PRODUCER: Please note this podcast contains mention of
PRODUCER: child sexual abuse.
PRODUCER: In
PRODUCER: 2015, the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual
PRODUCER: Abuse was set up to investigate where
PRODUCER: institutions failed to protect children in their
PRODUCER: care.
PRODUCER: The Inquiry's final report, published in October
PRODUCER: 2022, laid out a set of powerful recommendations
PRODUCER: to address past failings and protect future
PRODUCER: generations of children from abuse.
PRODUCER: Recommendations for Change is a five-part
PRODUCER: podcast series from NSPCC Learning, examining
PRODUCER: why these recommendations are needed, how
PRODUCER: they'll work if implemented, and what impact
PRODUCER: they will have on the prevention of child sexual
PRODUCER: abuse.
PRODUCER: Episode one: an introduction to IICSA.
PRODUCER: Child sexual abuse, abbreviated to CSA,
PRODUCER: is when a child is forced or persuaded to take
PRODUCER: part in sexual activities.
PRODUCER: This may involve physical contact or non-contact
PRODUCER: activities and can happen online or offline.
PRODUCER: Experiencing sexual abuse can have a long
PRODUCER: lasting negative impact on a child's well-being
PRODUCER: that can reach into adulthood.
PRODUCER: The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse,
PRODUCER: commonly abbreviated to IICSA, was a
PRODUCER: comprehensive examination of institutional
PRODUCER: failings to protect children from this kind of
PRODUCER: abuse.
PRODUCER: You're probably listening to this podcast in
PRODUCER: 2024.
PRODUCER: Over a year has passed since the inquiry
PRODUCER: published its final report.
PRODUCER: Although the work of the inquiry has now been
PRODUCER: completed, the work of the NSPCC and other child
PRODUCER: protection organisations continues.
PRODUCER: We want to ensure that IICSA is not a wasted
PRODUCER: opportunity for the change that is needed to
PRODUCER: protect children from future harm, and that
PRODUCER: the recommendations do lead to improvements in
PRODUCER: the safeguarding systems across the UK.
PRODUCER: In this podcast series, we'll be speaking with a
PRODUCER: range of experts from both inside and outside of
PRODUCER: the NSPCC, who will break down why the
PRODUCER: recommendations are needed, what problems they
PRODUCER: seek to address and how they might work if
PRODUCER: implemented.
PRODUCER: But first, let's learn more about how the
PRODUCER: inquiry was set up.
PRODUCER: Here's Peter Wanless, the NSPCC's Chief
PRODUCER: Executive, with a brief overview.
PETER WANLESS: There were a cluster of very high-profile
PETER WANLESS: stories about terrible things
PETER WANLESS: that had happened in terms of child
PETER WANLESS: sexual abuse in and around
PETER WANLESS: a number of institutions, and this
PETER WANLESS: culminated in determination at
PETER WANLESS: the highest level to understand
PETER WANLESS: what it was that had been going on and
PETER WANLESS: what lessons might be learnt for the
PETER WANLESS: future. So Theresa May, who was then the
PETER WANLESS: Home Secretary, announced that there would
PETER WANLESS: be this public inquiry, the Independent
PETER WANLESS: Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, to
PETER WANLESS: consider the extent to which state and
PETER WANLESS: non-state institutions had failed in their
PETER WANLESS: duty of care to protect children from
PETER WANLESS: sexual abuse and exploitation;
PETER WANLESS: to consider the extent to which those
PETER WANLESS: failings had since been addressed;
PETER WANLESS: to identify further action that was needed
PETER WANLESS: to address any failings that were
PETER WANLESS: identified; and to consider what steps
PETER WANLESS: it would be necessary for the state and
PETER WANLESS: non-state institutions to take in order to
PETER WANLESS: protect children from such abuse in the
PETER WANLESS: future. So it was a massive undertaking
PETER WANLESS: and an important one to which
PETER WANLESS: many people were compelled
PETER WANLESS: under legal oath to submit
PETER WANLESS: material and to give witness statements
PETER WANLESS: in order to investigate these child
PETER WANLESS: protection failures and to determine what
PETER WANLESS: should be done next.
PRODUCER: What did the NSPCC do to support the work of the
PRODUCER: inquiry?
PETER WANLESS: So, across the entirety
PETER WANLESS: of the inquiry, the NSPCC submitted
PETER WANLESS: a great deal of information.
PETER WANLESS: Formally, evidence was sought from us
PETER WANLESS: for nine of the investigations, which
PETER WANLESS: included investigations into residential
PETER WANLESS: schools, the internet, religious
PETER WANLESS: organisations and child exploitation.
