Safeguarding Lead

Safeguarding Lead

Salary: £60,000 to £65,000

Location: ​​​​​Hybrid (Up to 2 days a week in our Canary Wharf Office) `

​​Reports to: Director of Clinical Operations

Applications close: Wednesday 18th November 2026

🩷 About Noodle 

Noodle (previously Care ADHD) began as a small team with big ambitions, and has since grown into a global organisation supporting thousands of people across the UK and India. Though our teams are continents apart, we’re united by one mission: We drive lasting change through neurodevelopmental care that is personal, clinically exceptional and easy to access. 

We created Noodle because ADHD and autism shape how someone experiences the world, every day. The right support can bring more choice, more stability and more confidence – at home, at school and at work. 

What drives us is simple: opening a world of possibility for different minds. Neurodevelopmental support, when done well, is one of the highest‑impact interventions in healthcare. The right care gives people more agency, more stability and the chance we all deserve: to thrive and be happy. 

We’re here to make that happen for as many people as we can. 

Brilliant works demands different minds. When different skills and experiences come together, something special happens. 

💫 What we are looking for?

The Safeguarding Lead will be responsible for providing strategic, operational and professional leadership for safeguarding across our neurodevelopmental services.

The post holder will act as the organisational lead for safeguarding children, young people and adults, ensuring that safeguarding remains at the centre of all clinical and operational activity. They will provide expert advice and guidance to clinicians, managers and operational teams whilst ensuring compliance with statutory requirements, regulatory standards and safeguarding best practice.

The post holder will provide independent professional safeguarding leadership, constructive challenge and expert assurance to senior leaders, ensuring safeguarding risks are appropriately identified, escalated and managed across the organisation. They will act as the organisation’s safeguarding subject matter expert, maintaining oversight of safeguarding arrangements and ensuring statutory responsibilities are met.

The role will provide strategic oversight of safeguarding risks associated with remote healthcare delivery, including patient identity and location verification, emergency response planning, consent, privacy, digital exclusion, proxy access arrangements and cross-boundary safeguarding responsibilities.

The role is responsible for maintaining robust safeguarding governance arrangements across both remote and face-to-face assessment, treatment, prescribing and monitoring pathways, ensuring that vulnerable patients are identified, protected and supported appropriately.

Working collaboratively with internal teams and external partners, the Safeguarding Lead will promote a proactive safeguarding culture that prioritises patient safety, professional curiosity and continuous improvement.

😎What You Will Be Doing:

Strategic Safeguarding Leadership

• Lead the development and implementation of the organisational safeguarding strategy across adult and children’s services.
• Serve as the Designated Safeguarding Lead for the organisation.
• Ensure safeguarding is embedded within all clinical pathways, policies and operational processes.
• Provide assurance to senior leadership regarding safeguarding performance, risks and compliance.
• Develop annual safeguarding objectives, priorities and improvement plans.
• Promote a culture of safeguarding awareness, accountability and patient-centred care throughout the organisation.
• Ensure safeguarding arrangements remain responsive to the unique risks associated with a predominantly remote healthcare service.
• Act as the organisation’s independent safeguarding expert, providing strategic advice, challenge and assurance to the Executive Team and Board.
• Provide executive-level oversight of safeguarding risks, emerging themes and organisational learning.
• Lead organisational compliance with statutory safeguarding duties, including responsibilities arising from the Children Act 1989 and 2004, Care Act 2014, Mental Capacity Act 2005, Prevent Duty and Domestic Abuse Act.
• Ensure safeguarding considerations are embedded in organisational decision-making, service development, clinical governance and risk management processes.
• Maintain effective relationships with Safeguarding Children Partnerships, Safeguarding Adults Boards and other strategic safeguarding forums where appropriate.

Safeguarding Governance

• Maintain oversight of all safeguarding concerns, referrals and investigations across the organisation.
• Ensure safeguarding practices comply with statutory guidance, legislation, CQC requirements and professional standards.
• Develop, implement and review safeguarding policies, procedures and operational guidance.
• Chair safeguarding forums, review meetings and governance discussions.
• Lead safeguarding audits and quality assurance activities.
• Monitor safeguarding trends, themes and emerging risks and ensure appropriate action is taken.
• Produce safeguarding reports for governance committees, senior leadership teams and external organisations where required.
• Ensure learning from safeguarding incidents, complaints, audits, investigations and reviews is embedded into practice.
• Maintain oversight of statutory safeguarding notifications, regulatory reporting requirements and organisational compliance obligations.
• Ensure appropriate internal review and organisational assurance following safeguarding incidents whilst recognising that statutory investigations remain the responsibility of local authorities, police or other statutory agencies.
• Lead organisational responses to safeguarding reviews, safeguarding adult reviews (SARs), child safeguarding practice reviews and other external investigations where applicable.
• Ensure safeguarding metrics, risk indicators and learning outcomes are routinely reported to senior leadership.

