| SPOTLIGHT |
The Government is to amend the Criminal Justice Bill to make it a legal requirement for anyone in regulated activity relating to children in England, including teachers or healthcare professionals, to report it if they know a child is being sexually abused.
Those who fail to report child sexual abuse they are aware of, falling short of their legal duties, face being barred from working with young people, the Home Office said.
Anyone who actively protects child sexual abusers – by intentionally blocking others from reporting or covering up the crime – could meanwhile go to prison for seven years.
The amendments also include plans to give the police greater powers to stop registered sex offenders from changing their name on official documents such as passports or driving licences.
The Home Office said that making mandatory reporting a legal requiremen would deliver on a key recommendation in the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) report.
Home Secretary James Cleverly said: “There is no excuse for turning a blind eye to a child’s pain.
“Having listened to the voices of victims and survivors and reviewed the work of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, we are working at pace to get a mandatory reporting duty for child sexual abuse onto the statute book.”
He added: “We’re also going further, equipping the police with more powers to prevent those who have committed abhorrent sexual crimes in the past from evading the police by changing their name.
“We will continue use all levers at our disposal to tackle this horrific crime and keep women and children safe.”
Minister for Victims and Safeguarding Laura Farris said: “By bringing into force a mandatory duty to report child sexual abuse – the inquiry’s principal recommendation – we are sending a clear message that children will never be let down whether in schools, sports settings or any supervised environment.”
Gabrielle Shaw, Chief Executive for The National Association for People Abused in Childhood, said: “NAPAC welcomes this important measure by the government that will improve safeguarding of children and increase accountability amongst those who have a duty of care.
“The introduction of mandatory reporting is a big step in the right direction, which must be implemented alongside an approach that prioritises the wellbeing of the child and ensures they have access to ongoing, specialist support. This will require investment in training requirements, wider supporting structures and effective tracking and review.”
Alan Collins, Partner in the sex abuse team at law firm Hugh James law firm, described the Home Office’s announcement as “welcome and long overdue”.
However, he added that this was “a missed opportunity because the government proposals are weak and are likely to be ineffectual”.
Collns said: “The whole purpose of mandatory reporting is to drive cultural change so that suspicions and concerns are reported. It would be very unusual (if not unique) for a professional to have witnessed child sex abuse. It is the concern that needs to be reported.”
He added: “Unless you have a requirement to report concerns – as opposed to knowing a child has been abused – we are not going to see the cultural change that is needed.”
The measures will apply to England and Wales.
Responding to the announcement, John Pearce, President of the Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS), said: “Whilst ADCS remains concerned about the risks of introducing a mandatory reporting duty of child sexual abuse, we recognise this is now government policy. ADCS members would welcome further discussion with the Home Office, Department for Education and Ministry of Justice on implementation of the duty, given the dangers of rushing the design which are summarised in the Association’s response to the latest government consultation on mandatory reporting.
“A rushed, poorly scoped and under resourced policy could adversely affect the very children it seeks to protect if services become overwhelmed and support is not available for children when they need.
“Similarly, it may impact on workforce recruitment and retention, which is extremely challenging across a number of key professions, destabilising vital public services that children and young people rely on.”
Pearce added: “While the duty is focused on reporting of abuses, more attention must be given to stopping abuses taking place at all with wider efforts to address entrenched societal attitudes and norms.”