PETER WANLESS: So we provided witness statements, we
PETER WANLESS: offered data from our helplines,
PETER WANLESS: we searched our records, we produced
PETER WANLESS: briefing papers, and NSPCC
PETER WANLESS: staff gave evidence at the public
PETER WANLESS: hearings. And I remember very
PETER WANLESS: clearly giving evidence myself, as
PETER WANLESS: the NSPCC chief executive, in December
PETER WANLESS: 2020, in relation to the
PETER WANLESS: work that IICSA was doing to understand
PETER WANLESS: what effective leadership looked
PETER WANLESS: like in this space.
PRODUCER: What was that experience like?
PETER WANLESS: Yeah, there's nothing quite like giving
PETER WANLESS: evidence under oath to concentrate the
PETER WANLESS: mind. I gave my evidence during
PETER WANLESS: the lockdown.
PETER WANLESS: I remember vividly receiving a
PETER WANLESS: secure laptop and
PETER WANLESS: all the technology necessary to
PETER WANLESS: establish a secure link between myself
PETER WANLESS: and those who were interrogating me as
PETER WANLESS: a part of this inquiry.
PETER WANLESS: It was...
PETER WANLESS: It was a privilege.
PETER WANLESS: And it was a really important thing to do
PETER WANLESS: at that moment in time.
PETER WANLESS: But for me, it also really clarified
PETER WANLESS: and reminded for me, as
PETER WANLESS: a leader of a significant organisation,
PETER WANLESS: what it really means to put
PETER WANLESS: safeguarding and child protection
PETER WANLESS: absolutely at the centre of one's
PETER WANLESS: organisation, not just in terms of
PETER WANLESS: policies and procedures, but also in terms
PETER WANLESS: of culture and setting that
PETER WANLESS: priority and expectation.
PETER WANLESS: So, the very experience of
PETER WANLESS: giving evidence personally, I think,
PETER WANLESS: changed for me
PETER WANLESS: the priority and the focus that I placed
PETER WANLESS: on this issue.
PETER WANLESS: And I say that in the context of
PETER WANLESS: an organisation that spends its entire
PETER WANLESS: time focused about and thinking on issues
PETER WANLESS: to do with child protection.
PETER WANLESS: So we are all learning all the time and
PETER WANLESS: need to be vigilant when it comes to
PETER WANLESS: keeping children safe.
PRODUCER: And finally, for you, what are the most
PRODUCER: important learnings that we can take away from
PRODUCER: the IICSA final report?
PETER WANLESS: When IICSA published its final report,
PETER WANLESS: there were 20 interlocking recommendations
PETER WANLESS: which, taken together, would constitute
PETER WANLESS: a step change in the nation's
PETER WANLESS: ability to prevent the
PETER WANLESS: sexual abuse of children.
PETER WANLESS: These are all important recommendations,
PETER WANLESS: and one of the risks that we now
PETER WANLESS: face in terms of implementing the report
PETER WANLESS: is that, the government picks
PETER WANLESS: and chooses certain recommendations
PETER WANLESS: that are perhaps easier to implement
PETER WANLESS: than others, and taking things
PETER WANLESS: forward in a partial and
PETER WANLESS: incoherent way will not
PETER WANLESS: achieve the ambition
PETER WANLESS: for positive change that the inquiry
PETER WANLESS: set out.
PETER WANLESS: For me, it's important that we
PETER WANLESS: understand the knowledge and understanding
PETER WANLESS: and appreciation of what child sexual abuse
PETER WANLESS: looks like. The consistency with
PETER WANLESS: which that abuse is reported
PETER WANLESS: is important.
PETER WANLESS: The roles and accountabilities and the
PETER WANLESS: skills that those who the reports are made
PETER WANLESS: to; that's important.
PETER WANLESS: The remedial therapeutic support
PETER WANLESS: for those who have experienced child
PETER WANLESS: sexual abuse; that's really important.
PETER WANLESS: The data, the way in which we know and
PETER WANLESS: understand the nature and the scale of the
PETER WANLESS: problem; that's important.
PETER WANLESS: And it's the combination of these things
PETER WANLESS: together that will achieve, for me,
PETER WANLESS: the three critical changes
PETER WANLESS: which we need to see.
PETER WANLESS: The first of those is there needs to be a
PETER WANLESS: step change in the policy environment
PETER WANLESS: and the resourcing and support which
PETER WANLESS: government gives to our child
PETER WANLESS: protection system and the wider knowledge
PETER WANLESS: and understanding of what needs to be done
PETER WANLESS: to keep children safe.
