Age 16-18
New City College is taking a proactive approach to safeguarding by equipping students not only to recognise potential risks, but to make informed decisions, seek help and take greater responsibility for their own safety and wellbeing.
Through its Tutorial and Enrichment Model, the College has embedded safeguarding and personal development across the learner experience, giving students regular opportunities to explore issues affecting young people and develop practical strategies for keeping themselves safe.
The approach is being led by Emma Wood, Group Director of Tutorial and Enrichment at New City College, who oversees this provision across nine of the College’s campuses. Emma and her team are passionate about helping students become confident and independent individuals who can recognise risks, make informed choices and access support when they need it.
Emma said: “We want students to leave college with the knowledge, skills and self-assurance they need to recognise risks, seek support when required, and make positive choices throughout their lives.”
Developing independence through tutorials and enrichment
Many students face challenges beyond the classroom, including financial pressures, caring responsibilities, poor mental health and increased exposure to safeguarding risks. These can be particularly pronounced for young people experiencing socio-economic disadvantage, who may have fewer support networks available to them outside college.
Evidence suggests that students are more likely to develop confidence and independence when they are actively engaged in learning and given opportunities to apply knowledge in meaningful contexts.
So rather than treating safeguarding as a series of policies or isolated awareness sessions, New City College has embedded it throughout its Tutorial and Enrichment Model, giving students opportunities to explore issues, reflect on their circumstances and develop practical strategies for keeping themselves safe.
By placing safeguarding within a wider framework of personal development, students are encouraged to become active participants in their own wellbeing rather than passive recipients of information.
Turning awareness into action
Tutorial discussions are reinforced through enrichment activities and college-wide events, including Mental Wealth, Ending Violence Against Women and Girls (EVAWG) and Staying Safe.
Mental Wealth activities give learners practical strategies to support their emotional wellbeing and resilience, while EVAWG events encourage discussions about consent, respectful relationships and personal boundaries. Staying Safe events bring students into direct contact with college specialists, external agencies and safeguarding professionals.
Crucially, the impact has extended beyond raising awareness. Following both EVAWG and Staying Safe events, several safeguarding disclosures were made by students. These required appropriate intervention and support, but also demonstrated that students felt informed and confident enough to seek help when concerns arose.
Emma said: “Safeguarding knowledge alone does not necessarily lead to safer behaviours. Students need regular opportunities to explore issues, ask questions and understand how safeguarding topics apply to their own lives.”
Building trust and confidence
Trusted relationships are central to the College’s approach. Students are more likely to share concerns and seek support when they have strong relationships with their Pastoral Tutor and feel safe within the college environment.
Emma said: “For students to speak up when something is wrong, they need to know that there are people around them who will listen and support them. Building those trusted relationships is fundamental to developing learner independence.”
The impact is reflected in student feedback: 96% of learners reported through student-led surveys that they feel safe at college.
This work was also recognised during a visit to New City College by Steve Kethero, Team Leader for Student Support at the Department for Education, and Eddie Playfair, Senior Policy Manager at the Association of Colleges. Both praised the breadth of the College’s tutorial and enrichment provision, including its approach to consistency and quality across campuses.
Senior education officials praise New City College’s pioneering tutorial and enrichment programme.
Helping learners safeguard themselves
For Emma, the ultimate aim is to ensure that safeguarding becomes something learners actively engage with rather than something that is simply done for them.
“Developing independent students means moving beyond simply protecting them from harm. It means equipping them with the confidence, knowledge and skills to recognise risk, make informed decisions and advocate for themselves when they need support,” she says.
“As educators, perhaps the question we should be asking is not ‘How are we safeguarding our learners?’ but ‘How effectively are we helping learners to safeguard themselves’?”
