Trigger Warning: This blog contains information about the mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse.
On 10th May the government published an amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill regarding the mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse. These amendments form part of a long-awaited response to one of the recommendations of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA). While we welcome the government’s efforts to introduce a mandatory reporting duty for child sexual abuse, we are concerned that the current proposals will be ineffective in preventing and protecting children from sexual and other forms of abuse.
What has led to this bill amendment?
In 2020 we were a core participant in IICSA hearings. Chaired by Professor Alexis Jay CBE, IICSA was set up because of serious concerns that some organisations had failed and were continuing to fail to protect children from sexual abuse. The statutory inquiry for England and Wales was established in 2015 under the Inquiries Act 2005. The scope of the research and investigations was far-reaching, with IICSA having the unique authority to compel witnesses and request any material necessary to investigate where institutions have failed to protect children in their care. The final recommendations of that process were submitted to the Government in October 2022. Included in that report, among other recommendations, was advisement that reporting allegations of child sex abuse should be legally mandated and that failure to report should lead to a criminal offence.
On 22nd May 2023 the Government issued its first response to the IICSA recommendations. Alongside many others across a range of sectors, we believe that their response fell short on a number of the issues in the report, but they did say they would launch a consultation on mandatory reporting.
It was on the basis of this consultation that the Government recently released an amendment to the Criminal Justice bill to become law.
In addition, this year we released our manifesto, which contains a number of key asks, including the recommendation to introduce mandatory reporting of abuse across the 4-nations of the UK.
What amendments have been proposed to the Criminal Justice Bill?
The amendments propose that the duty to report will be applicable in the following circumstances:
- Where people in a regulated activity or relevant activity role witness an abusive act.
- Where a child discloses abuse to them.
- Where an offender discloses their own criminal activity in the form of child sexual abuse to the mandated reporter.
- Where the mandated reporter is shown, watches or hears something indicating that child sexual abuse has occurred.
So, what are the issues with these proposed amendments?
We believe this is an unrealistic set of circumstances, contrary to the evidence submitted to the consultation, that will prove heavily restrictive for people in a ‘regulated or relevant activity’, needing to report child sexual abuse.
The above proposal fails to acknowledge widely accepted evidence on both perpetration and disclosure of abuse, such as:
- Most child sexual abuse is committed in secret, as this is the nature of grooming*. Therefore, it is highly unlikely to be witnessed by any third party.
- Those who abuse children rarely admit to it unless they are under scrutiny or subject to a police investigation.
- Most children who experience sexual abuse do not disclose their abuse to anyone. Those who do disclose generally don’t until they reach adulthood (the average disclosure is 26 years after the abuse).
- The majority of child sexual abuse will not meet the proposed strict thresholds for reporting.
Therefore, the mandatory reporting duty as currently drafted will fail the majority of children and young people experiencing child sexual abuse.
The proposals also exclude a recommendation to include reporting duties on anyone in a regulated or relevant activity with reasonable suspicion of abuse. The majority (75%) of expert submitters to the mandatory reporting consultation said that the duty should apply to both known and suspected incidents of abuse, yet the government has excluded suspected abuse as the basis of reporting.
Additionally, this section of the Criminal Justice Bill is undermined by the fact that a failure to report does not directly result in a criminal sanction (except in the case of obstructing a report). This downgrades the duty as sub-mandatory or advisory, rather than a mandatory obligation for those in regulated and relevant activities and roles.
As drafted, we believe the proposed bill does not meet the requirements of the IICSA recommendation on mandatory reporting and has been criticised by Professor Alexis Jay CBE, who said the amendment was a "fudge" and "not a very good one”.
Joint CEO for Thirtyone:eight, Justin Humphreys says, “Whilst government action on this is welcome, it is deeply concerning that the legislation proposed in this current form has so many flaws that will inhibit the effective safeguarding of children and young people. The various consultations on mandatory reporting have provided a wealth of expert evidence. The task ahead is to enact legislation that reflects this to create a more robust set of safeguards”.
What happens now?
The proposed amendments will be debated in the House of Commons on Wednesday 15th May. We believe that children deserve protection from sexual abuse, and we will continue to advocate for the proposals made in our manifesto, and those we submitted in the mandatory reporting consultation, as follows:
1. The inclusion of ‘reasonably held suspicion’
Taking seriously the recommendation on mandatory reporting within the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, it would strengthen the proposals to include a duty to report abuse where there is reasonable suspicion by a person in a regulated or relevant activity or role. We understand that for those role holders, this proposal may cause concerns about how to identify if their suspicions are legitimate. No one wants to make false accusations. But we believe that when children cannot speak about abuse, often their body or behaviour will speak instead. Those working with children and young people can be equipped with appropriate, accurate, evidence-based and trauma-aware safeguarding training which specifically addresses what to look out for and notice in children's behaviours or physical changes in their bodies. Feeling equipped to identify signs and indicators of abuse in children and young people will reduce undue pressure and stress on people in these roles.
2. Criminal Sanctions
Including a blanket criminal sanction tied to a failure to report abuse moves the duty from advisory guidance to a mandatory obligation for those in regulated and relevant activities and roles. This is of fundamental importance to ensuring the duty is meaningful and effective in securing protections for children who experience child sexual abuse.
Thirtyone:eight working hard to encourage the government to review the proposed amendments, and strengthen the proposed legislation for the better protection of children and young people. You can read more about this in our manifesto.
If you would like to support these amends you can:
1. Spread the word! Share our manifesto with your networks.
2. Lend your voice. Speak or write to your local MP.
3. Stay Connected. Sign up to our mailing list to stay updated. Click here and scroll down to the sign-up form.
4. Donate. As a charity, we are dependent on people like you to support our vital work in creating safer places. Make a donation today.
* Our manifesto also calls for the introduction of a statutory definition of grooming across all four nations
