Education providers and safeguarding professionals from across Greater Manchester have come together for the region’s first ever safeguarding conference, marking a significant step forward in protecting and supporting young people.
We hosted the conference welcoming representatives from all nine of our Greater Manchester colleges, universities, the Department for Education (DfE), Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), community organisations, safeguarding specialists and public sector partners to address some of the most pressing challenges facing young people today.
The event focused on key issues including violence reduction, misogyny, coercive control, child sexual exploitation and knife crime, while also exploring practical approaches to safeguarding and learner support.
The conference highlighted the strength of collaboration across Greater Manchester, creating a shared space for learning, discussion and action planning around some of the most significant safeguarding challenges facing young people today.
Guests heard from leading experts including Dr Antony Edkins, Education Lead at the Greater Manchester Violence Reduction Unit; Lis Hoyte, Coercive Control Expert; Polly Harrow MBE, DfE Student Support Champion; Steve Wright, Youth Engagement Specialist; and Rachel Medcalf JP and Geoffrey Thomas JP from Greater Manchester Magistrates in the Community.
The conference also introduced the DfE RSE and Student Support Toolkit, providing colleges with practical resources and approaches to strengthen student support and safeguarding practice.
Emma Goodlet, GMColleges Project Lead, said, “This conference marks an exciting opportunity to further strengthen safeguarding collaboration across Greater Manchester.
“Bringing together colleges, sixth forms, universities and community partners has demonstrated the value of sharing expertise, learning from one another and working collectively to support young people.
“The enthusiasm, openness and commitment shown throughout the day reinforced just how seriously the further education sector takes its responsibility to safeguard learners. We are now looking forward to building on this momentum through a programme of collaborative CPD and professional development opportunities across Greater Manchester.”
Polly Harrow MBE, DofE FE Student Support Champion commented, “It was an absolute privilege to deliver a keynote speech to delegates at the GMColleges Safeguarding Conference last week.
“The promotion of the RSE Toolkit, supporting post 16 in addressing misogyny and gender based violence, is such important work and it was wonderful to hear that the Red Flag campaign is being run across Manchester. A fantastic event and a model we will replicate across other regions.”
The conference concluded with a commitment from partners across Greater Manchester to build on the momentum generated during the day. The next phase of work will focus on developing impactful CPD opportunities for staff across the region, ensuring safeguarding knowledge, skills and confidence continue to grow across education settings.
By investing in collaborative learning and professional development, Greater Manchester’s FE sector aims to further strengthen its collective response to safeguarding challenges and create safer, more supportive environments for every learner.
