Safeguarding concerns in a dental practice rarely arrive with a label. They arrive as a bruise you were not expecting, a child who keeps missing appointments, a patient who never seems to be allowed to speak for themselves. Dental safeguarding CPD exists so that, when that moment comes, everyone in the team knows what to do next. This guide sets out the four steps that sit underneath good practice, notice, respond, record and refer, with links to the General Dental Council (GDC) and to published guidance for dental teams.

It supports your practice's safeguarding policy and procedures. It does not replace them, or any training your role requires. If someone is in immediate danger, call the emergency services on 999.

Safeguarding is everyone's job, reception to surgery

The GDC's standard on this is short and clear: you "must take appropriate action if you have concerns about the possible abuse of children or vulnerable adults". It asks you to know who to contact for advice, to know how to refer a concern to an appropriate authority such as your local social services department, and to find out about and follow your local procedures. You can read it in full in Standards for the Dental Team, principle 8 and in the GDC's guidance on child protection and vulnerable adults.

That duty is not only for clinicians. Safeguarding in general dental practice, a toolkit for dental teams published by Public Health England in 2019 for practices in England, reminds dental teams that "safeguarding is everyone's responsibility" and recommends that all members of staff, clinical and non-clinical, undertake the appropriate level of safeguarding training. The receptionist who notices who answers for a patient, and the nurse who sees a patient flinch, are often the first to see something.

Public Health England's toolkit describes a practice safeguarding lead as "a central person with oversight of safeguarding matters", not someone expected to be an expert in everything. Find out who yours is today, and where your practice keeps its local contact numbers; if you are not sure, ask your practice manager. Practices in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland follow their own national and local procedures, so check which apply to you.

The GDC also recommends safeguarding children and young people, and safeguarding vulnerable adults, among its recommended CPD topics.

Step 1: Notice

Noticing is not diagnosing. Your job is to be curious, not to be certain.

Some signs are physical. The GDC's guidance notes that "bruising, burns, bite marks and eye injuries could suggest that a concern should be raised". Many injuries to the head and face are visible from the dental chair.

Some signs are patterns:

  • Dental neglect. Public Health England's toolkit, citing NICE, says to consider neglect if parents or carers have access to treatment but persistently fail to obtain it for their child's tooth decay.
  • Missed appointments. When a child misses an appointment, the same guidance asks for it to be recorded as "Was Not Brought" rather than "Did Not Attend", because a child cannot bring themselves, and a history of being not brought may indicate that action is needed.
  • Adults at risk. The NHS Wales guidance for dental teams on safeguarding children and adults at risk notes that people with learning disabilities or mental health problems, older people and disabled people may fall within the definition of an adult at risk.
  • Domestic abuse. The same NHS Wales guidance defines domestic abuse broadly, including controlling, coercive or threatening behaviour, as well as violence, between people aged 16 or over who are or have been partners or family members. A partner who answers every question, or will not leave the room, is worth noticing. Do not raise it in front of them; speak to your safeguarding lead.

None of these signs proves anything on its own. They are reasons to pause, look again and talk to your safeguarding lead.

Step 2: Respond

Sometimes a patient tells you something directly. How you respond in that moment matters.

The NSPCC's guidance on recognising and responding to abuse sets out how to respond when a child tells you:

  • Give them your full attention and let them go at their own pace.
  • Reassure them that they have done the right thing in telling you, and that abuse is never their fault.
  • Never promise to keep it a secret. Explain that you need to share what they have told you with someone who can help.
  • Never discuss it with the person they have told you about.

For adults, NHS Wales guidance for dental teams gives the same core message: listen sympathetically, and do not agree not to tell anyone. Adults are presumed to have capacity to make their own decisions, so involve them in what happens next wherever you can, and ask your safeguarding lead for advice on consent. The same NHS Wales guidance notes that you do not necessarily need a patient's consent to share their information for safeguarding. If an adult refuses consent, do not drop the concern: speak to your safeguarding lead, who can assess the risk and seek further advice.

