- Governance & Legal
Safeguarding & Duty of Candour
- Governance & Legal
- ESG & Social
Our Safeguarding Commitment
Saint Visage Dental Group is committed to safeguarding the welfare of all patients, including children and vulnerable adults, across every practice in our network. We recognise our responsibility to identify, respond to, and report safeguarding concerns in accordance with current legislation and professional guidance.
Key Principles
- The welfare and safety of patients is paramount in all decisions and actions.
- All patients have the right to be protected from abuse, neglect, and exploitation regardless of age, disability, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation, or any other characteristic.
- All concerns and allegations of abuse are taken seriously and responded to promptly and appropriately.
- We work collaboratively with local safeguarding partnerships, social services, and law enforcement agencies where required.
Safeguarding Children
Dental professionals are uniquely positioned to identify signs of child abuse and neglect. Our clinical teams are trained to recognise indicators including unexplained injuries to the face, head, and neck, signs of neglect such as untreated dental disease, and behavioural indicators that may suggest a child is at risk.
Where a concern arises, we follow established safeguarding procedures which include documenting findings in clinical records, discussing concerns with the practice safeguarding lead, and making referrals to local authority children’s services where appropriate.
Safeguarding Vulnerable Adults
We recognise that adults at risk may also present in dental settings. Our teams are trained to identify signs of physical, emotional, financial, and institutional abuse, as well as neglect and self-neglect. We follow local authority adult safeguarding procedures and make appropriate referrals.
Safeguarding Governance
- Each practice has a designated safeguarding lead responsible for overseeing safeguarding policies and procedures at the local level.
- All clinical and non-clinical staff receive safeguarding training appropriate to their role, with regular refresher training.
- Safeguarding is a standing agenda item in clinical governance meetings.
- DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) checks are conducted on all staff who have contact with patients.
Duty of Candour
Saint Visage Dental Group complies fully with the Duty of Candour obligations set out in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. This means:
- When a notifiable safety incident occurs, we will inform the patient (or their representative) as soon as reasonably practicable.
- We will provide a truthful account of what happened, explain what further enquiries will take place, and offer an apology.
- We will follow up in writing, providing the outcome of any investigation and the steps taken to prevent recurrence.
- We maintain a culture of openness and transparency, encouraging staff to report incidents and near-misses without fear of blame.
Our Duty of Candour applies to all notifiable incidents — defined as any unintended or unexpected incident that occurred during the provision of care that, in the reasonable opinion of a healthcare professional, could result in, or appears to have resulted in, death, severe harm, moderate harm, or prolonged psychological harm to the patient.
- Safeguarding Concerns
If you have a safeguarding concern about a patient at any Saint Visage practice:
Email: safeguarding@saintvisage.co.uk
In an emergency, always call 999.
Questions about our policies?
Our governance team is available to discuss any aspect of our policies and procedures.