Safeguarding Policy
Our commitment
DATUM Learning provides one-to-one tutoring to children in their own homes. That is a position of considerable trust, and the safety and welfare of every child we work with comes before every other consideration — including our commercial interests, our reputation and our relationship with any tutor.
This policy sets out how we try to keep children safe, what we expect of everyone working with us, and exactly what happens when someone has a concern. It applies to Sarah Kuti and to every tutor engaged by DATUM Learning, and it forms part of our contract with parents and with tutors.
1. Designated Safeguarding Lead
1.1 Our Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) is Sarah Kuti.
| Designated Safeguarding Lead | Sarah Kuti |
|---|---|
| hello@datumlearning.co.uk | |
| Telephone | 07849 117611 |
| Responsible for | Receiving concerns, deciding on referral, liaising with children's services and the police, and keeping safeguarding records |
1.2 There is currently no deputy, because DATUM Learning is a one-person business. If the DSL cannot be reached, or the concern is about the DSL, anyone with a concern should contact Cardiff children's services or the police directly using the numbers in section 8. Nobody should wait for us.
2. Who this policy covers
2.1 This policy applies to Sarah Kuti, to every tutor engaged by DATUM Learning, and to anyone else acting on our behalf. Tutors are self-employed, but they are required to work to this policy as a condition of working with us.
2.2 The children we work with are aged approximately 13 to 16. Everyone under 18 is a child for the purposes of this policy, regardless of how mature or independent they seem.
3. Safer recruitment
3.1 Because our tutors teach children one to one and unsupervised, this work is regulated activity under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006. Before any tutor is matched with a student we require:
an Enhanced DBS certificate including a check against the Children's Barred List, registered with the DBS Update Service;
sight of the original certificate, in person — we do not accept scans, photographs or photocopies, and we do not keep a copy of any certificate;
evidence of the right to work in the UK, and proof of identity;
two professional references, from people who are not relatives;
their own professional indemnity and public liability insurance;
completion of our induction, which covers this policy in full.
3.2 We check a tutor's DBS status through the Update Service at induction and at least once a year thereafter, with their permission. A tutor whose status changes must tell us immediately.
3.3 It is an offence to allow a person who is barred from working with children to engage in regulated activity. We will not place a tutor whose barred-list status we have not verified.
4. How sessions are conducted
4.1 These rules are not negotiable. They exist to protect children, and equally to protect tutors from misunderstanding or allegation.
An adult is present. Where a session is at the student's home, a responsible adult aged 18 or over should be in the property. A session does not begin if no adult is there when the tutor arrives — the tutor waits a reasonable time, then leaves.
Brief absences. In practice, an adult will sometimes step out briefly. If that happens — to collect a sibling, or go to the shop — the session may continue, provided the door stays open as usual and the tutor is comfortable. A tutor may always end a session early if they are not, and is paid for it either way.
Extended or repeated absences. If an adult will be out for most of a session, or if it starts happening regularly, the tutor tells us. We will speak to the parent and agree something different — sessions at the tutor's home, or a different time. A tutor is never the only adult responsible for a child.
The door stays open. Sessions take place in a room with the door open, in a part of the home suitable for study. Never behind a closed door, and never in a bedroom.
Parents are welcome. Where a session takes place at the tutor's home, the parent is welcome to stay for the whole session.
No physical contact. Beyond what is unavoidable and obviously appropriate — passing a pen, for instance — tutors do not have physical contact with students.
No transport. Tutors do not transport students in their vehicles under any circumstances.
No private contact. Tutors communicate through the parent, not privately with the student. No personal social media contact, no private messaging, and no contact outside the arrangement.
No photography or recording. Sessions are not photographed, filmed or recorded by anyone without written agreement on both sides.
No gifts, no favours, no money. Tutors do not give gifts to students or accept anything beyond their agreed fee.
4.2 A tutor who is uncomfortable for any reason may end a session early, leave, and tell us the same day. They will still be paid for that session, and they do not have to justify the decision to us or to the parent.
5. Recognising abuse and neglect
5.1 Nobody working with us is expected to diagnose abuse or to decide whether it has happened. What we ask is that people notice, and tell us. The four recognised categories are physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse and neglect. Children may also be at risk of exploitation, including criminal and sexual exploitation, and of harm online.
5.2 Things that may prompt a concern include, but are not limited to:
unexplained injuries, or explanations that do not fit the injury;
a marked change in a child's behaviour, mood or engagement;
a child who seems fearful of a particular adult, or reluctant to go home;
a child who is persistently hungry, unwashed, or inadequately clothed for the weather;
a child who appears to be caring for adults or siblings in a way that is beyond them;
sexual knowledge or behaviour that does not fit the child's age;
anything a child says that suggests they are being harmed, or are at risk;
the home environment itself giving cause for concern.
5.3 Tutoring gives an unusual vantage point: we are in the home, one to one, often weekly, with a child who may talk to us precisely because we are not their parent or their teacher. That access carries a responsibility to act on what we see.
