Reporting signs of child sex abuse to be mandatory for people working with youngsters, says home secretary
Suella Braverman has vowed to take on grooming gangs to protect young girls and to stamp out institutional failures by toughening the legal requirements on professionals with safeguarding responsibilities for children so that they must report knowledge or suspicions of sexual abuse.
Sunday 2 April 2023 14:13, UK
The home secretary has announced people working with children in England will have a new legal duty to report knowledge or suspicions of child sex abuse.
Suella Braverman will announce new measures to beef up child protection later today.
It comes after the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse last year described sexual abuse of children as an "epidemic that leaves tens of thousands of victims in its poisonous wake".
The seven-year inquiry into institutional failings in England and Wales concluded that people in positions of trust should be compelled by law to report child sexual abuse.
The first step to introducing the duty is a call for evidence which will be open to professionals, volunteers, parents, survivors, and the wider public.
It will be the start of extensive consultation to ensure everyone's views are represented ahead of implementing the new duty.
Ms Braverman said: "Child sexual abuse is one of the most horrific crimes facing our society, it devastates victims, families and whole communities.
"The protection of children is a collective effort. Every adult must be supported to call out child sexual abuse without fear."
Ms Braverman added: "That's why I'm introducing a mandatory reporting duty and launching a call for evidence. We must address the failings identified by the Inquiry and take on board the views of the thousands of victims and survivors who contributed to it.
"I would encourage everyone to engage with the process once it starts - it is important to have a national conversation about this to help to shine a light on this terrible - but too often hidden - crime."
Mandatory reporting is a legal requirement to report knowledge or suspicions of a crime.
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The call for evidence will be published alongside the government's full response to the inquiry.
A further £600,000 of funding for the NSPCC whistleblowing helpline has also been announced.
The helpline was launched in 2016 following Professor Alexis Jay's report into the child sexual exploitation in Rotherham. Since then, it has provided advice to 1,062 individuals and led to over 300 referrals to the police.
Plan to speed up Sarah's Law
The government also plans to the process for members of the public to find out if someone they know is a child sex offender.
The move is an update to Sarah's Law, created in memory of eight-year-old Sarah Payne, who was murdered by a convicted sex offender in 2000.
The updated guidance for the Child Sex Offender's Disclosure Scheme will make it easier for the public to raise a concern online and reduce the timeframes for police to respond.
Dr Sara Payne MBE, the mother of Sarah Payne, said: "After the news of my Sarah's murder in 2000, I promised her that her death would not be in vain or forgotten or indeed, only remembered for the manner of her death.
"Since 2010, after years of campaigning, so many children have been protected in her name, a much more fitting epitaph to my princess."