Staff safety and wellbeing at school: a guide for leaders

A frightened, worn-out or isolated adult finds it harder to speak up about a child. Both child safeguarding and staff safety rely on adults who feel able to raise a problem early.

Many countries also expect employers to protect staff at work, though the rules differ. The UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) defines work-related violence as any incident where a person is abused, threatened or assaulted because of their work. That covers verbal abuse and threats, including online and by phone.

The International Labour Organization (ILO) adopted a Violence and Harassment Convention in 2019. It is the first international treaty to recognise everyone's right to work free from violence and harassment. It binds only the countries that have ratified it, so ask a local lawyer what applies to your school.

Lone working means working with nobody close enough to help. In a school that includes early mornings, late evenings, weekends, cleaning rounds, boarding duty and one-to-one sessions with students.

The HSE says lone workers face the same hazards as everyone else, but the risk of harm is higher when nobody is nearby. It advises employers to provide training, supervision, monitoring and support.

One-to-one time with a student carries risk for both people. A closed door removes the witnesses who protect them, so your staff code of conduct should say where those sessions happen.

• List the places and times when staff work alone, and who else is on site.
• Use rooms with a glass panel or an open door for one-to-one sessions.
• Tell a named colleague where you are and when you expect to finish.
• Agree a check-in time, and what happens if someone misses it.
• Give lone staff a working phone, radio or alarm.
• Lock entrances after hours and log who comes in, as in your site security plan.

Most parent complaints are fair and can be heard calmly. A few turn into shouting, threats or following a teacher to the gate. Staff need to know, before it happens, that they may stop the conversation.

Give every member of staff the same short routine, and practise the words aloud at a staff meeting. Words you have practised come more easily under stress.

• Stay calm, keep your voice low and stand near the door.
• Set the limit: "I want to help. I cannot do that while you are shouting."
• Offer a next step: "I will ask the Head to meet you tomorrow, with a note taker."
• End it if it continues: "I am ending this conversation now. Someone will contact you."
• Leave, call for help or use the alarm if you feel unsafe.
• Write down what was said, who saw it and the time, before the day ends.
• Tell your line manager and the Head the same day.

The Head or a senior leader decides the next step. Options include a written warning, one named contact for the family, meetings with two staff present, or a limit on site access. Check your enrolment contract and local law before you ban anyone.

If a parent is angry about a safeguarding decision, staff do not discuss it. They say, "Our safeguarding lead can speak with you," and pass the parent on.

A parent's behaviour can sometimes tell you about a child's life at home. Pass any worrying remark to the designated safeguarding lead (DSL), who decides what it means. If anyone is in danger, call local emergency services.

Staff may shrug off abuse as part of the job. Ask them anonymously how often it happens.

Harassment includes repeated unwanted contact, insults, threats, sexual comments, stalking and abuse online. It can come from parents, students, colleagues or visitors. Parent group chats and social media posts are a common source.

A staff member should not have to answer alone. Put the response in writing before it is needed, and share it with parents when they enrol.

If a student is harassing a member of staff, the school still owes that child care. Follow your behaviour policy and tell the DSL, because the behaviour may point to a difficulty in the child's own life.

A complaint about a colleague follows your grievance or whistleblowing route. If it is about the Head, it goes to the chair of governors.

• State in writing that abuse of staff is not tolerated.
• Name one person staff report to, and a back-up if that person is the problem.
• Save screenshots, messages and dates. Do not reply to the sender.
• Send a written warning from the Head to the person involved.
• Ask the platform to remove abusive posts.
• Involve the police or a lawyer for threats, stalking or sexual harassment.
• Check in with the staff member each week until it stops.

A child's disclosure can shake the adult who hears it. A teacher may carry the words home, replay them at night or feel guilty about what they said or did not say.

Start with the child. Follow your school's child protection procedure and tell the DSL the same day. If a child is in immediate danger, call local emergency services first.

The guide to how to respond when a child discloses abuse covers what to say and what to write. Once the child is safe, look after the adult too. The DSL should check in the same day or the next morning.

• "Thank you for telling me straight away. That is what the policy asks of you."
• "I will take it from here. You do not need to do anything more tonight."
• "Would it help to have your next duty covered?"
• "I will only tell the people who need to know."
• "I will check in again on Friday. Who would you like to talk to?"

The World Health Organization (WHO) describes burn-out as the result of chronic workplace stress that has not been managed well. Its signs are exhaustion, growing distance or cynicism about the job, and lower effectiveness.

A school cannot remove all stress. It can remove the stress that comes from unclear rules, no cover and nowhere to turn. The HSE adds that serious or persistent verbal abuse can harm mental health, so employers should think about emotional support as well as physical injury.

Staff should not share a child's details to get support. A counsellor can help with the member of staff's feelings without a name. The DSL can also use supervision, which gives the lead the same protection.

• A confidential counselling route, in a language each person speaks.
• Time off in lieu after a late event, trip or hard case.
• Named cover for the DSL and for staff on duty alone.
• A termly question to all staff: what makes your work feel unsafe?
• Leaders who ask, listen and act on what they hear.

A staff safety plan can fit on two pages. It should say who does what, so nobody has to guess in the moment.

Review the incident record each term for patterns, such as the same gate, the same parent or the same time of day. Share the totals with governors, with no names.

Practise the parent scripts, the alarm and the check-in call at least once a year.

• Head: owns the plan, decides on warnings and site limits, and backs staff in public.
• DSL: hears any child welfare concern linked to an incident and supports staff after a disclosure.
• Line managers: take reports the same day and log them.
• Governors: see a short termly summary with no names.
• All staff: report abuse, threats and near misses, and follow the lone working rules.

You do not need a new policy to start. Pick the first step today and the rest across the month.

If you or a colleague feel unsafe now, call your local emergency services. This is general guidance, not legal or medical advice, so check health and safety and employment law where you work.

• List where and when staff work alone, and fix the biggest gap first.
• Write the three-line parent script and share it at the next staff meeting.
• Name one person staff report abuse to, and a back-up.
• Agree how the DSL checks in after a disclosure.
• Add one question about safety at work to your next staff survey.