From ACE to SEND: A Glossary Of Common Safeguarding Acronyms
Safeguarding is a complicated area of expertise with a seemingly never-ending amount of acronyms that you’re expected to understand. Safeguarding acronyms can related to government policy, legal frameworks, job roles and many more. To try and clear through some of the confusion, we’ve collated the most common acronyms you’re likely to come across in the safeguarding sector and what they mean.
ACE – Adverse Childhood Experiences
ACEs are highly stressful or harmful events that a child experiences through their environment. This can include physical, sexual or emotional abuse, neglect, or living in a household with parental mental health problems, domestic violence or substance misuse.
CQC – Care Quality Commission
The Care Quality Commission is an executive non-departmental public body of the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC). Established in 2009, they exist to regulate and inspect health and
CO - Care Order
A care order is issued by a court and allows a council to take a child into their care. Councils can apply for care orders under the Children Act 1989 if they believe a child is suffering or is at risk of harm.
CRB - Criminal Records Bureau
The CRB was the forerunner of the Disclosure and Barring Service. They were responsible for criminal record checks between 2002 and 2012.
CSE – Child Sexual Exploitation
CSE is a type of sexual abuse where a young person is coerced, manipulated, or deceived into sexual activity in exchange for things they may want or need. This can be anything from gifts, drugs and money to simply affection and a sense of belonging.
CSP – Community Safety Partnership
Community Safety Partnerships were introduced by Section 6 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. They bring together local stakeholders such as NHS Trusts, police forces, and local authorities to deliver hyper-localised safeguarding initiatives.
DA/DV – Domestic Abuse/Domestic Violence
Domestic abuse is a pattern of behaviour where an intimate partner exerts power and control over the victim. Domestic abuse can be mental, physical, economic or sexual.
DBS - Disclosure and Barring Service
The Disclosure and Barring Service is a non-departmental public body of the Home Office. They were formed in 2012, following the merger of the Criminal Records Bureau and Independent Safeguarding Authority. They are responsible for processing criminal record checks and maintaining the barred lists.
DHSC - Department for Health and Social Care
The DHSC is the UK Government body responsible for health and social care policy and governance. They oversee 25 different agencies and public bodies.
DSL - Designated Safeguarding Lead
The Designated Safeguarding Lead is the person who has overarching responsibility for how safeguarding is embedded and operationalised within an organisation. The DSL may be supported by a wider team or may be solely responsible, depending on the size of the organisation. Their responsibilities will vary depending on whether the organisation works with children, adults, or both.
DSP – Designated Senior Person
Designated Senior Person is a Welsh-specific safeguarding term. The role is essentially the same as that of a DSL but is a school-specific role for safeguarding children.
ICO - Interim Care Order
An ICO is a type of court order that’s applied for by the Local Authority to ask for the power to share Parental Responsibility with the parents of children they believe to be at risk. It is a neutral stance that the local authority takes and enables further assessment of the situation.
ISA - Independent Safeguarding Authority
This organisation was set up under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups act 2006. There responsibility was to maintain the Children and Adult barred lists in the UK. In 2012, they were merged with the CRB to form the DBS.
KCSiE - Keeping Children Safe in Education
Keeping children safe in education is statutory guidance that schools and colleges in England must have regard to when carrying out their duties to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.
KLS - Keeping Learners Safe
Keeping Learners Safe (KLS) is Welsh Government guidance that must be read and followed by local authorities, governing bodies, all schools including nursery schools and independent schools and all colleges.
LADO - Local Authority Designated Officer
The role of the Local Authority Designated Officer is set out in Working Together to Safeguard Children (2018. They are the individuals at a local authority who need to be notified when it has been alleged that a professional or volunteer who works with children has: behaved in a way that has harmed a child, or may have harmed a child, or has possibly committed a criminal offence against or related to a child.
LPA – Lasting Power of Attorney
Lasting Power of Attorney were created under the Mental Capacity Act 2005. This is a way of giving someone you trust the legal authority to make decisions on your behalf if you're no longer able to make them yourself – or if you don't want to.
LSAB – Local Safeguarding Adults Board
Section 43 of the Care Act requires every Local Authority to establish a Safeguarding Adults Board for its area. They operate at a strategic level by organising a multiple agency approach to protect and support vulnerable adults in the local area.
LSCB - Local Safeguarding Children Board
Local Safeguarding Children Boards are a statutory requirement and are set up in each local authority across the UK. They co-ordinate with multiple agencies to ensure the safeguarding of children in the area.
MASH – Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hubs
Multi-agency safeguarding hubs bring together safeguarding professionals from different organisations in an area who have a responsibilty for safeguarding either adults or children. MASHs ensure the best possible use of combined knowledge and local information to keep people safe from harm.
PVG – Protecting Vulnerable Groups
The Protecting Vulnerable Groups scheme is managed by Disclosure Scotland and works in a similar way to the DBS barred lists. Individuals register with the PVG scheme to be able to do regulated work with vulnerable groups. Anyone identified as unsuitable will be listed on this scheme.
SVG – Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006
This key piece of legislation led to the creation of the Independent Safeguarding Authority, who managed the Children and Adult barred lists. This act also brought in the statutory requirement for those working with vulnerable groups to be appropriately vetted and cleared.
SEN or SEND - Special Education Needs and Disability
Individuals with SEND requirements can be some of the most vulnerable in society. There are specific risks and needs that professionals need to be aware of when working with these groups.