At In Toto Ed, we recognise that the risks facing young people don’t only exist within the home — they often occur in the wider community, online spaces, peer groups, and other environments where adults may not always be present. This is why we take a contextual safeguarding approach: looking beyond the school gates to understand and respond to the full range of influences on our students' lives.

Contextual safeguarding is about identifying risks in the spaces where young people spend their time — such as parks, public transport, social media, and friendship circles — and taking coordinated action to reduce harm and promote safety across all areas of a student’s world.

We embeds Contextual Safeguarding in the following ways:

• Building Trusting Relationships
  Staff work closely with students to develop trusted relationships, creating safe spaces where concerns about friends, peer pressure, or unsafe environments can be shared without fear of judgement.
• Collaborative Working with External Agencies
  We liaise with social care, youth workers, police, and local safeguarding boards to ensure concerns outside school are taken seriously and acted upon. This multi-agency approach enables early intervention and coordinated care.
• Educating Students on Risk and Safety
  Our curriculum includes education on healthy relationships, peer influence, online safety, exploitation, substance use, and more — empowering students to make informed, safe choices in all areas of life.
• Mapping Risk in the Community
  We stay informed about emerging concerns in the local area, such as locations where anti-social behaviour or exploitation may occur, and we actively contribute to community safeguarding intelligence.
• Parental Engagement
  We support parents and carers by offering guidance and open communication about external risks and how they can help safeguard their children beyond school.

At In Toto Ed, we are committed to safeguarding students not only within the classroom but in the broader contexts they move through every day. By understanding the bigger picture, we can better protect and support our young people to thrive — wherever they are.