Children’s Safeguarding

• Act as the organisational lead for safeguarding children and young people accessing ADHD, Autism and neurodevelopmental services.
• Provide expert advice relating to child protection, neglect, exploitation, emotional wellbeing and contextual safeguarding.
• Support clinicians in identifying and responding to safeguarding concerns affecting children and young people.
• Ensure appropriate referrals are made to local authority children’s services and other relevant agencies.
• Lead complex safeguarding discussions involving children and families.
• Maintain oversight of safeguarding risks associated with neurodevelopmental conditions, school attendance difficulties, family stressors and mental health concerns.
• Support staff to understand their responsibilities regarding looked-after children and children in need.
• Ensure safeguarding considerations are incorporated into assessment, diagnosis, treatment and follow-up pathways.
• Provide expert leadership relating to consent, Gillick competence, Fraser guidelines, parental responsibility and ensuring the child’s voice is central to safeguarding decision-making.
• Provide advice and support regarding child protection conferences, strategy discussions and child-in-need processes.
• Maintain oversight of safeguarding concerns relating to online harm, exploitation, radicalisation and contextual safeguarding.

Adult Safeguarding

• Lead safeguarding arrangements for vulnerable adults accessing services.
• Provide advice regarding abuse, neglect, self-neglect, exploitation, domestic abuse and safeguarding concerns.
• Support clinicians in assessing capacity, risk and vulnerability.
• Ensure safeguarding referrals are appropriately made to local authorities and partner agencies.
• Provide leadership around Mental Capacity Act principles and best-interest decision making.
• Maintain oversight of adults with complex health, mental health and social care needs.
• Ensure safeguarding is embedded within prescribing, treatment monitoring and ongoing care pathways.
• Provide professional leadership regarding Care Act Section 42 safeguarding enquiries.
• Champion the principles of Making Safeguarding Personal across all adult safeguarding activity.
• Provide expert advice regarding mental capacity assessments, fluctuating capacity and complex best-interest decision-making processes.
• Support clinicians in balancing autonomy, risk management and safeguarding responsibilities.

Operational Safeguarding Management

• Act as the primary point of contact for safeguarding escalations and complex safeguarding concerns.
• Provide safeguarding consultation and professional advice to clinicians, operational managers and service leads.
• Support risk assessments and decision-making processes relating to vulnerable patients.
• Ensure safeguarding concerns are recorded, investigated and tracked appropriately.
• Maintain organisational safeguarding registers and action plans.
• Provide support during serious incidents and high-risk safeguarding situations.
• Lead organisational responses to allegations, concerns or complaints involving staff, associates and volunteers, including liaison with LADO services and Adult Position of Trust processes where required.
• Maintain oversight of safeguarding supervision arrangements and provide specialist safeguarding supervision for relevant staff groups.
• Provide expert consultation on highly complex and high-risk safeguarding situations.

Remote and Digital Safeguarding

• Provide leadership and oversight of safeguarding arrangements within remote assessment, treatment and prescribing pathways.
• Ensure robust processes are in place for patient identity verification and location confirmation during clinical contacts.
• Develop protocols for failed contact, welfare concerns and emergency escalation where immediate patient safety concerns arise.
• Provide oversight of safeguarding risks associated with remote prescribing and medication management.
• Ensure appropriate management of privacy, confidentiality, proxy access and information-sharing issues within digital healthcare pathways.
• Promote equitable access to services and address safeguarding risks associated with digital exclusion.

Multi-Agency Working

• Develop effective working relationships with Local Authorities, Integrated Care Boards, NHS Trusts, schools, social care teams, GP practices and community services.
• Represent the organisation at safeguarding meetings, strategy discussions and multi-agency forums if appropriate.
• Ensure effective information-sharing processes support safe and coordinated care.
• Support clinicians with professional challenge and escalation where safeguarding concerns are not being addressed appropriately.
• Develop and maintain relationships with Local Authority Designated Officers (LADOs), Safeguarding Adult Boards, Safeguarding Children Partnerships, Prevent leads and regulatory bodies.
• Represent the organisation during safeguarding reviews, strategy meetings and multi-agency case discussions where required.
• Ensure appropriate escalation and professional challenge when safeguarding concerns are not being appropriately managed by partner agencies.

Training and Development

• Lead the safeguarding training strategy for the organisation.
• Ensure staff receive safeguarding training appropriate to their role and responsibilities.
• Deliver safeguarding training, briefings and awareness sessions where required.
• Support managers and clinical leaders to maintain safeguarding competence within their teams.
• Promote reflective practice and organisational learning.
• Develop and oversee safeguarding supervision frameworks across the organisation.
• Ensure safeguarding competency frameworks are maintained and regularly reviewed.
• Provide specialist training on mental capacity, Prevent, domestic abuse, professional curiosity and safeguarding within remote healthcare services.

