Prevention: Act Before Abuse

Prevention: Act Before Abuse

Monday 17 to Friday 21 November 2025 is National Safeguarding Adults Week and this year the theme is Prevention: Act Before Abuse. 

When we hear the word safeguarding, it’s often in the context of responding to abuse, putting actions in place to protect someone who has already been harmed, minimising the risk of it happening again and often learning lessons from what went wrong.

But what if we changed the narrative?

While it’s vital to act promptly and reflect and improve when things go wrong, our greatest impact comes from stopping harm before it happens. Prevention is one of NYSAB’s three strategic priorities for 2025 to 2028 The aim is to move us towards a broader, more proactive mindset when thinking about abuse and neglect. Under this priority the board is focusing on three key areas:

These are all key areas where early action can prevent the likelihood of future harm occurring.

Prevention also means trusting our instincts.

If something doesn’t feel right, understanding it is ok to be curious and to speak up. It’s about building communities where people understand their rights, feel confident to raise concerns, and know where to turn for help.

During National Safeguarding Adults Week, we’re inviting individuals, teams, and organisations to take a closer look at how prevention is woven into their safeguarding approach. Are we doing enough to spot the signs early? Are our policies designed to protect people before they reach crisis point?

Throughout the week we will be share resources that explore prevention, as well as general safeguarding materials, links and webinars. We will be inviting individuals and organisations to consider how prevention is woven into their safeguarding approach.

You can check out all of our current and future Safeguarding Week resources here: NYSAB

Let’s make safeguarding about more than just reacting.