PETER WANLESS: The second piece is that many, many more
PETER WANLESS: institutions — I include the NSPCC in that
PETER WANLESS: — but all of us can play a part
PETER WANLESS: in being vigilant, in knowing and
PETER WANLESS: understanding how our safeguarding
PETER WANLESS: arrangements are ever alert
PETER WANLESS: to the vital importance of
PETER WANLESS: preventing the abuse of children.
PETER WANLESS: And thirdly, the inquiry did a
PETER WANLESS: brilliant job of put in the voices on the
PETER WANLESS: perspectives of victims and survivors
PETER WANLESS: themselves front and centre in these
PETER WANLESS: debates and discussions.
PETER WANLESS: And so, I believe we owe it
PETER WANLESS: to the thousands of them
PETER WANLESS: who had the courage to contribute
PETER WANLESS: to this inquiry to ensure there's a
PETER WANLESS: decisive and coherent response
PETER WANLESS: to the recommendations that the inquiry
PETER WANLESS: has made. And that is not
PETER WANLESS: proving to be entirely straightforward.
PETER WANLESS: So, there are many of us, institutions
PETER WANLESS: and individuals, who want to
PETER WANLESS: continue to bang the drum and
PETER WANLESS: remind government institutions,
PETER WANLESS: organisations, the wider public, that
PETER WANLESS: there's a job to be done to keep children
PETER WANLESS: safer from child sexual abuse than
PETER WANLESS: may be the case at the moment.
PETER WANLESS: We can all play a part in that.
PETER WANLESS: Government needs to give a lead, and we
PETER WANLESS: must continue to listen
PETER WANLESS: very carefully to victims and survivors
PETER WANLESS: of child sexual abuse themselves, including
PETER WANLESS: young people who, sadly,
PETER WANLESS: are experiencing these crimes against
PETER WANLESS: them today.
PRODUCER: As Peter says, victims and survivors of child
PRODUCER: sexual abuse played a key role in informing the
PRODUCER: work of the inquiry.
PRODUCER: To ensure their needs and voices were
PRODUCER: represented in their work, IICSA set up the
PRODUCER: victims and survivors consultative panel, or
PRODUCER: VSCP.
PRODUCER: The VSCP provided input across all areas
PRODUCER: of IICSA's work.
PRODUCER: They were instrumental in establishing IICSA's
PRODUCER: Truth Project, which gave over 6,200
PRODUCER: victims and survivors the opportunity to share
PRODUCER: their experiences of child sexual abuse with the
PRODUCER: inquiry.
PRODUCER: The first section of the IICSA final report
PRODUCER: contains anonymised extracts from these
PRODUCER: testimonies, and we advise listeners to read
PRODUCER: these to get a full understanding of the
PRODUCER: devastating impact of CSA on victims
PRODUCER: and survivors.
PRODUCER: By speaking publicly about their experiences,
PRODUCER: members of the VSCP and the Truth Project
PRODUCER: elevated public awareness of child sexual abuse.
PRODUCER: However, IICSA identified that there is still
PRODUCER: more work to be done to empower conversation
PRODUCER: around the issue.
PRODUCER: Recommendation four of the IICSA final report
PRODUCER: advises that the UK government and the Welsh
PRODUCER: government commission regular programmes of
PRODUCER: activity to increase public awareness about
PRODUCER: child sexual abuse and how to respond to it.
PRODUCER: For this podcast series, I spoke to Lisa
PRODUCER: McCrindle, Assistant Director for Policy,
PRODUCER: Communications and Strategic Influence at the
PRODUCER: Centre of Expertise on Child Sexual Abuse, the
PRODUCER: CSA Centre.
PRODUCER: During our conversation, she explained why it's
PRODUCER: so important that we continue to confront the
PRODUCER: difficult topic of child sexual abuse.
LISA MCCRINDLE: So I think it's really important because
LISA MCCRINDLE: it's something we'd rather wasn't happening
LISA MCCRINDLE: and we'd rather not talk about it.
LISA MCCRINDLE: And the reality is that far more children
LISA MCCRINDLE: are being sexually abused than that come
LISA MCCRINDLE: to the attention of services as the all of
LISA MCCRINDLE: those — I think there were only over 6000
LISA MCCRINDLE: submissions to the Truth Project — most of
LISA MCCRINDLE: them hadn't told anybody until they were
LISA MCCRINDLE: adults or much later in life.
LISA MCCRINDLE: They certainly didn't get the support they
LISA MCCRINDLE: needed at the time that that harm was
LISA MCCRINDLE: happening. And what contributes to that is
LISA MCCRINDLE: this general sense of, you know,
LISA MCCRINDLE: understandably, child sexual abuse is not
LISA MCCRINDLE: a nice thing to think about. It's not
LISA MCCRINDLE: something pleasant. And we'd rather it
LISA MCCRINDLE: wasn't happening.
