Mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse: call for evidence

Question 1

Consultation details

Accepted Answer

To:

Persons working in regulated activity in relation to children (under the Safeguarding and Vulnerable Groups Act 2006, as amended).
Volunteers who would be undertaking regulated activity in relation to children if they were unsupervised.
Anyone working with children in any capacity.
Persons working in a position of trust (as defined by the Sexual Offences Act 2003 ).
Police officers.
Local authorities; including children’s social care workers
Welsh Government.
NHS England, Directors of Public Health and Integrated Care Boards
Inspectorates and regulators.
Education settings and workforce, including Early Years and Further Education.
Children’s activity settings and workforces (children’s sports, drama, arts, and music clubs)
Civil Society and Youth organisations (charities, voluntary, community and social enterprises).
Academics and research institutions such as What Works Centres
Professional organisations such as the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, the BMA etc.
Members of the public.

Duration:

From Monday 22 May to Monday 14 August.

Enquiries (including requests for the paper in an alternative format) to:

IICSA Response

Tackling Child Sexual Abuse Unit
Home Office
5th Floor, Fry Building
2 Marsham Street
London
SW1P 4DF

Email: mr_csa@homeoffice.gov.uk

How to respond:

To help us analyse the responses please use the online system wherever possible: https://gov.uk/government/consultations/mandatory-reporting-of-child-sexual-abuse

If for exceptional reasons, you are unable to use the online system, for example because you use specialist accessibility software that is not compatible with the system, you may request and complete a Word document version of the form by email.

Next steps:

A response to this exercise is due to be published within 12 weeks of the call for evidence closing at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications?publication_ filter_option=consultation

Question 2

About this call for evidence

Accepted Answer

Investigations undertaken by the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse documented unacceptable cases of organisations and institutions failing to protect those in their care from child sexual abuse (Lambeth Council, Residential Schools, Child Sexual Exploitation in Organised Networks, and more). This must not be allowed to happen again.

The Government remains firmly committed to tackling all forms of child sexual abuse, putting the needs of children first. Wherever possible, action should be taken to prevent child sexual abuse through safer recruitment practices, robust policies and procedures, and creating a system-wide safeguarding culture. Where abuse does occur, it is critical that frontline professionals and volunteers are equipped with the right training and resources to identify and respond to child sexual abuse, and improve how they work with child victims.

In its final report, the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse recommended that Government introduce a mandatory reporting duty for cases of child sexual abuse:

Recommendation 13: Mandatory reporting

The Inquiry recommends that the UK government and Welsh Government introduce legislation which places certain individuals – ‘mandated reporters’ – under a statutory duty to report child sexual abuse where they:

receive a disclosure of child sexual abuse from a child or perpetrator; or
witness a child being sexually abused; or
observe recognised indicators of child sexual abuse.

The following persons should be designated ‘mandated reporters’:

any person working in regulated activity in relation to children (under the Safeguarding and Vulnerable Groups Act 2006, as amended);
any person working in a position of trust (as defined by the Sexual Offences Act 2003, as amended); and
police officers.

For the purposes of mandatory reporting, ‘child sexual abuse’ should be interpreted as any act that would be an offence under the Sexual Offences Act 2003 where the alleged victim is a child under the age of 18.

Where the child is aged between 13 and under 16 years old, a report need not be made where the mandated reporter reasonably believes that:

the relationship between the parties is consensual and not intimidatory, exploitative or coercive; and
the child has not been harmed and is not at risk of being harmed; and
there is no material difference in capacity or maturity between the parties engaged in the sexual activity concerned, and there is a difference in age of no more than three years.

These exceptions should not, however, apply where the alleged perpetrator is in a position of trust within the meaning of the 2003 Act.

Where the child is under the age of 13, a report must always be made.

Reports should be made to either local authority children’s social care or the police as soon as is practicable.

It should be a criminal offence for mandated reporters to fail to report child sexual abuse where they:

are in receipt of a disclosure of child sexual abuse from a child or perpetrator; or
witness a child being sexually abused.

