Safeguarding Mistakes Made By Businesses
Safeguarding is not something that should only concern schools, charities, care providers or organisations working directly with children and adults at risk. Any business that comes into contact with people who may be at risk of abuse, neglect, exploitation or harm has a responsibility to consider safeguarding.
For some businesses, safeguarding can feel like a complicated area filled with policies, DBS checks, training and procedures. However, having documents in place does not necessarily mean an organisation has effective safeguarding arrangements.
In fact, some of the biggest safeguarding failures occur because organisations believe they are doing enough when, in reality, important gaps remain.
The good news is that many common safeguarding mistakes can be avoided with the right approach.
Treating Safeguarding As A One Off Exercise
One of the most common safeguarding mistakes businesses make is treating safeguarding as something that can be completed once and then forgotten.
A safeguarding policy is written, staff complete their training, relevant DBS checks are carried out and everyone assumes the organisation is covered.
Safeguarding does not work like that.
Risks can change as businesses grow, new employees join, services change, new technology is introduced or an organisation begins working with different groups of people. A risk assessment that was appropriate two years ago may no longer reflect the organisation's current circumstances.
Safeguarding arrangements should therefore be reviewed regularly and whenever there is a significant change to the way an organisation operates.
Having A Safeguarding Policy That Nobody Understands
Having a safeguarding policy is important, but simply having a document saved somewhere on a company server does not create a safeguarding culture.
Employees need to understand what safeguarding means, how to recognise a concern and what they should do if they are worried about someone.
Policies should be written in a way that people can understand and use. Staff should know who their safeguarding lead is, how concerns should be reported and what happens after a concern has been raised.
The Charity Commission makes clear that organisations should have robust safeguarding policies and practices that everyone understands and uses, including clear arrangements for identifying and reporting concerns.
Assuming A DBS Check Means Someone Is Safe
DBS checks are an important part of safer recruitment where the role is eligible, but they are only one part of a much wider process.
A DBS check should not be treated as proof that an individual is suitable to work with children or adults at risk.
Effective safer recruitment can also involve appropriate references, checking employment history, exploring gaps in employment, asking safeguarding focused interview questions and considering whether the individual is suitable for the specific role.
Safeguarding does not stop once someone has been recruited either. Appropriate supervision, training, management and ongoing performance monitoring remain important.
Failing To Carry Out Safeguarding Risk Assessments
Another common mistake is failing to identify the specific safeguarding risks associated with the business.
Different organisations face different risks. A business providing care services will have very different safeguarding considerations from a company running children's activities, a recruitment agency, a sports organisation or a business providing services online.
A safeguarding risk assessment should consider who the organisation works with, what activities take place, where those activities happen and where opportunities for abuse, exploitation or inappropriate behaviour could arise.
The Charity Commission specifically expects organisations to identify and manage safeguarding risks based on who they work with, where they operate and what they do.
Assuming Safeguarding Only Applies To Children
Safeguarding is often associated primarily with child protection, but businesses may also have responsibilities towards adults at risk.
The Care Act statutory guidance defines adult safeguarding as protecting an adult's right to live in safety, free from abuse and neglect. It also emphasises prevention, proportionality, protection, partnership and empowering adults to have control over decisions affecting them.
Businesses working with adults who have care and support needs therefore need to consider the safeguarding risks associated with their services and the people they employ.
This could include risks relating to financial abuse, neglect, physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, discriminatory abuse, domestic abuse, organisational abuse and self neglect.
Not Considering Online Safeguarding
The digital environment creates another area where businesses can overlook safeguarding risks.
Employees may communicate with clients, service users, children or adults at risk through email, messaging platforms, social media or other digital systems.
Organisations should consider whether their policies adequately cover online communication, professional boundaries, the sharing of images and information, personal social media accounts and inappropriate digital contact.
Online safeguarding should not be treated as a separate issue from general safeguarding. It should form part of the organisation's wider assessment of risk.
The 2026 Working Together to Safeguard Children guidance also strengthens the focus on different forms of harm, including online harms and other less visible forms of abuse.
Not Taking Professional Boundaries Seriously
Professional boundaries are particularly important for organisations where employees have close, regular or one to one contact with children or adults at risk.
A relationship that appears harmless can become inappropriate if boundaries are not clearly established and understood.
Businesses should consider issues such as physical contact, private communication, accepting gifts, social relationships, transporting service users, personal social media connections and one to one meetings.
Clear expectations should be established from the beginning and employees should feel confident about challenging behaviour that appears inappropriate.
