What Should Be on a School Safeguarding Noticeboard? 25 Ideas
Safeguarding Noticeboard Ideas for Schools
A safeguarding noticeboard should make obvious who to talk to and how to report a worry: the named designated safeguarding lead (DSL) and deputy with photos and contact details, clear reporting routes, and support such as Childline and the NSPCC. This guide covers what to display, what KCSIE expects, and 25 display ideas.
Safeguarding only works if pupils know who to tell. Around 1 in 5 children aged 8 to 25 had a probable mental health disorder in 2023 (NHS England). A clear board turns a quiet worry into a concern that reaches the right adult.
What Should Be on a School Safeguarding Noticeboard?
A safeguarding noticeboard should show who to talk to and how to report a concern: the named DSL and deputy with photos and contact details, a reporting route, and online safety, anti-bullying and wellbeing support. Signpost Childline (0800 1111) for pupils, the NSPCC (0808 800 5000) for adults worried about a child, and CEOP for online abuse.
What Information Must Schools Display?
No single law requires a specific board, but staff must know who the designated safeguarding lead is and how to raise a concern. KCSIE 2025 says the DSL should be a senior leader with lead responsibility for safeguarding, including online safety, supported by trained deputies, and that all staff should know the DSL and deputies and how to contact them.
Ofsted does not expect one fixed board format. Under the renewed school inspection toolkit, leaders should build an open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility, pupils and parents know who to go to for support, and staff carry out their responsibilities effectively. A clear board helps evidence that.
What Should a DSL Board Include?
A staff DSL board gives staff what they need in the moment: the DSL and deputies with contact details, the internal reporting process, and external contacts for when a concern goes beyond the school.
| Item to display | Why it belongs there |
|---|---|
| DSL name, photo, location and contact | Find the right person fast |
| Deputy DSL details | Cover when the DSL is away |
| Reporting steps or a simple flowchart | Removes hesitation about what to do |
| Children's social care number | For referrals to the local authority |
| LADO contact (Local Authority Designated Officer) | For allegations about an adult |
| Online safety and filtering lead | Where online concerns are routed |
Pupil Board or Staff Board: What Is the Difference?
A pupil-facing board is warm and easy to act on; a staff DSL board is precise and complete. Most schools run both: "who can I talk to?" for pupils, "what do I do now?" for staff.
- ✓Friendly "who can I talk to?" panel with staff photos
- ✓Reporting steps and a worry box or QR form
- ✓Wellbeing, online safety and anti-bullying support
- Sits in corridors, library and pastoral areas
- ✓DSL and deputies with contacts and locations
- ✓Reporting flowchart and recording reminder
- ✓External contacts: children's social care and LADO
- Sits in the staff room, glazed or lockable
A glazed or lockable noticeboard keeps the staff board accurate, while an open board suits a changing pupil display.
25 Safeguarding Display Ideas for Schools
Twenty-five ideas grouped by theme: reporting, online safety, anti-bullying, mental health and pupil voice. Refresh them around the relevant awareness weeks.
What Noticeboard Is Best for Safeguarding Information?
For safeguarding information that must stay accurate, a lockable, glazed noticeboard is safest, because DSL details and reporting routes cannot be removed or defaced. In corridors and escape routes it should also be fire rated to BS EN 13501-1 Class B; open felt boards suit changing classroom displays. The boards below suit common positions.
Lockable felt board (NBL9060DB) for safeguarding notices in corridors.
View Board
Class B fire-rated and lockable, for corridor safeguarding information.
View Board
Large dual-door lockable board for a reception panel, where fire rating is not required.
View BoardBrowse the lockable noticeboards, the wider noticeboards collection, or education display and storage.
See how schools put these displays into practice. Scroll through the examples below.
A pupil-facing board naming the adults pupils can go to, with photos, so a worry reaches the right person fast.
A corridor board setting out how to stay safe online and where to report harm. A lockable board keeps the reporting routes correct.
A kindness wall pupils add notes to, paired with a clear tell someone message. Anti-bullying displays land best when pupils help build them.
A staff-area board carrying the DSL and deputy details and the reporting flowchart, placed where staff pass every day.
A pupil voice board by the lockers and seating, where pupils help shape the displays. Ownership keeps a safeguarding culture visible.
Displaysense supplies lockable and fire-rated noticeboards that keep DSL details accurate, with free UK delivery and 30-day credit terms.
Make it obvious who to talk to and how to report a worry: the named DSL and deputy with photos and contact details, reporting routes, online safety and anti-bullying guidance, and wellbeing support such as Childline and the NSPCC. Run a warm pupil board and a precise staff DSL board, keep the key details behind a lockable cover, and refresh around the awareness weeks.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should be on a school safeguarding noticeboard?
Is a safeguarding noticeboard a legal requirement?
What should a DSL board include?
What noticeboard is best for safeguarding information?
This guide draws on the Department for Education's Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025, Ofsted's school inspection toolkit, and the NHS England Mental Health of Children and Young People in England 2023 survey. Support routes are from Childline, the NSPCC and CEOP. Schools should confirm their own arrangements with their designated safeguarding lead.
A UK guide to BB100, where Class B boards are required, and the mistakes to avoid.
Felt, lockable, fire-rated or outdoor? Match the right board to its use and space.
Wellbeing display ideas, from worry walls to exam support and support contacts.
