Responses to a Freedom of Information request show more than half of the 42 councils approached had reported incidents in the last three years of staff not following safeguarding guidance – with 14 saying they had taken disciplinary action. But context is crucial to understanding what the data may be telling us.

The company behind a Freedom of Information (FoI) request to local authorities in England and Wales believes the answers it received reveal concerns about safeguarding incidents, as well as training and operational guidance.