Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help identify victims of child-trafficking in schools in Cambridgeshire.

Protecting children requires cooperation and coordination across multiple agencies. Local authorities, police, and health services share a joint and equal statutory duty to work together to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. The three safeguarding partners (local authorities, police, and health services) collaborate with other relevant agencies, including education settings, to make strategic decisions essential for effective practice and child safety.

There is also an established robust framework in place in the form of ‘Keeping children safe in education’ (KCSIE), which is the statutory safeguarding framework to which all schools and colleges must have regard when safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children.

Part 1 of this guidance, which should be read by all staff who work directly with children, not only sets out the different types of abuse and harm but it also supports all staff to know what signs to look out for, including how to respond to any concerns about a child.

In addition, the guidance includes information on modern slavery, the National Referral Mechanism and links to joint guidance from the Department for Education and the Home Office. The full guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/safeguarding-children-who-may-have-been-trafficked-practice-guidance.

This safeguarding framework ensures that all concerns are identified and managed swiftly, effectively and in line with local safeguarding protocols. Schools and colleges must also work with their local safeguarding partners to ensure these processes are implemented consistently.