In light of this recommendation, we are launching this call for evidence which seeks views on how implementing a duty to report child sexual abuse is likely to impact children, organisations, and affected workforces and volunteers; and how different aspects could be implemented.

The call for evidence is particularly aimed at those working with children and young people in regulated activity or positions of trust (including in the charity, voluntary and community sectors), those involved in law enforcement and, more generally, individuals and groups working with children and supporting those affected by child sexual abuse. We recognise that these sectors currently operate under different requirements in terms of their work with children and young people. We want to collect responses from as broad a spectrum as possible so that we can accurately assess how best to implement mandatory reporting, including what support and resources may be needed, and what the potential implications might be. However, the above list is not meant to be exhaustive or exclusive, and responses are welcomed from anyone with an interest in or views on the subject covered by this paper.

The geographical scope of the call for evidence is England. Though many elements of the recommendation are devolved to Wales, crime, policing and criminal justice are not. The Home Office will work closely with the Welsh Government to ensure that the results of this call for evidence are meaningful in a Welsh context.

This call for evidence relates to a sensitive and distressing topic. It is not in itself designed to capture disclosures of, or concerns around, incidents of child sexual abuse. Such concerns should be reported directly to the police or your local children’s services. You can also get advice or report your concerns anonymously to the NSPCC by phoning its free helpline on 0808 800 5000; or via email.

Under the Home Office’s established protocols, we will refer any disclosures of child sexual abuse to the police for their consideration. Further information about how your response and any personal data will be handled can be found below (‘Confidentiality’).

Question 3

Implementing a statutory duty to report child sexual abuse

Accepted Answer

IICSA Recommendation

Across seven years of investigation, the Inquiry heard the important testimonies and lived experience of over 7,300 victims and survivors as well as considering the Government’s 2016 consultation on mandatory reporting of abuse and neglect. The evidence it considered, which ranged from historical to contemporary accounts, demonstrated that when abuse was disclosed individuals and institutions often thought children were lying. In some cases, reputational concerns were prioritised over the safety of children, despite allegations or actual knowledge of sexually abusive behaviour. In others, a culture of indifference led to a succession of missed opportunities to intervene in the life of a vulnerable child. Appallingly, some victims testified to being mocked and bullied by safeguarding professionals when they directly disclosed details about the sexual abuse they suffered. Many more set out that inadequate and negative responses to their disclosures meant they never wanted to talk about their experiences again.

After considering the issue across several of its investigations, the Inquiry recommended in its final report to Government that a mandatory reporting regime should be established in respect of child sexual abuse cases. The duty proposed by the Inquiry would apply where a victim or an abuser discloses that a child is being sexually abused, as well as in cases where child sexual abuse is witnessed or signs are observed that indicate that a child has been sexually abused. It would be a criminal offence to fail to report a disclosure or witnessed incident of child sexual abuse.

The scope of the Inquiry’s recommendation is broad, applying to anyone working in regulated activity with children, persons in positions of trust and police officers. The Inquiry also sets out that specific ‘whistleblowing’ protections should be in place for individuals when reports are made in good faith.

Government position

Child sexual abuse causes deep and enduring damage that can last for a lifetime. Those who work with children or hold positions of trust are in a unique position to help prevent abuse and identify when a child is suffering abuse. We know that keeping children safe from harm would not be possible without the combined efforts of professionals and volunteers across all sectors of society, and that the vast majority undertake this challenging work with a dedication that can have a transformative impact on the lives of vulnerable children and young people. We are continuing to invest in a range of measures to equip those working with children with the confidence and capability they need to tackle what is a complex and continually evolving threat.

The Government already sets clear expectations through statutory guidance (Working Together to Safeguard Children, Keeping children safe in education, Section 3 of the Statutory framework for the early years foundation stage) and non-statutory guidance (Keeping Children Safe in Out of School Settings) that practitioners working with children should make an immediate referral to the relevant local authority children’s social care if they believe that a child has suffered harm (or is likely to do so). There is also existing provision in law to pursue the concealment of an arrestable offence.

