Compliance
Helpful links to understand Training and Compliance
Every claim on these pages is cited to gov.uk or legislation.gov.uk. Several of them exist to correct something widely repeated and wrong.
What safeguarding training do agency staff need?
Agency staff working in a school need the same safeguarding knowledge as any other member of staff. KCSiE 2026 expects everyone working in a school to read Part One in full and to have safeguarding training at induction, kept regularly updated.
Does KCSiE require agencies to train supply staff?
No. Keeping Children Safe in Education is statutory guidance addressed to governing bodies and proprietors, not to employment agencies, and it nowhere says an agency must train the workers it supplies. What KCSiE does place on agencies are duties around checks, written confirmation and allegations.
How often do supply staff need a safeguarding refresher?
In practice, every 12 months. That interval does not come from KCSiE, which asks for training at induction, regularly updated, with updates at least annually. It comes from APSCo Compliance+ requirement 26A, which asks for safeguarding training within the last 12 months before placement, and from what schools now require.
Do supply staff need allergy and anaphylaxis training?
The DfE’s statutory guidance on allergy safety in schools, published 6 July 2026, says staff should receive regular, at least annual, allergy awareness training, and expressly names supply teachers and agency workers among those staff. It also states that a statutory training duty is still to come through forthcoming regulations.
Do supply teachers need safeguarding training?
Yes. KCSiE 2026 states that everybody working in a school or college must understand their safeguarding responsibilities, and expects all staff to read Part One in full. The condensed Annex A was withdrawn in the 2026 edition, so there is no longer a shorter version for temporary or supply staff.
Safeguarding level 1, 2 or 3: what do agencies actually need?
There is no statutory level system for school safeguarding training. Keeping Children Safe in Education does not use the words level 1, 2 or 3 anywhere. The labels come from providers and from the health and social care sector, so two courses called Level 2 can contain completely different things.
Do supply teachers need Prevent duty training every year?
No. The Prevent duty guidance states that it is for each setting to determine who the appropriate members of staff are and how frequently training should occur. The only interval named anywhere in the guidance is a recommendation that the designated safeguarding lead or Prevent lead updates training at least every two years.
What must a school check before a supply teacher starts?
A school must obtain written notification from the agency that it has carried out the same checks the school would otherwise perform, including confirmation that an enhanced DBS certificate was obtained. It must record that on its single central record, even for a one-day placement, and should check the person who arrives is the person checked.
How do you evidence safeguarding training for an audit?
An auditor wants to see, for a sample of placed candidates, a dated training certificate from before the placement date, covering content relevant to the role. APSCo Compliance+ requirement 26A asks for safeguarding training within the last 12 months before placement, evidenced by sight of the candidate’s certificate.