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The Safeguarding Specialists
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Source: The Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel published on this site Thursday 30 April 2026 by Jill Powell
Bringing together learning and insights from child safeguarding reviews to support stronger practice for children.
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Source: Parliament UK published on this website Thursday 30 April 2026 by Jill Powell
Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill has now received Royal Assent and is now the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026
This Act is to make provision about the safeguarding and welfare of children; about support for children in care or leaving care; about regulation of care workers; about regulation of establishments and agencies under Part 2 of the Care Standards Act 2000; about employment of children; about breakfast club provision and school uniform; about allergy safety in schools; about attendance of children at school; about regulation of independent educational institutions; about inspections of schools and colleges; about teacher misconduct; about Academies and teachers at Academies; repealing section 128 of the Education Act 2002; about school places and admissions; about establishing new schools; and for connected purposes.
Victims and Court Bill has received Royal Assent and is now Victims and Court Act 2026
This Act is to make provision about the experience of victims within the criminal justice system; about the functions of the Commissioner for Victims and Witnesses; and about procedure and the administration of criminal justice.
The Crime and Policing Bill has received Royal Assent and is now The Crime and Policing Act 2026
This Act is to make provision about anti-social behaviour, offensive weapons, offences against people (including sexual offences), property offences, the criminal exploitation of persons, sex offenders, stalking and public order; to make provision about powers of the police, the border force and other similar persons; to make provision about confiscation; to make provision about the police; to make provision about terrorism and national security, and about international agreements relating to crime; to make provision about the criminal liability of bodies; and for connected purposes.
For further information on the Children’s and Wellbeing Schools Act 2026 see below.
Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill becomes law
Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill Policy Summary Notes
Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026
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Source: Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) published on this website Tuesday 28 April 2026 by Jill Powell
A 16-year-old boy has been sentenced after encouraging other internet users to self-harm, as well as downloading indecent images of children.
The defendant, aged 14 at the time of the offences, used an online username to hide his identity while targeting victims which were primarily teenage girls.
He instructed them to carve his username into their bodies and send him images, which he saved.
He pleaded guilty to encouraging self-harm and was later convicted of downloading indecent images following a trial at Southampton Youth Court.
Officers seized an Xbox from his address after he accessed accounts linked to the offences while on bail.
The Crown Prosecution Service built the case using messages recovered from his phone and computer, which showed a clear pattern of encouraging and directing others to self-harm.
Lauren McConnell, of the Crown Prosecution service, said:
“This defendant deliberately hid behind an online identity to manipulate and harm vulnerable people.
“The prosecution proved that he encouraged others into self‑harm over a 16-month period, whilst also downloading indecent images of children, causing serious harm through his online abuse.
“This case underlines that crimes committed online can be just as damaging as those committed offline, and the CPS will not hesitate to prosecute those who misuse the internet to exploit and harm others.”
Source: NSPCC published on this website Wednesday 29 April 2026 by Jill Powell
The series of posters encourage children to use Childline if they need support. Download and share digitally or print and pin up around your building.
Childline have different designs for children of primary and secondary school age in English and bilingual Welsh/English.
Download all Childline posters in English (ZIP)
Download all Childline posters in Welsh (ZIP)
Download bilingual Welsh/English Childline posters (ZIP)
Primary school age children
Download English posters (PDF)
Download bilingual Welsh/English bilingual posters (ZIP)
Secondary school age children
Download English posters (PDF)
Childline services
Source: The Charity Commission published on this site Monday 27 April 2026 by Jill Powell
The Charity Commission has concluded its statutory inquiries into the Kantor Foundation and Kantor
Charitable Foundation, finding neither charity remained viable after the designation of the charities’ founder, Dr Vitacheslav Kantor.
Both charities were set up to provide grants to projects and causes in any part of the world as long as they were exclusively charitable. The charities shared a sole corporate trustee, which was a private limited company known as Kantor Trustees. One of the company’s directors, sole member, and the charities’ primary funder was Dr Kantor.
Background
In April 2022, the UK Government named Dr Kantor as a ‘designated person’ under the UK’s Russia Sanctions regime. This meant that it was now a criminal offence for funds or economic resources in the UK to be made available to Dr Kantor.
In the same month, the Commission opened inquiries into charities connected to Dr Kantor, these were: the Kantor Charitable Foundation (KCF), Kantor Foundation (KF) and the World Holocaust Forum Foundation (WHFF). The regulator froze charity bank accounts and prevented the trustee from parting with any of the charity’s property without the Commission’s prior consent. In May 2022, the regulator removed Dr Kantor as a trustee of WHFF meaning he was automatically disqualified from being a trustee and ceased to be a director of Kantor Trustees.
Findings
In June 2023, the inquiries concluded that the Kantor Foundation and Kantor Charitable Foundation were no longer viable and that they should be wound up and dissolved. The inquiries reached this view having taken into consideration that Dr Kantor was the sole donor and it would be unlikely that either charity could secure future funding. There were also no trustees to run the charities following Dr Kantor’s designation and subsequent resignation of the other directors from the Kantor Trustees company.
The inquiries also determined that reputational damage arising from the designation, meant that it would be unlikely that the charities could resolve these matters through fundraising or recruitment.
The inquiries found that Dr Kantor was responsible for misconduct and/or mismanagement in the administration of both charities for failing to proactively resign following his designation.
Dr Kantor’s failure to cooperate with the regulator’s investigation also amounted to misconduct and/or mismanagement.
Recovery of funds
In May 2022, the regulator appointed Interim Managers to both charities as there were no longer any trustees running the charity. As part of their work to wind up the charities, they identified a number of outstanding Gift Aid claims were owed. After settling the charities’ liabilities, the Interim Managers distributed the remaining funds via charitable grants to several organisations, in line with the charities’ purposes. The total figure distributed to support charitable causes amounts to £1,388,000.00.
The Interim Managers also recovered a violin made by Italian violin maker, Riccardo Antoniazzi, which had been on loan from the Kantor Foundation. The violin – valued by the Foundation in 2019 as being worth £150,810 – has since been gifted to a registered charity. The terms of the gift stipulates that the violin must be used to promote musical education for the public benefit.
The charities have both been wound up and have since been removed from the public Register of Charities.
Joshua Farbridge, Head of compliance and visits and inspections at the Charity Commission, said:
“Once designated, an individual cannot legally act as a trustee. Dr Kantor’s failure to step down immediately, his decision to ignore the Commission and failure to cooperate, amounted to misconduct and/or mismanagement. It also fell below our expectations of trustees. As a result of our investigations, we have now wound up both charities. We are pleased some good can come to other charities and causes as a result of our intervention. Instead of assets lying dormant, or owed Gift Aid lost, we’ve been able to see a much-needed boost of over £1.3m into the sector, and a culturally significant musical instrument gifted to a charity furthering musical education.”