Despite the existing referral framework and continuing best efforts, we know that abuse continues to go unreported. As recently as April 2023, the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel published a two-part national review into safeguarding children with disabilities in residential settings; which sets out how and why a significant number of children with complex needs came to suffer serious abuse and neglect while living in three privately provided residential settings.

We know from the evidence considered by the Inquiry that victims of child sexual abuse were repeatedly failed by those who should have protected them, including safeguarding professionals who failed in their duties and allowed abuse to continue. The reasons put forward for this varied from a desire to protect an individual or institution from reputational damage, feeling unable to challenge the judgement of senior colleagues, and confusing or subjective procedures for assessing and handling reports of child sexual abuse. It is clear that more work is needed to ensure that the expectations on those working with children are unambiguous; and that they must be provided with the appropriate support to act.

We have given close consideration to the views and experiences of thousands of adult victims and survivors surveyed by the Inquiry. The vast majority of those respondents (88.6%) said that they would like to see mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse introduced. Some suggested the existence of a mandatory reporting duty at the time of their abuse could have led to action being taken, or the perpetrator being brought to justice.

If delivered effectively, a mandatory reporting duty provides an important mechanism for accountability where young people have been failed by those responsible for their care, creates a clearly understood process for reporters to take action (with robust personal and professional protections), and most importantly, ensures that more victims can be identified and safeguarded.

We agree with the Inquiry that the issue of organisations and individuals in positions of responsibility and trust failing to report must now be acted on. We have committed to working across Government to consult on a measured and phased approach, which is sensitive to wider impact and burdens, and considers whether action is needed at the individual or organisational level, or both.

We are conscious that such a duty could have a significant impact on a wide range of sectors – some of which are already under significant pressure, are already in the process of reform, or are less closely regulated but still involve a significant amount of contact with children. In order to implement mandatory reporting effectively, we want this call for evidence to gather a wide range of information on its potential impact. This will allow us to take all relevant considerations into account when developing specific proposals for testing.

Aims and objectives of this call for evidence

We need to consider a number of specific issues in detail as we develop our approach to implementing the duty. In particular, we want to understand whether a duty to report should remain targeted on child sexual abuse, or be extended to cover other forms of abuse and neglect. We also wish to consider whether a duty should be on individuals (as recommended by the Inquiry), or whether accountability should be at organisational level, or both.

We want to hear from people who work or volunteer with children, particularly in regulated activity or positions of trust. We encourage interested organisations to provide detailed information on any considerations specific to their sectors, as well as views on whether a mandatory reporting duty should cover only known incidents or also include suspected abuse. We would also like to understand the potential impact on children and young people who may seek to make disclosures, as well as organisations involved in supporting victims and survivors.

We are particularly keen to understand any equalities considerations and would be grateful if respondents could draw those out in their responses. This exercise is also intended to strengthen our evidence base in relation to those sectors and workforces which may not have contributed evidence directly to the Inquiry, but which could still be impacted by a mandatory reporting duty.

Some sectors have existing duties and requirements which a mandatory reporting duty will interact with, and we are keen to understand how that interplay might work in practice. We also want to understand how implementing the duty will align with the complex landscape of ongoing reforms across child protection and safeguarding agencies. We also want to understand what additional support individuals or organisations that are subject to the duty may need in order to understand and comply with the duty ahead of its implementation.

We also welcome views on any circumstances in which it may be necessary to disapply the duty, and what type of sanction might be appropriate for individuals and/or organisations who are found to have breached the duty.

