Safeguarding is too important to leave to guesswork.
For organisations working with children, adults at risk, service users, customers or employees, having the right safeguarding policies and procedures in place is essential. But knowing what good safeguarding looks like, understanding your responsibilities and keeping your arrangements up to date can be challenging.
That is where a safeguarding consultancy can make a significant difference.
The right safeguarding consultant should do more than simply provide a policy or tell you what you need to do. They should help you understand your organisation's specific risks, identify areas for improvement and give your people the knowledge, confidence and practical support they need to create a safer environment.
At RLB Safeguarding, this is exactly what we aim to provide.
Why Choose A Specialist Safeguarding Consultancy?
Safeguarding is a complex and continually evolving area. Guidance changes, risks develop and organisations themselves change over time.
Trying to manage everything internally can leave businesses and organisations unsure whether their safeguarding arrangements are genuinely effective or simply appear compliant on paper.
A specialist safeguarding consultancy can provide an independent perspective.
An experienced consultant can review your existing arrangements, identify gaps, challenge existing practices and provide practical recommendations that are relevant to your organisation.
This is particularly valuable because there is no single safeguarding model that works for everyone. A school, recruitment company, healthcare organisation, charity, university, commercial business and community organisation may all have completely different safeguarding risks.
Why Choose RLB Safeguarding?
RLB Safeguarding was founded and is owned by Managing Director Rachael Bishop, who has more than 21 years of experience across the safeguarding sector.
That experience spans a wide range of environments, including Child and Adult Social Care, Human Resources, Higher and Further Education, Primary and Secondary Education, the NHS, Mental Health Services, the Prison Service, the Police, Substance Misuse Services, Domestic Abuse Services and Youth Offending Services.
This breadth of experience is one of the things that makes RLB different.
Safeguarding does not exist in isolation. It overlaps with leadership, HR, recruitment, governance, compliance, workplace culture, education, healthcare and many other areas.
Having consultants who understand those different environments means RLB can look at safeguarding from a much wider perspective.
A Bespoke Approach To Safeguarding
One of the biggest mistakes organisations can make when seeking safeguarding support is choosing a provider that offers a one size fits all solution.
Your organisation is unique. Your people are different. Your risks are different. Your safeguarding challenges are different.
RLB takes a bespoke approach to safeguarding consultancy, working with organisations to understand their individual requirements before recommending the most appropriate support.
This could involve reviewing safeguarding policies and procedures, carrying out an audit, undertaking a safeguarding risk assessment, providing supervision, supporting governance or developing a longer term safeguarding strategy.
RLB also offers consultancy packages ranging from flexible day rate projects through to ongoing safeguarding retainers and partnerships. The latter can provide organisations with continued access to advice, guidance, resources, specialist expertise and proactive safeguarding support.
Safeguarding Consultancy That Goes Beyond Paperwork
Good safeguarding is not about having a folder full of policies.
Policies are important, but they are only effective when people understand them and know how to put them into practice.
RLB's approach is focused on strengthening safeguarding knowledge, processes and culture through consultancy, audit, supervision and training.
That means the focus is not simply on identifying what is missing. It is about helping organisations understand why something matters and how it can be implemented effectively.
This practical approach is reflected in feedback from organisations that have worked with RLB.
One Health and Wellbeing Coordinator at Hitachi Construction Machinery described RLB's training as engaging and informative, particularly highlighting the use of real life case studies and personal experience.
What Do RLB's Clients Say?
The best way to understand what a safeguarding consultancy can offer is often to hear from the organisations that have experienced it themselves.
An Employee Relations Director at Sage said:
“RLB are so knowledgeable on everything Safeguarding, but most importantly engaging.”
They also highlighted RLB's ability to make what can sometimes be a difficult subject come to life and help professionals become more proactive, reflective and knowledgeable.
That combination of expertise and engagement is particularly important when dealing with safeguarding.
It is one thing to understand the theory. It is another to make safeguarding meaningful to the people responsible for putting it into practice.
Expertise That Makes Safeguarding Understandable
Safeguarding can sometimes feel complicated.
There are policies to understand, legislation and guidance to keep up with, reporting procedures to establish, risks to assess and staff to train.
