Safeguarding Round-Up: Online Safety, Modern Slavery, Exploitation, Mental Health and Protecting Children
RLB Safeguarding Ltd | 13 October 2026
Safeguarding continues to evolve across legislation, regulation, research and frontline practice.
This week's developments highlight the breadth of safeguarding responsibilities, from protecting children in online gaming environments and strengthening responses to child-on-child abuse, to addressing exploitation in employment, improving access to mental health support and recognising everyday product safety risks.
A recurring theme runs through these stories:
Effective safeguarding requires organisations to recognise emerging risks, listen to concerns and act before harm escalates.
Here are the latest developments and what they mean for safeguarding practice.
1. Ofcom updates Online Safety Codes of Practice
Issued: 12 October 2026 | UK-wide
Ofcom has issued amendments to its Illegal Content and Protection of Children Codes of Practice, introducing recommended measures to help certain regulated online services respond to crisis situations.
The amended codes are due to take effect on 2 November 2026.
The measures include recommendations for relevant providers to establish crisis-response protocols, prepare for sudden increases in harmful or illegal content, and maintain appropriate communication channels with law enforcement.
The intention is to strengthen the ability of online services to respond when serious threats to public safety generate increased risks online.
Why this matters for safeguarding
Online safeguarding cannot be limited to routine content moderation or responding to individual reports.
Organisations operating regulated online services need to consider how they would respond to rapidly escalating risks, including threats, violence, exploitation and harmful content affecting children.
For safeguarding leaders, this reinforces the importance of:
Clear escalation and decision-making arrangements.
Defined responsibilities during serious incidents.
Appropriate information sharing.
Documented responses and learning.
Governance oversight of online risks.
The amended codes do not create a blanket requirement for every organisation with an online presence. Applicability depends on whether a service falls within the relevant regulatory framework.
Source: Ofcom — Crisis response protocol and amendments to the Codes of Practice
2. New Ofcom research highlights children's online gaming risks
Published: 13 October 2026 | UK-wide
Ofcom has published its Growing Up Gaming research summary, highlighting children's experiences of online gaming and parental concerns about online interactions.
The findings include:
55% of children who game online sometimes play with people they have never met in person.
20% do so all or most of the time.
64% of parents are concerned about children communicating with strangers through online games.
Fewer than half of parents set rules about who their children can play with online.
Although gaming offers opportunities for entertainment, learning and social connection, these findings highlight the importance of understanding how children interact with others through gaming platforms.
Why this matters for safeguarding
When we talk about online safety, conversations often focus on screen time or exposure to inappropriate content.
But safeguarding risks can also emerge through relationships and interactions.
Online gaming can involve private messaging, voice chat, contact with unknown adults, bullying, grooming and pressure to share personal information.
Schools, youth organisations and safeguarding professionals should help parents and children understand these risks without presenting gaming itself as inherently unsafe.
Practical conversations should explore:
Who children are communicating with.
Whether privacy and communication settings are appropriate.
How children recognise uncomfortable or inappropriate interactions.
Whether children know how to block and report users.
Whether they feel confident approaching a trusted adult.
The question is not simply how long children spend gaming, but what they are experiencing while they are there.
Source: Ofcom — Stranger danger tops parents' online gaming worries
3. Calls for stronger safeguarding arrangements in nurseries
Published: 11 October 2026 | England
Following the serious abuse case involving former nursery worker Vincent Chan, MP Tulip Siddiq and a parent of children affected have called for further reforms to early years safeguarding arrangements.
Their proposals include:
Mandatory CCTV in nurseries, with appropriate safeguards.
A system for sharing safeguarding concerns across early years employers.
A review of legislation concerning exploitative images of children.
Stronger, enforceable expectations around electronic devices in nursery environments.
The proposals follow reporting that concerns had been raised about Chan before his subsequent offending.
An independent safeguarding practice review remains ongoing.
Why this matters for safeguarding
The case raises difficult but important questions about how organisations respond when concerns are raised about adults working with children.
Are concerns considered in isolation?
Are previous allegations and patterns of behaviour identified?
Are decisions to return staff to child-facing duties sufficiently scrutinised?
Do safeguarding concerns follow individuals appropriately through lawful recruitment, referral and information-sharing processes?
And are organisations sufficiently confident in challenging decisions when something does not feel right?
