Supporting Transitional Safeguarding in local areas

Transitional Safeguarding is a relatively new concept. It is a different way of thinking about safeguarding young people as they make the transition from adolescence into adulthood. Wherever you are on your local journey and whatever kind of help you need – know that we are here to support you.

We are the leading voice on Transitional Safeguarding.

Transitional Safeguarding is not just about ‘transitions’ in the sense of transferring from children’s to adults’ services – it’s about recognising the unique and evolving needs of all young people aged from their mid-teens into their mid-twenties. Every young person’s journey into adulthood is shaped by their experiences, circumstances, and development. And ‘eligibility’ is not the only consideration when building a support system for young people. In a recent blog, Dez Holmes highlights how our approach reflects this complexity.

The concept of Transitional Safeguarding has been developed by Research in Practice, informed by learning from those who have pioneered approaches such as Contextual Safeguarding and Making Safeguarding Personal. It reflects growing evidence that too many young people enter adulthood facing risk and harm without effective support. A recent Transitional Safeguarding briefing for sector leaders by Research in Practice with support from ADCS, ADASS and Partners in Care and Health and Professor Christine Cocker, provides an introduction to the concept of Transitional Safeguarding and explains key principles.

Our offer

Whether you are just beginning your local Transitional Safeguarding journey, or you are looking to deepen your strategic approach – we are here to support you and learn alongside you.

We bring established knowledge and experience in delivering support, strategic guidance and training in this area. Helping organisations implement effective and meaningful change.

Our support can range from short-term input to long-term development projects. We offer:

Bespoke programmes, including workshops and facilitated sessions designed to enable leaders to understand key concepts in Transitional Safeguarding and understand barrier and enablers within the local systems.
Focus groups and other qualitative research activities to understand your strengths and priorities.
Learning and professional development support tailored to meet your workforce and organisational needs.
Theory of Change workshops and other evaluation support to understand the aims and impact of Transitional Safeguarding approaches in your area.

Importantly, our work is not just about training practitioners – it’s about enabling whole-system change.

Transitional Safeguarding matters

We aim to support system-wide improvement and innovation in safeguarding responses to adolescents and young adults. This means recognising the evolving developmental needs of this age group and the types of risks they may face, understanding the legislative levers for change, identifying and redressing barriers in policy, practice and culture. Developing Transitional Safeguarding requires collaboration across multi-agency partnerships to redesign a local offer for young people making the journey to adulthood.

Who we work with

We work with areas across the country – not just local authorities – because Transitional Safeguarding is explicitly multi-agency. Our work spans:

Children’s and adults’ social care and wider local government services
Education
Health
Housing
Youth justice
Probation
Voluntary and community sector partners.

We know from experience that change is most effective when leaders, managers and practitioners learn from each other, and across organisational boundaries.

Co-developing system and practice changes

At Research in Practice we have worked with multiple local areas and national partnerships to support their Transitional Safeguarding journey.

Case study – Wiltshire’s Families and Children’s Transformation Programme

'Wiltshire’s Families and Children’s Transformation (FACT) Programme brings together a wide range of partners committed to whole-system transformation to achieve the best possible outcomes for our children, young people, and families. Emerging from the Covid pandemic, we recognised a pressing need to build on our existing work around Contextual Safeguarding for under-18s and explore how we could improve outcomes for young people transitioning into adulthood – particularly in navigating the complexities between children’s and adults’ legislative and practice frameworks.

At a time when our ambition was clear, but our conceptual thinking was still developing – guided by the release of the Bridging the Gap report – we reached out to Research in Practice. Their support has been invaluable. They provided:

Signposting to relevant research and evidence.
Connections with other local authorities on similar journeys.
Access to the University of Sussex’s reflective practice group.
Participation in exploratory conversations.
Facilitation of workshops with our partnership group.
Encouragement and reassurance during challenging phases of development.

Research in Practice has truly been a lifeline – helping us maintain momentum and refine our approach. Thanks to their support, we’ve progressed from early stage thinking to implementing system and practice changes that are already making a tangible difference for young people who might previously have fallen through the gaps.

Transitional Safeguarding remains a complex and evolving area, often requiring bold and radical thinking. The personalised training, insightful guidance, and practical support – especially in linking us with other local areas and directing us to key research – have been instrumental in helping us overcome barriers and build confidence. This has empowered us to be brave in our decision-making and to deliver meaningful support to young people in new and impactful ways.

We are deeply grateful to Research in Practice for walking alongside us on this journey.'

Wiltshire Council

Case study – Greater Manchester Complex Safeguarding Hub

‘Research in Practice has been a trusted partner of the Greater Manchester Complex Safeguarding Hub ever since its inception, bringing valued expertise and national perspective that has helped us push for system-wide innovation.

Engagement with Research in Practice during a workshop for local senior leaders in November 2023 marked a pivotal moment in Greater Manchester’s journey towards embedding Transitional Safeguarding. They supported us to make a critical shift from focusing on upskilling the frontline workforce towards creating the conditions for sustainable change, by fostering empathetic, boundary-spanning, and principle-driven leadership.

Guidance helped us understand that meaningful change requires alignment of culture, structure, and governance across children’s and adults’ systems. Through facilitation of the workshop, we identified and strengthened local strengths such as our shared ownership of Complex Safeguarding issues, reframing them as drivers for system change leadership. The workshop concluded with a clear commitment from senior leaders to support and champion innovation in this field.

Research in Practice also introduced us to a national network of key professionals from areas such as Wiltshire, Newcastle, and the NWG, whose continued engagement has infused fresh energy, expertise, and enthusiasm into our developing community of practice, helping to remove perceived obstacles and focus on what is possible.

Since involvement from Research in Practice, we have successfully galvanised enthusiasm and secured buy-in from senior managers, achieving steady progress toward the creation of a principle-led, iterative framework for Transitional Safeguarding implementation across Greater Manchester. This framework will translate shared values into practical action, emphasising the need to act now to strengthen the early help offer for young people at risk of exploitation as they reach legal adulthood.

Transitional Safeguarding is now recognised as a strategic objective in our Greater Manchester Complex Safeguarding Strategy, to which Research in Practice also contributed through advice on this priority. This has been evident in the outcomes of our peer review process, itself informed by the Tackling Child Exploitation principles co-authored by Research in Practice.

Through a continued advisory role, including ongoing engagement at local level with Wigan’s Safeguarding Partnership, Research in Practice has been instrumental in helping us maintain momentum in embedding transitional safeguarding as a defining feature of our regional safeguarding landscape.’