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POLICY INFORMATION

Links to Whistleblowing Policy

What is a low-level concern?

A low-level concern is any concern that an adult has acted in a way that:

• Is inconsistent with the staff handbook and compliance policies, including inappropriate conduct outside of work.
• Doesn’t meet the threshold of harm or is not considered serious enough to be referred to the local authority.

Staff do not need to be able to determine in each case whether their concern is a low level concern, or if it is not serious enough to consider a referral to the LADO, or whether it meets the threshold of an allegation.

Once staff have shared what they believe to be a low-level concern, that determination should be made by the setting DSL and/or with advice from the group DSL. All staff must be happy that their concern has received the attention they believe it deserves and follow up if they need to.

Low-level concerns are part of a range of behaviour. This includes:

• inadvertent or thoughtless behaviour.
• behaviour that might be considered inappropriate depending on the circumstances.
• behaviour which is intended to enable abuse.

Examples of such behaviour could include:

• being overly friendly with children.
• having favourites.
• Behaviour which makes others feel uncomfortable or concerned
• adults taking photographs of children on their mobile phone.
• engaging with a child on a one-to-one basis in a secluded area or behind a closed door.