LISA MCCRINDLE: So if we're going to tackle it and if
LISA MCCRINDLE: we're going to address those things that
LISA MCCRINDLE: make us feel uncomfortable, we need to be
LISA MCCRINDLE: getting more comfortable at talking about
LISA MCCRINDLE: it. We need to be less worried about
LISA MCCRINDLE: talking about it and feeling more able to
LISA MCCRINDLE: have those conversations and tackle those
LISA MCCRINDLE: difficult issues that we might otherwise
LISA MCCRINDLE: want to shy away from.
LISA MCCRINDLE: I think it's really important that those
LISA MCCRINDLE: conversations are continually happening.
LISA MCCRINDLE: I think... And in many ways, an awful lot
LISA MCCRINDLE: of people across the country will never
LISA MCCRINDLE: have heard about the Independent Inquiry
LISA MCCRINDLE: into Child Sexual Abuse. It won't have
LISA MCCRINDLE: been on their radar. They might have seen
LISA MCCRINDLE: something in the press, but the IICSA
LISA MCCRINDLE: inquiry probably doesn't mean a great deal
LISA MCCRINDLE: to most people if you talk to them on the
LISA MCCRINDLE: street. But what it did do, and through
LISA MCCRINDLE: the continuous investigations that came
LISA MCCRINDLE: out during the whole of the inquiry and
LISA MCCRINDLE: the report, is continually give us new
LISA MCCRINDLE: insights and new understandings around the
LISA MCCRINDLE: nature of that harm that had been
LISA MCCRINDLE: happening and why those things hadn't been
LISA MCCRINDLE: identified and where the failings need to
LISA MCCRINDLE: be addressed. So that was continually
LISA MCCRINDLE: bringing that to the fore.
LISA MCCRINDLE: And what that's really important for is
LISA MCCRINDLE: one, it keeps it front and foremost in
LISA MCCRINDLE: terms of policy and practitioners and
LISA MCCRINDLE: people that are making decisions about how
LISA MCCRINDLE: do we respond to this in day-to-day life.
LISA MCCRINDLE: But it's really important for victims and
LISA MCCRINDLE: survivors to hear that their experiences
LISA MCCRINDLE: aren't in the shadows and their experiences
LISA MCCRINDLE: are acknowledged. For me, there's a really
LISA MCCRINDLE: tangible impact that that has.
LISA MCCRINDLE: Before I came to work at the CSA Centre, I
LISA MCCRINDLE: worked at the NSPCC, and while I was
LISA MCCRINDLE: working there, the scandal about the
LISA MCCRINDLE: sexual abuse of boys in major football
LISA MCCRINDLE: clubs came to light and the NSPCC
LISA MCCRINDLE: set up a helpline in response to that.
LISA MCCRINDLE: Now, immediately after that reporting of
LISA MCCRINDLE: that case, there was literally thousands
LISA MCCRINDLE: of calls that came into that helpline from
LISA MCCRINDLE: a whole range of young people who had been
LISA MCCRINDLE: — well, adults and children — who had been
LISA MCCRINDLE: harmed in sport settings and other
LISA MCCRINDLE: settings like that. But they'd not felt
LISA MCCRINDLE: able to have their abuse acknowledged
LISA MCCRINDLE: before because it hadn't been talked
LISA MCCRINDLE: about. And I think it's really important
LISA MCCRINDLE: that we talk about the different ways in
LISA MCCRINDLE: which this abuse does happen to people,
LISA MCCRINDLE: because that gives confidence, it
LISA MCCRINDLE: validates. Everything that happens to
LISA MCCRINDLE: victims tells them that maybe they're
LISA MCCRINDLE: imagining it, or they have a fault in it,
LISA MCCRINDLE: or they have some responsibility for it.
LISA MCCRINDLE: And all of these things are silencing.
LISA MCCRINDLE: And what we do when we talk about sexual
LISA MCCRINDLE: abuse is we strip that power of that
LISA MCCRINDLE: silence away.
LISA MCCRINDLE: IICSA was really important in doing that
LISA MCCRINDLE: over a period of time, and it's really
LISA MCCRINDLE: important that those organisations that
LISA MCCRINDLE: have been involved in it and have a role
LISA MCCRINDLE: to play continue to have that
LISA MCCRINDLE: conversation.
