under standard teacher contracts (resignation dates)?

Teachers in maintained schools must resign by fixed dates: by 31 October to leave at 31 December (spring), by 28/29 February to leave at 30 April (summer), and by 31 May to leave at 31 August (autumn).

Which piece of legislation underpins most individual employment rights such as unfair dismissal and redundancy?

The Employment Rights Act 1996.

What is the qualifying period for ordinary unfair dismissal claims for most employees?

Generally two years' continuous service (with exceptions for automatically unfair reasons such as whistleblowing, pregnancy, or trade-union activity, which require no qualifying period).

What are the five potentially fair reasons for dismissal under the Employment Rights Act 1996?

Capability or qualifications; conduct; redundancy; statutory illegality (contravention of a duty/restriction); and 'some other substantial reason' (SOSR).

What document governs teachers' professional conduct and is referenced in misconduct cases?

The Teachers' Standards (2011, updated 2021), Part Two of which sets out personal and professional conduct expectations applicable in all settings.

Who regulates serious teacher misconduct and can issue a prohibition order in England?

The Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA), acting on behalf of the Secretary of State; a prohibition order bars a person from teaching.

What is the statutory framework governing school admissions in England?

The School Admissions Code (statutory under the School Standards and Framework Act 1998), which all admission authorities must act in accordance with; it requires fair, clear and objective oversubscription criteria.

Who hears appeals from parents refused a school place, and is the panel's decision binding?

An independent admission appeal panel, constituted under the School Admissions Appeals Code. Its decision is legally binding on the admission authority.

What are the two types of school exclusion in England?

Suspension (formerly fixed-period exclusion), for a set number of school days up to 45 in a school year, and permanent exclusion.

Who has the legal power to exclude a pupil from a maintained school, and on what grounds?

Only the headteacher (or acting head). Exclusion must be lawful, reasonable, fair, proportionate, and only on disciplinary grounds where the pupil has seriously breached, or persistently breached, the behaviour policy and allowing them to remain would harm education or welfare.

In a permanent exclusion, who reviews the headteacher's decision and what can they do?

The governing board's pupil discipline committee reviews it; if it upholds the exclusion the parents may request an Independent Review Panel (IRP), which can uphold, recommend reconsideration, or quash and direct reconsideration of the decision.

What is the maximum total number of school days a pupil may be suspended in one academic year?

45 school days in a single academic year.

What is the statutory framework for Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) provision?

The Children and Families Act 2014 (Part 3) and the SEND Code of Practice 0-25 years (2015), which schools must have regard to.

What are the four broad areas of need recognised in the SEND Code of Practice?

Communication and interaction; cognition and learning; social, emotional and mental health difficulties; and sensory and/or physical needs.

What is an EHC plan and who is responsible for it?

An Education, Health and Care plan: a legal document for children whose needs cannot be met by ordinary SEN support, specifying provision. The local authority is responsible for issuing, maintaining and reviewing it (annually).

What graduated approach must schools use to support pupils with SEN?

The 'Assess, Plan, Do, Review' cycle, revisited regularly to inform an increasingly tailored understanding of the pupil's needs and effective support.

Who must every mainstream school designate to coordinate SEN provision, and what qualification is required?

A qualified teacher acting as the Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO), who must achieve the National Award for SEN Coordination within three years of taking up the post.

What statutory duty do schools have toward pupils with medical conditions, and under which Act?

Under section 100 of the Children and Families Act 2014, governing bodies must make arrangements to support pupils with medical conditions, having regard to the statutory guidance 'Supporting pupils at school with medical conditions', usually via an Individual Healthcare Plan (IHP).

What is an Individual Healthcare Plan (IHP)?

A plan that records the medical needs of a pupil with a long-term or complex condition and the support required, detailing who is responsible, what to do in an emergency, and any medication or care needs.

How is a 'looked-after child' (LAC) defined in England?

A child in the care of a local authority for more than 24 hours: subject to a care order, accommodated under section 20 of the Children Act 1989, or remanded/placed by the courts. Often termed a 'child in care.'

What role must every school appoint for looked-after and previously looked-after children?

A designated teacher for looked-after and previously looked-after children (statutory under the Children and Young Persons Act 2008), responsible for promoting their educational achievement.

What is a Personal Education Plan (PEP) for a looked-after child?

A statutory part of the child's overall care plan, setting out their educational needs, targets and support; it is reviewed regularly and informs use of Pupil Premium Plus funding for looked-after children.

What is the difference between 'looked-after' and 'previously looked-after' children regarding admissions priority?

Both looked-after and previously looked-after children (those adopted or under a special guardianship/child arrangements order after being in care) receive the highest priority in school admissions oversubscription criteria.

Since September 2020, what subjects became statutory in English schools?

Relationships Education (primary), Relationships and Sex Education (RSE, secondary), and Health Education (all state-funded schools), under the Children and Social Work Act 2017 and associated regulations.

Can secondary parents withdraw their child from statutory RSE, and what are the limits?

Parents may request to withdraw their child from the sex education components of RSE (not Relationships or Health Education) up to three terms before the child turns 16, after which the child can opt in themselves.

What must schools publish regarding their RSE provision?

A written policy on Relationships Education / RSE, developed in consultation with parents and made available to them, including how and when content is delivered.

What is the headteacher's duty regarding the science curriculum and sex education content?

Some elements of sex education (e.g. reproduction in the National Curriculum science) are compulsory and cannot be withdrawn from; the school must distinguish these from the RSE elements parents may withdraw from.

Which Act sets out schools' duties not to discriminate, and which characteristics does it protect?

The Equality Act 2010. The nine protected characteristics are age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation.

What is the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) and which section creates it?

Section 149 of the Equality Act 2010: public bodies, including schools, must have due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination, advance equality of opportunity, and foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not.

What is the duty to make 'reasonable adjustments' under the Equality Act 2010?

Schools must take reasonable steps to avoid putting disabled pupils at a substantial disadvantage compared with non-disabled pupils, including providing auxiliary aids and services. The duty is anticipatory.

Distinguish direct discrimination from indirect discrimination under the Equality Act 2010.

Direct discrimination is treating someone less favourably because of a protected characteristic; indirect discrimination is applying a provision, criterion or practice that disadvantages people sharing a protected characteristic and cannot be objectively justified as a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.

What specific equality duties must schools publish under the Equality Act 2010 regulations?

Schools must publish information demonstrating compliance with the PSED (at least annually) and prepare and publish one or more specific, measurable equality objectives (reviewed at least every four years).

Under the Prevent duty, what statutory obligation do schools have, and under which Act?

Under section 26 of the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015, schools must have due regard to the need to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism, including assessing risk and referring concerns (e.g. to Channel).

What is 'peer-on-peer' (child-on-child) abuse and what does KCSIE require schools to assume?

Abuse between children, including sexual harassment, sexual violence, bullying, and sharing of nude images. KCSIE requires schools to assume it is happening even where there are no reports, and to maintain a zero-tolerance culture.