Trust Safeguarding Lead in Alveston

Employer: Castle School Education Trust

Location: Alveston, South Gloucestershire

Contract Type: Permanent

Hours: Part Time (0.6 FTE, 3 days per week onsite working across all 20 schools)

Salary: L7-L11

Posted: 26th May 2026

Expires: 14th June 2026 09:00 AM

Start Date: 1st September 2026

Are you a visionary safeguarding expert ready to shape the safety culture across a network of 20 schools? We are looking for a Trust Safeguarding Lead to join us in a pivotal leadership role.

About the Role

The Trust Safeguarding Lead will shape the safeguarding culture across our 20 schools. Reporting to the Director of Inclusion, this leadership role ensures safeguarding is integrated into the trust’s wider inclusion strategy rather than operating as a separate silo. You will serve as the safeguarding expert, providing direction to DSLs and leaders and representing the trust in multi-agency settings. The focus of this role is to move beyond basic compliance to establish a consistent, proactive culture of safety. You will provide the leadership team and Trustees with data-driven reporting on risk and protection across the organisation.

Key Responsibilities:

• Establish and align trust-wide safeguarding policies and frameworks with statutory guidance, ensuring absolute operational consistency across all 20 schools.
• Serve as the primary consultant for complex, high-threshold cases and provide hands-on, on-site leadership to school teams during critical incidents.
• Lead rigorous audits of Single Central Records (SCRs) and child protection files, spending time on-site to evaluate the live safeguarding culture.
• Build and facilitate a high-performing Trust Safeguarding Network for DSLs to share practices, while designing and delivering professional training for all staff tiers.
• Act as the main conduit to external agencies (such as the LADO and Police), confidently challenging thresholds when necessary and delivering data-driven risk briefings to the trust board.

About You

We are looking for a resilient and collaborative leader who can translate the trust's strategic goals into operational reality within our schools. You will have the professional courage to hold Headteachers to account, alongside the emotional stability and empathy required to support frontline staff through challenging times.

Qualifications & Experience:

• Qualified to teach in the UK and educated to degree level.
• Designated safeguarding training completed at an advanced level.
• Significant experience as a Lead DSL or as a senior leader with safeguarding oversight in a school setting.
• Proven track record of managing or influencing safeguarding practices across a group of schools or within a Local Authority.
• Exceptional knowledge of Single Central Record (SCR) requirements and file auditing to a standard of absolute excellence.

Skills & Attributes:

• Ability to turn safeguarding trends into evaluative briefings for leaders.
• Ability to build relationships and establish credibility with Headteachers and school staff.
• Ability to mentor and provide professional and emotional support to DSLs.
• Knowledge of KCSIE, Working Together, and the Prevent Duty.
• Ability to challenge external agencies at a senior level when child safety is concerned.
• Understanding of how safeguarding intersects with SEND, attendance, and behaviour.
• A mindset focused on identifying risks and low-level concerns.

About us

CSET is made up of four secondary schools and three primary schools, all working towards the shared ambition of creating a great education for every child. Whilst each of our schools retains its own unique identity and ethos, being part of a family of schools brings additional support and opportunity to share expertise, provision and costs across the trust. From September, CSET will be part of the newly formed Pathway Trust, which will comprise seven secondary and thirteen primary schools across Somerset, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire.

We can offer you:

• Happy, engaging students who thrive on inspirational leadership.
• A supportive trust and school community.
• Strong collaboration across the trust family of schools and access to a centralised team of specialists across all areas of school operations.
• A commitment to high-quality CPD, with dedicated time and budget for your development.
• A values-driven ethos where diversity, equity and inclusion are lived every day.
• Recognition of continuous service (modification order) to protect employment rights and entitlements.
• Teachers’ Pension Scheme with generous employer contributions and death-in-service cover.
• Occupational sick pay to support you during illness or unexpected emergencies.
• Family-friendly leave packages to help maintain a healthy work–life balance.

In order to apply for this role please complete an application form by 9am Sunday 14th June. Please let us know if you require any adjustments as part of the process. Please know that depending on the number of applications received we may decide to close the advert early. If you do not hear from us by a week after the closing date then please assume that you have not been shortlisted for an interview.

CSET is committed to equal opportunities and encourages applicants from all backgrounds and communities, as we recognise the importance and benefit this has for our pupils.

Safeguarding Statement: CSET is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. All roles across the trust have a varying level of responsibility for ensuring safeguarding practice, with some roles holding significant responsibility and involving working with children on a daily basis in regulated activity. Regardless of the level of responsibility and involvement in each role, we expect all staff, visiting professionals and volunteers to share this commitment. This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (ROA) 1974. Successful candidates will be required to provide a disclosure of any unspent convictions and cautions, as well as any spent convictions or cautions that are not "protected" (i.e., filtered) under the Amendments to the Exceptions Order 1975 (2013 and 2020). All appointments are subject to a comprehensive pre-employment checking process. This includes an Enhanced DBS check (including a Children’s Barred List check), satisfactory references, medical fitness, Right to Work in the UK, and where applicable, a prohibition from teaching/management check. In line with KCSIE guidance, we will also conduct online searches on all shortlisted candidates. Our full Recruitment and Selection policy is available on our website.