Quality Improvement

• Establish safeguarding performance indicators and quality measures.
• Lead safeguarding audits and service reviews.
• Identify opportunities for improvement in safeguarding practice.
• Implement actions arising from audits, incidents, complaints and reviews.
• Ensure safeguarding learning informs policy development and service design.

🚀 To thrive in this role you’ll need:

Essential Qualifications: 

Registered Healthcare Professional (NMC, HCPC, GMC, Social Work England or equivalent registration).

Degree level qualification or equivalent professional experience.

Advanced safeguarding qualification or evidence of significant safeguarding expertise.

Safeguarding Children Level 4.

Safeguarding Adults Level 4.

Essential Experience: 

 Significant experience managing complex safeguarding cases involving both adults and children.

Experience acting as a Safeguarding Lead, Named Professional or Designated Safeguarding Lead.

Experience within healthcare, mental health, neurodevelopmental, social care or community services.

Experience working within multi-agency safeguarding arrangements.

Experience conducting safeguarding investigations and reviews.

Experience developing safeguarding policies, governance systems and quality improvement initiatives.

Experience supporting remote or digital healthcare services.

Experience providing safeguarding supervision and staff support.

Essential Knowledge:

Extensive knowledge of safeguarding children legislation, guidance and best practice.

Extensive knowledge of safeguarding adults’ legislation and Care Act responsibilities.

Comprehensive understanding of:

• Working Together to Safeguard Children
• Children Act 1989 and 2004
• Care Act 2014
• Mental Capacity Act 2005
• Prevent Duty
• Domestic Abuse Act
• Information Sharing Guidance
• CQC safeguarding requirements

Understanding of safeguarding risks within neurodevelopmental services, including ADHD and Autism.

Knowledge of remote assessment and digital healthcare safeguarding considerations.

Working Together to Safeguard Children (latest version)

Safeguarding Adults Boards statutory guidance

Making Safeguarding Personal

Gillick Competence and Fraser Guidelines

Parental Responsibility legislation and guidance

Safeguarding Adult Reviews (SARs) and Child Safeguarding Practice Reviews

Position of Trust processes

LADO procedures

Online and digital safeguarding risks

Remote prescribing governance and associated safeguarding considerations

What We’re Looking For:

Excellent safeguarding risk assessment and decision-making skills.

Strong leadership and influencing abilities.

Ability to manage highly complex safeguarding situations.

Excellent report writing and investigation skills.

Strong communication and stakeholder engagement skills.

Ability to challenge constructively and professionally.

Strong analytical and organisational skills.

Ability to work autonomously within a fast-paced environment.

Experience of chairing safeguarding meetings and governance forums.

What We Value:

Care is at the heart of who we are – in how we support the people we serve, and in how we treat each other as colleagues. We believe the way we show up for each other is just as important as what we do. Skills matter, but it’s our mindset and behaviours that protect the supportive culture we’ve built, and help us thrive together.

We value:

Kindness – treating colleagues, partners, and everyone we support, with respect and care.

Transparency – being open and honest so that trust can grow.

Reflection- pausing to learn from experience and improve together.

Growth mindset – always welcoming feedback and challenges as opportunities to develop.

Accountability – taking ownership of our actions and outcomes, not to assign blame, but to learn, adapt, improve, and move forward.

Solution-seeking – focusing on constructive ways forward, even when things are tough.

Collaboration – sharing ideas, supporting one another, and celebrating collective success.

🙏🏻 What You Can Expect from Us:

• Competitive salary
• Work from our Canary Wharf office, or join on a hybrid basis from anywhere in the UK
• Team get-togethers
• 25 days holiday (plus UK public holidays)
• A paid day off on your birthday
• Office equipment when you join
• Pension contribution
• Be part of one of the UK’s most ambitious HealthTech start-ups with plenty of room for growth

Beyond the benefits, you’ll find a team that celebrates wins, learns from challenges, and genuinely looks out for one another.

🗓️Our Hiring Process:

We aim to make our hiring process as streamlined as possible. 

What to Expect 

📩 We’ll aim to contact shortlisted candidates by Thursday 19th November. 

💻 Initial Microsoft Teams calls with one of our Talent Acquisition Specialists will take place on Thursday 19th, Friday 20th and Monday 23rd November, the perfect chance for us to get to know each other more. 

👥 Final-stage interviews will be held on the 25th November. 

🩵Apply with Confidence

Studies show that men apply for roles when they meet around 60% of the qualifications, whereas women and other marginalised groups often apply only if they meet every requirement. If you believe you’re a great fit but don’t meet every single requirement, we encourage you to apply.

At Care ADHD, we’re committed to building a diverse and inclusive environment. We encourage applications from candidates of all backgrounds, especially those from historically marginalised communities, as we work together to create a more equitable future.