Safeguarding
How Confidence and Regulation Support Safeguarding in Schools
Why Prevention Works Better Than Reaction
Last week, I sat in a Safeguarding and Prevent update briefing.
A sobering reminder of the very real and increasing risks young people face, and the responsibility adults carry to protect them.
As is often the case in these sessions, the conversation moved quickly to a familiar question;
How do we protect our own children?
Having worked across state, independent and alternative provision, I’ve seen safeguarding concerns from many angles. One thing has consistently stood out:
Exploitation is never a child’s fault. Responsibility always sits with perpetrators and with systems.
But I have observed that young people with stronger self-regulation, confidence, and a clearer sense of self are often less vulnerable to pressure, coercion, and manipulation.
As parents and professionals, we want to shield young people from harm and rightly so.
But we also have to be honest: we cannot be present 24/7. We cannot remove every risk.
What we can do is help young people develop the internal skills that support them when adults aren’t in the room.
That often comes through experiences that challenge them appropriately and help them grow independence and confidence.
Outside school, this might include reading, performing arts, martial arts, sport, scouts or cadets.
In school settings, opportunities like drama, sport, debating or structured enrichment play an important role.
Alongside these, yoga is a practical intervention that is often misunderstood or dismissed because of the language around it.
In an educational context, yoga is not spiritual and it isn’t therapy.
Used properly, it provides young people with repeatable tools to:
Settle their nervous system
Develop physical awareness
Build confidence under everyday pressure
This isn’t about poses for the sake of poses. It’s about regulation, focus and composure.
For clarity: I didn’t fall out of a tree into downward dog. My work isn’t about spiritual journeys.
I’ve spent years working in high-pressure environments, exposing myself to risk, learning the hard way, and later applying those lessons while working with young people and professionals in education.
That lived experience now shapes how I design and deliver structured, safeguarding-aware interventions that staff and students can use within an academic setting.
If your school is considering working with an external provider this year and you’re open to a grounded, professional conversation about resilience, regulation and confidence? I’m happy to talk.
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