Policies and Guidance
Section outline
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This section brings together key information to support your policy development, including links to national guidance, local guidance and a model policy. It is designed to help schools ensure their policies are compliant, clear and aligned with best practice for looked-after children, previously looked-after children, children with a social worker and children in kinship care.
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The Department for Education provides statutory guidance relating to looked-after and previously looked-after children on the GOV.UK site:
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Find out more about local policies:
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This model policy sets out how schools support the education and wellbeing of looked-after and previously looked-after children. It reflects statutory duties and DfE guidance, ensuring every child receives stability, high-quality learning and strong advocacy so they can achieve and thrive.
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This guidance outlines how information should be shared when children with a social worker (CWSW) or CWSW Ever 6 move between education settings. It explains the secure transfer of child protection records at transition points, in line with Keeping Children Safe in Education, ensuring timely and confidential sharing so that support is in place from the start. It also highlights the importance of tracking and monitoring records to promote educational outcomes, maintain high aspirations and understand the lasting impact of social care involvement. Schools are advised to carefully manage access to this sensitive information, sharing only what is necessary to safeguard children and support their learning, in line with data protection and safeguarding policies.
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This guidance explains how schools should manage information about a child’s previously looked after or adopted status with care and confidentiality. Adoption status is highly sensitive personal data and must only be shared on a need‑to‑know basis, with a clear lawful purpose and transparency through the school’s privacy notice. Although parents are not required to disclose this information, sharing it can enable access to pupil premium plus, support trauma‑informed practice and strengthen safeguarding. Any sharing with local authorities or receiving schools should follow child protection record transfer guidance to ensure continuity of support while respecting parental choice and data protection requirements.
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This document is intended for schools to publish on their website to help parents and carers of previously looked-after children understand the benefits of sharing their child’s adoptive, special guardianship order or child arrangements order status. While disclosure is optional, sharing this information can help schools provide the right support, including access to pupil premium plus funding, trauma‑informed educational approaches and additional emotional support. Any information shared is treated confidentially and used solely to support the child’s learning, wellbeing and, where relevant, admissions arrangements.