For early years providers, this is a timely opportunity to review allegations management, safer recruitment, low-level concerns, escalation procedures and safeguarding culture.
Importantly, these are proposals for reform, not statutory changes already introduced. The findings of the ongoing safeguarding review should not be pre-empted.
Source: The Guardian — How to tackle serious safeguarding gaps in nurseries
4. Investigation highlights child-on-child sexual abuse in boarding schools
Published: 12 October 2026 | England
A Guardian investigation has examined experiences of child-on-child sexual abuse within boarding schools, including the long-term impact on individuals who experienced abuse while living away from home.
The reporting highlights concerns about institutional responses, delayed disclosures, the vulnerability of children living in residential environments and the importance of safeguarding arrangements that prioritise children's welfare.
Why this matters for safeguarding
Child-on-child abuse must never be dismissed as ordinary childhood behaviour, experimentation or something that children should resolve between themselves.
Residential environments can create particular safeguarding challenges.
Children may spend significant periods away from family members and other trusted adults.
They may share bedrooms, bathrooms and communal facilities.
They may also feel pressure to remain silent because of fear, shame, peer relationships or concern about the consequences of disclosure.
Effective safeguarding requires organisations to consider:
Whether children understand what constitutes harmful sexual behaviour.
Whether they have accessible and trusted reporting routes.
How allegations are assessed and escalated.
How immediate safety and ongoing support are addressed.
Whether environmental and supervision arrangements reduce opportunities for harm.
Whether organisational culture supports disclosure and challenge.
The learning extends beyond boarding schools to residential care, sport, youth organisations and other settings where children spend extended periods away from home.
Safeguarding arrangements must be judged by how effectively they protect children, not simply by the existence of policies or procedures.
Source: The Guardian — Why boarding schools must do more to tackle child-on-child sexual abuse
5. Government pledges earlier mental health support without waiting for diagnosis
Published: 9 October 2026 | England
The Department of Health and Social Care has announced plans to improve access to earlier mental health and neurodevelopmental support following publication of the independent review chaired by Professor Peter Fonagy.
The government's response includes a commitment to move towards support based on identified needs rather than requiring individuals to wait for a formal diagnosis.
It also proposes strengthening regulation of ADHD and autism diagnostic assessments and reviewing associated advertising practices.
Why this matters for safeguarding
Safeguarding professionals regularly encounter children and adults whose needs are evident long before a formal diagnosis is available.
Someone may be struggling with emotional wellbeing, attendance, social relationships, communication, employment or everyday functioning.
Where organisations focus too heavily on diagnostic labels, there is a risk that support is delayed.
This is particularly relevant across education, health, social care and workplaces.
Organisations should consider whether their systems allow staff to recognise and respond to emerging needs, make reasonable adjustments where required and identify when concerns require additional assessment or safeguarding intervention.
It is also important to distinguish between mental health needs and safeguarding concerns: experiencing mental distress does not automatically mean someone is at risk of abuse or neglect.
The safeguarding message is that support should be responsive to the person and their circumstances, not unnecessarily delayed by administrative or diagnostic processes.
The proposed expansion of CQC regulation is a future reform, not a requirement already in force.
Source: GOV.UK — Government pledges earlier support to tackle mental health crises
6. New visa rules offer greater protection to victims of modern slavery
Published and effective: 9 October 2026 | UK
The Home Office has announced an important change for recognised victims of modern slavery who hold Skilled Worker visas.
Under the new arrangements, individuals formally recognised as victims of modern slavery can leave an abusive sponsoring employer and undertake lawful work for another employer for the remainder of their existing visa.
Previously, workers tied to a sponsoring employer could face significant immigration and financial consequences if they left an exploitative employment situation.
The changes aim to reduce the risk of victims feeling forced to remain with abusive employers because of concerns about losing their immigration status or income.
Why this matters for safeguarding
This is a significant workplace safeguarding development.
Modern slavery and labour exploitation are not confined to particular industries or environments.
They can involve coercion, threats, debt, restriction of movement, withholding documents, financial exploitation and abuse of power.
Where a worker's immigration status is linked to their employer, the imbalance of power can create additional barriers to seeking help.
Employers, recruitment agencies, HR professionals and safeguarding leads should understand how exploitation may present within employment relationships.
Questions worth considering include:
Can workers raise concerns without fear of retaliation?
