Safeguarding Learners on Employer Premises

Placing learners and apprentices with employers is vital for developing skills, but it extends your safeguarding duties beyond your own site. Ensuring the safety and well-being of learners on work experience, industry placements, or apprenticeships requires thorough due diligence. This isn't just about compliance; it's about extending your provider's protective culture to every learning environment.

A systematic approach to vetting employer premises ensures that risks are identified and managed proactively, allowing learners to thrive in a safe and supportive professional setting.

Health, Safety, and Environment

The physical environment is the foundation of a safe placement. Before any learner steps onto an employer's premises, you must be confident that basic health and safety standards are met.

• Policy and Procedures: Request and review the employer’s health and safety policy, relevant risk assessments, and emergency procedures.
• Insurance: Verify that the employer has current and adequate Public Liability and Employers’ Liability insurance. Keep a copy on file.
• Named Contact: Identify the employer's competent person responsible for health and safety.
• First Aid and Fire Safety: Confirm that first-aiders are available and that fire safety procedures are clearly communicated to all new starters, including learners.

Safeguarding Culture and Supervision

A safe culture is as important as a safe building. You need to gauge whether the employer's environment is genuinely supportive and respectful.

• Designated Mentor: Who will be the learner's day-to-day supervisor or mentor? What experience do they have in supporting young people or new employees?
• Safeguarding Awareness: Has the learner's direct supervisor received any form of safeguarding or PREVENT awareness training? While not always mandatory for them, it demonstrates a positive culture.
• Values and Policies: Review the employer’s equality, diversity, and inclusion policy. How do they promote respect and challenge inappropriate behaviour?
• Reporting Concerns: Understand the employer's internal procedure for staff to raise grievances or concerns. Does it feel accessible and robust?

Briefing Learners and Apprentices

Empowering learners is a critical part of the safeguarding process. They must know what to expect, what is expected of them, and how to ask for help.

• Key Contacts: Ensure every learner has the names and contact details for their provider's designated safeguarding lead (DSL), their tutor or skills coach, and their workplace mentor.
• Raising Concerns: Clearly explain the process for reporting any concern, whether it relates to safety, well-being, or feeling uncomfortable. Emphasise that no issue is too small.
• Professional Behaviours: Discuss expectations for professional conduct, including use of social media, communication with colleagues, and adherence to company policies.
• Online Safety: If the learner will be using the employer’s IT systems, brief them on acceptable use policies and general online safety principles.

Roles, Responsibilities, and Reviews

Clarity prevents confusion. A formal agreement and a regular review cycle are essential for maintaining oversight and ensuring a successful placement.

• Formal Agreement: Use a tripartite agreement signed by the provider, employer, and learner that explicitly outlines responsibilities for safety, training, and support.
• Provider Contact: The employer must have a clear point of contact at your organisation for any issues or emergencies.
• Review Schedule: Pre-schedule regular progress reviews. These should have a standard agenda item to discuss the learner's well-being and safety, not just their work progress.
• Learner Voice: Use these reviews as a formal opportunity to ask the learner, away from their supervisor if necessary, if they feel safe and supported.

Where this fits in QualityHero

Managing a network of employer partnerships requires a systematic approach. Providers can use the Toolkit Areas module to build and store a standardised employer due diligence checklist, ensuring consistency across all placements. The Safeguarding module provides a central, secure log for any concerns raised by learners on placement, allowing DSLs to manage cases effectively and leadership to have clear oversight of risks across all employer partners.