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Schools face an “unrealistic” deadline to implement new safeguarding proposals, leaders have warned.

The on updates to (KCSIE) guidance concluded on 22 April, but designated safeguarding leads (DSLs) say the changes proposed mark a “significant overhaul” and inadequate time has been left for implementation.

KCSIE guidance is updated and reissued every year, with the final version typically published between May and June, although last year it was in July.

Schools are expected to be fully compliant by 1 September, but school leaders warn this will present challenges in 2026.

Safeguarding changes ‘unmanageable’

Heather Fowler, head of safeguarding at , which runs four primary schools and six secondaries, told ����Vlog that the 2026 proposals are “quite unmanageable”.

Ms Fowler said schools had not faced similarly demanding changes since 2022, but that this year’s changes were “even bigger”. For example, she referenced proposals around children questioning their gender identity.

The 2026 KCSIE draft says that schools should “take time to understand the thoughts and feelings of children who are questioning their gender and should be appropriately professionally curious about the full range of the child’s experiences”. Schools should “remain aware of the potential vulnerabilities” of children, including potentially complex mental health and psychosocial needs.

Ms Fowler said that including this issue in KCSIE has “got schools very much in a spin” because it had previously been indicated that it would be subject to separate guidance.

She added that the 2026 iteration of KCSIE now “feels like quite a significant overhaul”.

The proposed changes also include expectations on the immediate action staff should take when a child discloses harm, including that related to mental health.

The draft guidance released before the consultation also says schools will no longer be permitted to allow children into toilets designated for the opposite biological sex, and may have to “consider whether they can provide an alternative toilet facility”.

There is also updated advice on school child-protection policies and more guidance on safe and effective use of generative AI, as well as advice that schools should have “robust cover arrangements” when a DSL is unavailable.

Laura Phillips, trust lead for safeguarding, attendance and inclusion at , which runs eight primary schools, five secondaries, one special school and one all-through school, said the timeframe on the updated guidance was “unrealistic” and that DSLs would be “frantically” trying to update policies.

“Whether policies are from the trust or local authority, they need to be personalised for their own setting and local safeguarding partnership before being approved at board and governance level. Then there are the training materials that need to be updated by 1 September,” she said.

Ms Phillips added that there is a “catalogue of things that have to be done...and schools are running out of time”.

‘Very little time’ for implementation

Similarly, Thomas Michael, safeguarding lead at a maintained school in the West Midlands, said the proposals leave “very little time” for implementation before September.

“Some are just definition changes, but others are quite big, and it will all require a certain amount of time to make sure policies are correct,” he said.

Mr Michael called on the government to confirm the changes as soon as possible.

For Brian Duffy, director of safeguarding and compliance at , which is made up of nine primary schools, nine secondaries and 14 special schools, the proposed changes are “largely sensible”, particularly the increased focus on mental health.

However, the Department for Education “again falls short” in clearly defining the role of education in the wider safeguarding system, Mr Duffy said.

He told ����Vlog: “Pressures on health and social care appear to have driven increasing expectations of schools, with educators now routinely assuming welfare responsibilities beyond their core remit.

“Improved investment in supporting our colleagues in health and social care would be a better solution to help ease the burden on education and the whole system.”

Similarly, Luke Ramsden, deputy head of an independent school and chair of trustees for the , said there is nothing proposed in KCSIE 2026 “that’s not a good idea”, but the timeframe is problematic.

Mr Ramsden said the government should consider consulting on changes in the first half of the Easter term to allow schools to make changes in the summer term. He added that receiving an average of 20 new pages of guidance each year only weeks before the end of term inevitably means staff have to address this in the summer holidays.

“Schools just don’t have time to react,” he said.

‘Whole-school exercise’

Margaret Mulholland, SEND and inclusion specialist at the Association of School and College Leaders, told ����Vlog it was “unacceptable” that school leaders are not being given more time.

She added: “It’s not just about complying with the new guidance - leaders need time to organise training, review systems and look for opportunities to strengthen school culture.

“This is a whole-school exercise requiring meaningful collaboration to ensure that everyone understands their responsibilities.”

Rob Williams, senior policy adviser at the NAHT school leaders’ union, said schools would “undoubtedly benefit” from more time for implementation.

The “fundamental problem”, however, is that the guidance has become more difficult to manage as responsibilities have increased, he added.

KCSIE “no longer effectively supports schools to proactively keep children safe and needs a complete overhaul to become more concise and precise and to truly fulfil its crucial core purpose”, Mr Williams said.

����Vlog previously asked the DfE in March if it had a planned date for the publication of the revised KCSIE. It said a response would come after the consultation ended.

With the 22 April deadline now passed, ����Vlog again asked the DfE for clarity.

A DfE spokesperson said: “The revised guidance will come into force on 1 September 2026. We hope to publish a ‘for information’ version in due course.”

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