Your role is to listen and pass the concern on, not to investigate. Public Health England's toolkit notes that professional curiosity "does not require anyone to be interrogated".

Step 3: Record

If it is not written down, it is hard for anyone to act on it. Write your note as soon as you can, while your memory is fresh.

Public Health England's toolkit asks for a description and the location of any injury, and the comments and observations made by the patient, parent or carer. The NSPCC adds: if a child tells you something, write down their exact words. Good safeguarding records:

  • Stick to facts. What you saw and heard, kept separate from your opinion.
  • Use the person's own words, in quotation marks, rather than your summary of them.
  • Say when and who. The date, the time, who was present and who you told.
  • Record actions. NHS Wales guidance asks for all observations, advice sought or received (including from whom) and all actions taken to be recorded.

Keep the note where your practice policy says, and share it only with people who need to know.

Step 4: Refer

Speed depends on risk.

  • Immediate danger: call 999. Public Health England's toolkit says to dial 999 if someone needs urgent medical treatment or is in immediate danger, then inform social services and your safeguarding lead as soon as possible.
  • Any other concern: tell your safeguarding lead straight away, and follow your local procedures. Do not wait for the end of the session, or the end of the week.
  • If your lead is not available, or the concern involves them or a colleague: do not let it stall. Follow the route your local procedures give: the safeguarding team or social services contact they name; the GDC expects you to know how to refer a concern to an appropriate authority such as your local social services department. The GDC is also clear that "your duty to raise concerns overrides any personal and professional loyalties" (principle 8).

If you are unsure, ask. The GDC's guidance says that if you decide, as a professional judgement, not to share a concern with the appropriate authority, you must be able to justify how you came to that decision, and it suggests contacting your defence organisation for advice.

After the concern

A safeguarding concern can stay with you. Talk to your safeguarding lead about how you are, and keep what you know confidential to the people who need it.

It is also worth a reflection for your personal development plan. What did you notice? What helped? What would you want to know next time? Reflection turns a hard day into learning, and it can shape your next PDP goal.

Fitting CPD into your year

Recommended topics such as safeguarding are easier to live with when they are planned in, not squeezed in. Enhanced CPD Pro can help:

  • Plan it. The AI-assisted PDP tracks your goals and the tasks or courses that move them forward.
  • Short learning. SkillBytes micro-courses are verifiable CPD in 15 minutes: learn something practical and earn a certificate each time.
  • Reflect without the blank page. AI-assisted reflective notes use the Gibbs Reflective Cycle to help you frame your thoughts.
  • Keep the evidence. Upload or photograph a certificate, or email it to the app, and it creates a detailed CPD record.

"… I need to be able to focus on patients first & dealing with notes & certificates is not something that should take too much of my time. Enhanced CPD Pro has helped me streamline my work tremendously."

— Katrina Brown, Kelvin Smile Centre (Endorsal review, July 2023)

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FAQ

Does the GDC recommend safeguarding CPD?

Yes. Safeguarding children and young people, and safeguarding vulnerable adults, are on the GDC's list of recommended CPD topics. Your practice may have its own training expectations as well.

Do receptionists and practice managers need to think about safeguarding?

Yes. Public Health England's toolkit says safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and recommends safeguarding training at the appropriate level for all staff, clinical and non-clinical.

What should I do if a patient tells me about abuse?

Listen, reassure them that they were right to tell you, and never promise to keep it secret. Write down their exact words, and tell your safeguarding lead straight away. If anyone is in immediate danger, call 999.

What if our safeguarding lead is away?

Do not wait. If anyone is in immediate danger, call 999. Otherwise contact the safeguarding team or social services contact named in your local procedures, including when the concern is about the lead. The GDC expects you to know how to refer a concern to an appropriate authority, such as your local social services department.

Should I record a missed child appointment as "did not attend"?

Public Health England's toolkit recommends "Was Not Brought" for children, because a pattern of missed appointments may be a sign that a child needs protecting.

Sources

Read next: Free CPD for dental nurses: what to check first