Key considerations

The aim of this call for evidence is to strengthen our understanding of each of the following aspects of the recommendation:

Who the duty should apply to

The recommendation specifies that the duty should apply to those working in ‘regulated activity’ and those in ‘positions of trust’. This results in a broad cohort, with a significant range of existing requirements and differing levels of familiarity with the complex issue of child sexual abuse.
The Inquiry has also specified that the duty should apply to police officers – as policing is a reserved matter, this has implications for the mandatory reporting policies under consideration by the devolved administration in Wales.
We are mindful of volunteers who would currently be considered to be undertaking regulated activity if unsupervised, as well as those working with children who don’t fully meet the requirements of regulated activity.
The parameters of the recommendation limit the duty to specific individuals, and therefore it does not directly address the responsibility of organisations to ensure reports made within their corporate structures are referred onwards appropriately. This call for evidence therefore seeks views on whether mandatory reporting should be at individual or organisational level or both.

Whether the duty should apply to known or suspected incidents

As well as direct disclosures and witnessed incidents of child sexual abuse, the recommendation sets out a legal duty to report any observation of ‘recognised indicators’ of child sexual abuse. We know that even for trained safeguarding practitioners, making judgements in this area requires skill and experience, and many of those subject to the recommended duty may have limited or basic safeguarding training as part of their role.
Recognising that support is necessary, the Home Office funds the independent Centre for Expertise on Child Sexual Abuse to further strengthen the ability of professionals to understand, identify and respond appropriately to concerns of child sexual abuse through the provision of evidence-based training and practice resources. Guidance and resources are also produced by the Charity Commission and National Council for Voluntary Organisations to support civil society and voluntary organisations in understanding their responsibilities. However, much of this is non-statutory.
The Call for Evidence asks whether the existing provision is sufficient and what more could be done to equip workforces with the knowledge to identify child sexual abuse.

What the consequences of failing to report should be

The recommendation states that in certain circumstances, failing to report in line with the proposed duty should be a criminal offence. The level and manner of sanctions applicable to any breach of the duty will be a key consideration for effective implementation. The introduction of a bespoke criminal offence may not be proportionate, for example, if existing offences could already be applied to address breaches of the duty. The applicability of criminal sanctions to organisations may require separate consideration.
Various regulators and inspectorates may also have a role in imposing non-criminal penalties to any breach of the duty by a member of a registered profession (see ‘What protections will be in place for mandatory reporters’), below. We are interested in your views on these points and any other aspect of appropriate sanctions attached to the duty.

What exemptions should apply to the reporting duty

Within its recommendation the Inquiry set out a single exemption from the duty, in consideration of consensual relationships between children aged 13-16. This exemption is subject to a number of conditions, including a reasonable belief that no form of exploitation or coercion is present; and that there is general parity between the young people in terms of capacity and maturity. As with the observation of ‘recognised indicators’ (above), this would require those subject to the duty to develop and maintain a level of competence in applying judgements to any inter-personal relationships which they are aware of. Impacted individuals and workforces have varying levels (and in some cases limited opportunities to attain) experience and skill in this area.
While the Inquiry sets out its view that a relationship of this kind should not be considered child sexual abuse, it remains the case that sexual activity under the age of consent (16 years old) is illegal.

What protections will be in place for mandatory reporters

The recommendation sets out that “Individuals should also be assured – by both their organisation and the mandatory reporting scheme – that they will be afforded protection from repercussions when making a report in good faith in line with the duty to report.” p.230). Whistle-blowing protections for individuals when reports are made in good faith might include a removal of liability for civil proceedings or breaches of professional conduct; or sanctions which could be applied to anyone acting to their detriment on the basis of their report. This may have particular relevance to those in the healthcare workforce and others with professional memberships and registrations.

Interaction with wider reform programmes

Many of the sectors impacted by the proposed duty are currently engaged in delivering significant reform programmes. This includes the Stable Homes, Built on Love implementation strategy, which seeks to transform children’s social care and child protection in England.
The Department for Education is considering the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel’s report into safeguarding arrangements for children with disabilities and complex health needs in residential settings.
Government will present a report to Parliament in the Summer on its policy towards information sharing in child safeguarding, including the feasibility of using a consistent child identifier.

