Aim To explore perceptions, opinions and experiences of safeguarding education within pre-registration children’s nursing curricula.

Methods Using a qualitative research method, an online questionnaire was developed and disseminated to pre-registration children’s nursing students to complete via a weblink added to their programme’s virtual learning environment.

Findings This study highlighted the need to integrate other pedagogies in safeguarding education. These include implementing more practical-based workshops such as completing safeguarding referrals to social care and undertaking case vignettes from a multiprofessional perspective.

Conclusion The recommendations from this study for future safeguarding education in pre-registration children’s nursing curricula include incorporating a hybrid experiential learning approach, through problem-solving and simulation-based learning, to bridge the theory-to-practice divide and ensure practitioners are fit for practice.