Safeguarding
Keeping young people safe online and in the world of work.
NextStep UK is used by young people aged 16–21. Keeping them safe is a condition of how we design, build and run the service — not an afterthought.
Need help right now?
- In an emergency, or if someone is in immediate danger, call 999.
- NSPCC — 0808 800 5000 / nspcc.org.uk
- Childline (free, confidential, under 19s) — 0800 1111 / childline.org.uk
- Samaritans — 116 123 / samaritans.org
- Report harmful online content or grooming — CEOP Safety Centre
Reporting a concern to us
If you're worried about a young person's safety, or about something you've seen on NextStep UK, email safeguarding@nextstepuk.org. Include what happened, when, and any vacancy reference or link.
Our safeguarding lead reviews every report. We aim to acknowledge within one working day and to act on urgent concerns immediately, including referring to the police or local authority children's services where a young person may be at risk. We will not promise secrecy where someone's safety is at stake, but we will tell you what we're doing wherever it is safe to do so.
How we design for safety
- Accounts are private to the young person by default. Nothing you save, track or build is published or shared.
- Advisers, schools and employers cannot see a young person's data without their explicit, revocable consent (adviser features are in development and will launch consent-first).
- There is no public profile, no messaging between users and no way for an adult to contact a young person through this site.
- We collect only the data we need — see our privacy notice.
- Vacancies come from the official GOV.UK Find an apprenticeship service, and applications are always completed on that original source. We never collect your application on an employer's behalf.
- Our approach follows the principles of Keeping Children Safe in Education and the ICO's Age Appropriate Design Code.
Staying safe when applying
- A genuine employer will never ask you to pay a fee for a job or an interview.
- Never send bank details, your National Insurance number or ID documents before you have a written, verified offer.
- Interviews should be arranged through official channels — be cautious about meeting alone in a private address.
- If a listing looks like a scam, email us the vacancy reference at safeguarding@nextstepuk.org and we'll report it to the Department for Education.
For schools, colleges and youth organisations
Please read this page alongside our schools & organisations page before using NextStep UK with young people, and follow your own organisation's safeguarding policy for reporting concerns.
Review
This statement is reviewed at least annually and whenever we launch a feature that changes how young people interact with the service.