Question 4

How to respond

Accepted Answer

The easiest way to respond to this call for evidence is to complete the online survey.

We would welcome responses to the following questions:

About You

Q1: To help us analyse our responses, could you please tell us in what capacity you are responding to this consultation. As a…

Select all that apply:

Child or young person under age 18
Care leaver
Birth parent
Adoptive parent
Foster carer
Social Worker
Family support worker
Charity / voluntary sector
Educational institution (e.g. early years setting, school, alternative provision setting, college, university)
Sport sector
Academic
Health practitioner
Police officer
Youth justice worker
Probation officer
Other

If you choose ‘Other’ or wish to clarify your response, please describe the role that best describes you.

[Open text response]

Q2. If you are responding on behalf of an organisation, what is your role within that organisation?

Select one from:

Front line worker
Manager
Senior leader (Director, Chief Executive)
Corporate / Administrative

Q3. We know that we deliver better services when we receive feedback from a full range of backgrounds and experiences in the society we serve. We would be grateful if you could complete the following diversity questions. You can select ‘prefer not to disclose’ if you would rather not answer any question.

Your sex

Select one from:

Male
Female
Prefer not to disclose

Your ethnic origin

Select one from:

White - English
White - Welsh
White - Scottish
White - Northern Irish
White - Irish
White - Gypsy or Irish Traveller
White - Roma
Any other white background
White and Asian
White and black African
White and black Caribbean
Any other mixed or multi ethnic background
Asian or Asian British - Bangladeshi
Asian or Asian British - Indian
Asian or Asian British - Pakistani
Chinese
Any other Asian background
Black or black British - African
Black or black British - Caribbean
Any other black background
Arab
Other ethnic group
Prefer not to disclose

Select one from:

Yes – anonymously
Yes – attribute to my organisation
No

Section 1: Who the duty should apply to

Q5. Is the range of ‘mandated reporters’ set out by the recommendation (people working in regulated activity with children under the Safeguarding and Vulnerable Groups Act 2006, people in positions of trust as defined by the Sexual Offences Act 2003 and police officers):

Appropriate
Too narrow
Too broad
Don’t know

Please provide details to explain your response.

[Open text response]

Q6: At what level should mandatory reporting apply?

Only at an individual level
Only at an organisational level (bodies, institutions or groups)
Both individual and organisational level
General duty on adult population
Don’t know

Q7: [If respondent selected ‘Only at an organisational level (bodies, institutions or groups)’ or ‘Both individual and organisational level’ in response to the above question] Which organisations or groups should it apply to?

[Open text response]

Q8: If there was a mandatory reporting duty at an organisational level, should those impacted be required to report on their activity annually?

Yes
No
Don’t know

Q9: [If respondent selected ‘Yes’] What form should that reporting take?

[Open text response]

Section 2: Scope of the duty

Q10: Should a mandatory duty to report go beyond the scope recommended by the Inquiry and cover other/all types of abuse and neglect?

Yes
No
Don’t know

Q11: [If respondent selected ‘Yes’] Which types of abuse and/or neglect do you think should be covered?

[Open text response]

Q12: What impacts (positive or negative) do you think a mandatory reporting duty would have on:

Children choosing to make a disclosure, either partially or in full

[Open text response]
Individuals within scope of the duty reporting known / suspected incidents

[Open text response]
Organisations within scope of the duty reporting known / suspected incidents

[Open text response]
Individuals outside the scope of the duty reporting known / suspected incidents

[Open text response]
Organisations outside the scope of the duty reporting known / suspected incidents

[Open text response]
Agencies in the wider safeguarding system that are required to respond to reports of abuse.

[Open text response]
Members of the public

[Open text response]

Q13: At what level of knowledge should a mandatory reporting duty apply?

Restricted to known incidents of abuse
Both known and suspected incidents of abuse (based on recognised indicators of abuse)

[Option to select one of the above and then open text box: Please provide details to explain your selection]