RLB's role is to help make that process more manageable.
A Head of Safeguarding who completed RLB's Level 4 Designated Safeguarding Lead course described it as the best DSL course they had attended, highlighting how thought provoking the training was and how Rachael's experience helped facilitate meaningful discussion and shared learning.
That emphasis on practical learning is central to the RLB approach.
Support For Organisations Of All Types
Safeguarding is not limited to one particular sector.
RLB supports statutory, commercial, private and charity organisations across different industries. The organisation's stated mission is to create safer environments through outstanding safeguarding training, expert guidance, services and support.
This means RLB can support organisations at very different stages of their safeguarding journey.
Perhaps you are developing your safeguarding arrangements for the first time.
Perhaps your organisation has grown and your existing policies no longer reflect the way you operate.
Perhaps you have experienced an incident and need independent advice.
Or perhaps your safeguarding arrangements are already established but you want an experienced external organisation to review them and identify opportunities for improvement.
RLB can provide support according to your specific requirements.
Safeguarding Consultancy, Training And Auditing
Choosing RLB does not necessarily mean simply commissioning a one off consultancy project.
RLB offers a wider range of safeguarding services, including strategic safeguarding support, safeguarding governance for the commercial workplace, safeguarding supervision, consultancy packages, accredited training and bespoke training.
This allows organisations to build a safeguarding support package around their actual needs.
For example, an organisation might require a safeguarding audit followed by policy development and staff training. Another may need ongoing strategic support and safeguarding supervision.
Bespoke training can also be developed around an organisation's specific sector, challenges and objectives rather than relying on generic training content.
A Safeguarding Consultancy You Can Talk To
Safeguarding can involve difficult conversations and challenging decisions.
That makes the relationship between an organisation and its safeguarding consultant particularly important.
You need to feel comfortable asking questions, challenging ideas and discussing concerns openly.
A testimonial from an HR Manager at Yorwaste Ltd describes Rachael as “friendly, approachable, professional, and knowledgeable” and highlights her passion for safeguarding.
That combination matters.
Expertise is essential, but so is the ability to communicate clearly, listen and work collaboratively with the people responsible for safeguarding within an organisation.
A Long Term Safeguarding Partner
For some organisations, safeguarding support is not something they need once a year.
Safeguarding responsibilities continue throughout the year and organisations may benefit from having access to specialist advice whenever questions or concerns arise.
RLB's safeguarding retainer and partnership model is designed for organisations that want ongoing access to safeguarding expertise, resources, guidance and support.
It can provide predictable costs, priority access to support, proactive guidance and access to specialist information as safeguarding expectations and risks evolve.
For organisations without the resources to maintain a large internal safeguarding team, this can provide an additional layer of specialist expertise and reassurance.
Choosing The Right Safeguarding Consultancy
Choosing a safeguarding consultancy is ultimately about more than finding the cheapest provider or the organisation with the longest list of services.
You need to consider experience, expertise, approachability, sector knowledge and whether the consultancy understands that effective safeguarding is about people rather than simply paperwork.
At RLB Safeguarding, the focus is on helping organisations develop the confidence and competence to fulfil their duty of care and keep people safe.
With more than 21 years of safeguarding experience, a team of specialist consultants and trainers, a wide range of consultancy services and a bespoke approach to each organisation, RLB provides safeguarding support designed around your needs.
How RLB Safeguarding Can Help
Whether you need a complete review of your safeguarding arrangements, an independent safeguarding audit, help developing policies and procedures, safeguarding supervision, strategic advice, staff training or ongoing consultancy support, RLB Safeguarding can help.
The first step does not have to be complicated.
RLB offers a complimentary 30 minute consultation with no commitment, pressure or obligation. It provides an opportunity to discuss your organisation, understand your safeguarding requirements and explore what type of support would be most appropriate.
If you are unsure whether your organisation's safeguarding arrangements are as strong as they could be, speaking to an experienced safeguarding consultancy could be the first step towards finding out.
With RLB Safeguarding, the aim is simple: to provide expert guidance, practical support and the confidence to create safer organisations for everyone.