6. What to do if you have a concern
6.1 If a child is in immediate danger, call 999. Do not wait to speak to us first.
6.2 In every other case, the steps are:
| Step | What to do |
|---|---|
| 1. Note it down | As soon as you can, write down what you saw or heard, using the child's own words wherever possible. Record the date, time and who was present. Stick to facts; mark clearly anything that is your opinion. |
| 2. Tell the DSL the same day | Contact Sarah Kuti by telephone. Do not wait for the next session, and do not decide on your own that it is probably nothing. |
| 3. The DSL decides | Sarah will decide, normally within 24 hours, whether to make a referral to Cardiff children's services, seek advice first, or record and monitor the concern. |
| 4. Referral | Where the threshold is met, Sarah refers to the Family Advice, Support and Protection Hub, and confirms in writing within 48 hours. |
| 5. Record | The concern, the decision, the reasons and any referral are recorded and kept securely. |
What not to do
Do not investigate. Do not question the child, press for detail, or try to establish whether the concern is well-founded. That is for the professionals, and doing it can compromise a later investigation.
Do not promise confidentiality. If a child asks you to keep a secret, say honestly that you may have to tell someone whose job it is to keep them safe, and that you will tell them who.
Do not confront the parent or anyone else you believe may be responsible.
Do not delay because you are unsure. It is not your job to be certain. Raising a concern that turns out to be nothing carries no penalty of any kind.
7. Allegations against a tutor, or against the DSL
7.1 An allegation that someone working with us has harmed a child, or behaved in a way that suggests they may pose a risk, is treated with the same seriousness as any other concern and considerably more urgency.
7.2 Where an allegation is made against a tutor, we will: remove them from contact with children immediately, as a neutral act and not a finding of guilt; report the matter to Cardiff children's services the same day and follow their advice on how the allegation should be managed; and inform the parents of any affected child in a way agreed with children's services.
7.3 Where an allegation concerns Sarah Kuti, it must not be reported to her. Report it directly to Cardiff children's services or the police, using the numbers in section 8. This paragraph exists precisely because a one-person business cannot investigate itself.
7.4 We will not carry out our own investigation into an allegation, and we will not ask a child to repeat an account for our benefit.
Our duty to refer to the DBS
7.5 If we remove a tutor from working with children because they have harmed a child, or because their conduct suggests they may pose a risk of harm, we have a legal duty under sections 35 and 36 of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 to refer them to the Disclosure and Barring Service. Failing to do so without reasonable excuse is a criminal offence.
7.6 We will make that referral even if the tutor resigns first, and even if no criminal charge follows. A tutor cannot avoid a referral by leaving.
8. Who to contact
| Situation | Contact |
|---|---|
| A child is in immediate danger | 999 |
| Concern about a child in Cardiff, office hours | Family Advice, Support and Protection Hub (FASPH) — 03000 133 133 |
| Concern about a child, out of hours | Emergency Duty Team — 029 2078 8570 |
| Police, non-emergency | 101 |
| Concern about a DATUM Learning tutor | Sarah Kuti — 07849 117611, then FASPH as above |
| Concern about Sarah Kuti | FASPH or the police directly. Do not report this to us. |
| Advice if you are unsure | NSPCC Helpline — 0808 800 5000, help@nspcc.org.uk |
| A child or young person wanting help | Childline — 0800 1111, childline.org.uk |
| Meic, the Welsh helpline for children and young people | 0808 802 3456 |
9. Information sharing and confidentiality
9.1 Safeguarding information is shared on a need-to-know basis and never casually. But confidentiality is never a reason to withhold a concern from the people whose job it is to protect a child.
9.2 We will normally tell parents that we are making a referral. We will not do so where telling them would place the child at greater risk, where it might lead to evidence being destroyed, or where children's services or the police advise us not to.
9.3 Data protection law does not prevent the sharing of information for safeguarding purposes. Our lawful basis and the safeguards we apply are set out in our Privacy Notice and our Appropriate Policy Document.
10. Records
10.1 Safeguarding records are kept separately from ordinary student records, are accessible only to the DSL, and are held securely.
10.2 They record what was observed or reported, when, by whom, what was decided, why, and what was done. Fact and opinion are distinguished clearly.
10.3 Safeguarding records are kept until the child reaches 25, or longer where an investigation, inquiry or legal proceedings require it. Records of a referral to the DBS are kept indefinitely.
11. Training and induction
11.1 Every tutor completes an induction covering this policy before working with a student, and confirms in writing that they have read and understood it.
11.2 Tutors are expected to complete recognised safeguarding awareness training and to refresh it at least every three years. We will tell any tutor where to find suitable free training.
11.3 Sarah Kuti, as DSL, will complete designated lead training and refresh it at least every two years.
12. What parents can expect of us
12.1 We will tell you who is teaching your child and confirm that they have been checked. We will not share a tutor's DBS certificate or its contents with you — that is their personal information — but we will confirm that the required checks are complete.
12.2 If we have a safeguarding concern about your child, we will normally tell you, unless doing so would put your child at greater risk.
12.3 If you have a concern about anything at all — a tutor, a session, something your child has said — tell us. You will not be treated as a nuisance and it will not affect your arrangement with us.
12.4 We would always rather hear a concern that turns out to be nothing than not hear one that turns out to be something.
13. Review
13.1 This policy is reviewed at least once a year, and immediately after any safeguarding incident, any change in the law, or any change in how we work.
| Version | 1.0 |
|---|---|
| Adopted | 22 August 2026 |
| Next review due | 22 August 2027 |
| Owner | Sarah Kuti, Designated Safeguarding Lead |