Sue Robb: 'The journey to a stronger safeguarding culture starts with all of us'

Sue Robb OBE, serving as the Government's Best Start in Life Champion, has reinforced the vital connection between high-quality practice and effective safeguarding measures within early years settings. Her comments follow the launch of new free safeguarding training developed collaboratively by the Department for Education (DfE) and the NSPCC, designed to support practitioners in recognising and responding to child protection concerns. The training initiative represents a significant step toward embedding safeguarding awareness throughout the early years workforce. Alongside this practical resource, the DfE has announced forthcoming consultations aimed at strengthening the wording of safeguarding requirements within the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) statutory framework. These proposed changes would further clarify expectations and reinforce the statutory duty of early years providers to keep children safe from harm. Robb's message emphasises that safeguarding is not merely a procedural compliance issue but a cultural imperative requiring collective commitment from everyone working with young children. By improving training accessibility and tightening legislative frameworks, the government aims to ensure that safeguarding remains central to early years practice, ultimately creating safer environments where children can thrive from the very start of their lives.