by Asher Gratt, TCW
FOR YEARS now, ‘safeguarding’ has enjoyed near-sacrosanct status in policy circles. Rightly so: protecting children from harm is one of the most vital responsibilities of any civilised society. But as with all noble causes, it is susceptible to distortion.
The government’s latest guidance, titled Unregistered Independent Schools and Out-of-School Settings: Guidance for Local Authorities(May 29, 2025), reveals a troubling shift. It reads not as a neutral technical manual, but as a blueprint for steering public perception,and by extension public consultation, towards a foregone conclusion.
This isn’t about protecting children from actual harm. It’s about redefining what constitutes harm, and then using that redefinition to cast suspicion on educational and cultural practices that lie beyond the state’s preferred framework.
Let’s be clear: this is not consultation. This is conditioning.