Assuming Safeguarding Is Someone Else's Responsibility
A safeguarding lead or designated safeguarding person can play a vital role, but safeguarding should not sit entirely with one individual.
Every member of staff should understand their own responsibility to recognise and report concerns.
This is particularly important in larger organisations where employees may assume that someone else will deal with a concern.
A strong safeguarding culture encourages people to speak up, ask questions and report concerns rather than waiting for someone else to take action.
For organisations working with children, the 2026 Working Together guidance reinforces safeguarding as a shared responsibility and places emphasis on organisational responsibilities and leadership.
Failing To Listen To Concerns
Another serious mistake is not taking concerns seriously enough.
A safeguarding concern does not need to come from a formal complaint. It might be something an employee notices, something a client says, a change in someone's behaviour or an incident that initially appears relatively minor.
Staff should know that they do not need to prove that abuse has taken place before raising a concern.
Organisations need clear reporting procedures that allow concerns to be recorded, considered and escalated appropriately.
Creating a culture where people feel comfortable speaking up can help identify risks before they develop into more serious incidents.
Poor Record Keeping
Safeguarding concerns should be recorded accurately, objectively and securely.
Poor record keeping can make it difficult to establish what happened, what was reported, who was involved and what action was taken.
Businesses should have clear procedures covering the recording and storage of safeguarding information, including who has access to sensitive records and when information should be shared.
Good records can also help organisations identify patterns. Several apparently minor concerns involving the same person, location or activity may reveal a much bigger safeguarding risk.
Failing To Learn From Incidents
A safeguarding incident should not simply be dealt with and then forgotten.
Once immediate safeguarding action has been taken, organisations should consider what can be learned from the situation.
Was there a gap in training? Was a policy unclear? Were warning signs missed? Was the risk assessment adequate? Did staff know who to report the concern to?
Learning from incidents and near misses can help organisations strengthen their safeguarding arrangements and reduce the likelihood of similar problems occurring again.
Not Keeping Training Up To Date
Safeguarding training should not be viewed as a box ticking exercise.
Employees need training that is relevant to their role and appropriate to the risks they may encounter.
Training should help people understand how to recognise safeguarding concerns, what action to take, how to report concerns and where to seek advice.
As safeguarding guidance and organisational practices develop, training should also be reviewed to ensure it remains relevant.
Failing To Challenge Poor Practice
One of the most difficult aspects of safeguarding can be challenging someone whose behaviour does not feel right.
This could be a colleague, manager, volunteer, contractor or another professional.
Businesses should make it clear that safeguarding concerns apply to everyone, regardless of their position within an organisation.
The Care Act statutory guidance recognises the importance of having clear arrangements for allegations involving people in positions of trust and requires organisations to consider potential risks to adults with care and support needs.
A person's seniority should never prevent an organisation from taking a safeguarding concern seriously.
Not Reviewing Safeguarding After A Change
Safeguarding arrangements should be reviewed whenever an organisation changes significantly.
This could include:
• Moving to new premises
• Introducing a new service
• Working with a new client group
• Recruiting large numbers of employees
• Starting to work with children or adults at risk
• Introducing new online systems
• Changing working practices
• Beginning lone working
• Organising events or activities
• Experiencing a safeguarding incident
Changes can introduce new risks that may not have existed when the original safeguarding arrangements were created.
How Can Businesses Avoid Safeguarding Mistakes?
The starting point is to understand the safeguarding risks that are specific to your organisation.
Businesses should have appropriate safeguarding policies and procedures, carry out relevant risk assessments, recruit safely, provide suitable training and make sure employees understand how to report concerns.
Safeguarding should also be regularly reviewed at management level. Leaders need to demonstrate that safeguarding is taken seriously and that concerns will be listened to and acted upon.
Most importantly, safeguarding should become part of the organisation's culture rather than simply another compliance requirement.
RLB Safeguarding Can Help Your Business
Getting safeguarding right can be challenging, particularly when businesses are unsure whether their existing policies, risk assessments and procedures are sufficient.
RLB Safeguarding provides expert safeguarding consultancy, training, policy development and support to organisations working with children and adults at risk.
Whether you need help developing safeguarding policies, reviewing your existing arrangements, carrying out safeguarding risk assessments or providing training for your employees, professional support can help ensure your organisation has the right systems and processes in place.
Effective safeguarding is about more than having the right paperwork. It is about creating an environment where people are protected, concerns are recognised and action is taken when something does not feel right.
If you are concerned that your business may have safeguarding gaps, RLB Safeguarding can help you identify them and put appropriate measures in place.