Do staff understand the indicators of labour exploitation?
Are recruitment and sponsorship arrangements transparent?
Are workers aware of independent sources of support?
Are concerns about exploitation appropriately escalated?
Do organisational policies recognise modern slavery as a safeguarding and human rights issue?
The new arrangements apply to individuals who meet the specified visa and formal victim-recognition criteria. They do not remove immigration restrictions for every worker who alleges employment abuse.
Source: GOV.UK — Victims freed from abusive employers under new visa rules
7. Home Office announces clearance of modern slavery decision backlog
Published: 12 October 2026 | UK
The Home Office has announced that it has cleared the inherited backlog of modern slavery cases awaiting final decisions through the National Referral Mechanism (NRM).
The NRM is the UK's framework for identifying and supporting potential victims of modern slavery.
The government states that the reduction in outstanding decisions is intended to provide greater certainty to individuals awaiting formal recognition and support decisions.
Why this matters for safeguarding
Delays in decision-making can have significant consequences for people who have experienced exploitation.
Uncertainty can affect access to support, accommodation, recovery, employment and longer-term safety planning.
However, clearing a decision backlog is not, on its own, evidence that every victim is receiving appropriate protection.
For organisations working with potentially exploited individuals, the focus must remain on:
Recognising indicators of modern slavery.
Understanding referral routes and consent requirements.
Providing appropriate immediate support.
Working with specialist services.
Considering ongoing risks of re-exploitation.
Ensuring people understand their rights and available support.
Effective safeguarding must consider what happens to people before, during and after formal decision-making processes.
Source: GOV.UK — Modern slavery decision backlog cleared
8. Urgent product safety warning issued over pimple-popping toys containing needles
Published: 9 October 2026 | UK
The Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) has issued an urgent warning about pimple-popping squishy toys supplied with sharp needles or syringes.
Consumers have been advised to stop using these products immediately because of the risk of injury.
The products may be marketed as adult stress toys, but OPSS has confirmed that they fall within the scope of UK toy safety regulations and may present risks to children and adults.
Online marketplaces have been instructed to remove relevant listings.
Why this matters for safeguarding
Although this is primarily a product safety warning rather than a change to safeguarding legislation, it has practical relevance for organisations responsible for children's welfare.
Nurseries, schools, children's centres, youth organisations and families should consider whether these products are present within their environments.
Where identified, the products should be removed from use and the sharp components handled and disposed of safely.
The warning also reinforces a broader principle:
Safeguarding includes recognising preventable environmental and physical risks, not only responding to abuse or neglect.
Organisations should ensure that toys, sensory resources and other equipment are age-appropriate, safe and subject to appropriate checks.
Source: GOV.UK — Stop using pimple-popping toys with needles, says OPSS
RLB Reflection: Safeguarding Is About Recognising Risk Before Harm Escalates
These developments may appear to cover very different issues.
Online gaming.
Nursery safeguarding.
Child-on-child abuse.
Mental health.
Modern slavery.
Workplace exploitation.
Product safety.
But there is an important connection.
Safeguarding is not limited to responding once harm has occurred.
It is also about understanding the environments in which people live, learn, work and interact.
It is about recognising how power, dependency, isolation, organisational culture and barriers to disclosure can increase risk, and it is about ensuring that people have access to appropriate support and that concerns lead to meaningful action.
For safeguarding leaders, trustees, employers and frontline professionals, the questions remain:
Are we recognising emerging risks?
Are people confident that they can raise concerns?
Do our systems identify patterns rather than isolated incidents?
Are we responding to people's actual needs?
Can we demonstrate that our safeguarding arrangements make a difference?
Safeguarding effectiveness should never be measured solely by the number of policies, training sessions or procedures an organisation has in place.
It should be measured by how effectively those arrangements protect people and improve outcomes.
How RLB Safeguarding can support your organisation
At RLB, we work across education, workplaces, charities, health and social care, housing, sport and other sectors to strengthen safeguarding practice, leadership and accountability.
Our services include independent safeguarding audits, consultancy, policy development, safer recruitment, accredited training, DSL supervision and governance assurance.
Whether your organisation is reviewing its approach to online safety, exploitation, safeguarding culture or responding to concerns, we can support you to develop practical, proportionate and effective arrangements.
Safeguarding people of all ages, in all places. Beyond compliance.