Recommendation 27

We recommend DWP commissions or undertakes a series of surveys to understand how staff feel about the Department’s safeguarding policies, practices and their overall workload. The surveys should include questions relating to views on training and guidance; familiarity and confidence with safeguarding policies; and culture relating to safeguarding, both within the individual’s service area, and across DWP more generally. We recommend DWP undertake an initial round of any such survey as soon as possible, and a second round after one year. Within three months of each survey, DWP should also report to us how it will continue to improve its approach to safeguarding and ensure that where discretion is used, it is consistently applied. DWP should use the survey as an opportunity to understand which areas of training DWP staff would most benefit from, and develop an improved training programme accordingly. (Recommendation, Paragraph 112)