PRODUCER: At the NSPCC, we believe everyone needs to be
PRODUCER: aware of the IICSA findings, but particularly
PRODUCER: anyone working or volunteering with children and
PRODUCER: young people. Many of the recommendations in the
PRODUCER: final report will directly affect safeguarding
PRODUCER: professionals and the work they do, as the
PRODUCER: NSPCC's Director of Strategy and Knowledge,
PRODUCER: Maria Neophytou, explains here.
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: A central tenet of the NSPCC's strategy
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: is that we are all responsible for
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: keeping children safe.
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: The work of IICSA is, of course,
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: particularly important for professionals
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: working and volunteering with children,
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: and understanding the findings is helpful
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: in that professionals are in a unique
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: position to recognise the signs of abuse
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: and take action to prevent it.
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: IICSA's findings also demonstrate that we
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: need wholesale change in how child sexual
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: abuse is tackled, and safeguarding
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: professionals will play a crucial role in
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: driving these changes.
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: Some of those recommendations will
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: directly affect the work of safeguarding
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: professionals. So, for example, there
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: were recommendations and proposals around
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: mandatory reporting, around
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: systemic changes like the creation of
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: child protection authorities and
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: ministers and strategies for children
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: in England and Wales. As well as those
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: systemic changes that are proposed, the
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: report itself is a body of knowledge that
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: is very useful for safeguarding
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: professionals to be aware of and delve
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: into. It's a vital evidence base for
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: practitioners who are involved in
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: safeguarding decisions.
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: For instance, in the first part of the
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: report, victims and survivors of child
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: sexual abuse describe their experiences
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: in their own words, and these powerful
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: testimonies are critical for
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: professionals to understand the
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: experiences that victims and survivors
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: had, the impact that it had, and the
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: nature of the response.
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: The inquiry published 24 research reports
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: on a range of topics, including support
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: services, online-facilitated abuse,
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: schools, children's homes and residential
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: care, and custodial settings.
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: And it also published statistical reports
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: on a quarterly basis until the first
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: quarter of 2022.
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: So, as a body of evidence, it's
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: unparalleled in its scope and its
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: relevance to everyday practice
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: and safeguarding.
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: Ultimately, the recommendations from
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: IICSA should provide the foundation for a
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: robust safeguarding system that protects
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: children from abuse, and the NSPCC will,
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: of course, continue to call for the
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: implementation of the recommendations,
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: the strengthening of preventative
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: measures, more therapeutic and support
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: services for children, and a more
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: coherent and systemic response from
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: government and all those in positions of
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: decision-making and positions in child
MARIA NEOPHYTOU: protection.
PRODUCER: As Maria says, professionals working with
PRODUCER: children and young people have a crucial role to
PRODUCER: play in preventing abuse and neglect.
PRODUCER: I asked Lisa McCrindle what advice she would
PRODUCER: offer professionals on how they can improve
PRODUCER: their ability to identify and respond to CSA.
LISA MCCRINDLE: At the CSA Centre we pretty much always
LISA MCCRINDLE: start with the 101.
LISA MCCRINDLE: So, this isn't about complex, deep
LISA MCCRINDLE: knowledge about sexual abuse.
LISA MCCRINDLE: You don't need to be an expert in child
LISA MCCRINDLE: sexual abuse. Most of the professionals
LISA MCCRINDLE: we're talking about, their job is to work
LISA MCCRINDLE: with children and to understand children.
LISA MCCRINDLE: What prevents really good practice in
LISA MCCRINDLE: response to child sexual abuse is often
LISA MCCRINDLE: just feeling uncomfortable about sexual
LISA MCCRINDLE: abuse and worrying about it.
LISA MCCRINDLE: So, the first thing that professionals can
LISA MCCRINDLE: do is to get comfortable with talking
LISA MCCRINDLE: about sexual abuse, to understand child
LISA MCCRINDLE: sexual abuse more, to understand that it
LISA MCCRINDLE: is much more common than they will think.
LISA MCCRINDLE: There is often this idea that it's quite
LISA MCCRINDLE: rare, but what the data tells us from
LISA MCCRINDLE: surveys with children and with adults,
LISA MCCRINDLE: is that child sexual abuse is just as
LISA MCCRINDLE: common as emotional abuse and domestic
LISA MCCRINDLE: abuse and neglect.
LISA MCCRINDLE: So, you know, we should be expecting to
LISA MCCRINDLE: see that just as much as we're seeing
LISA MCCRINDLE: those other forms of harm.
LISA MCCRINDLE: And yet, what we do find in service data
LISA MCCRINDLE: is that far less sexual abuse is
LISA MCCRINDLE: identified. And that's what we see coming
LISA MCCRINDLE: through in the Truth Project, with so many
LISA MCCRINDLE: of those victims and survivors whose harm
LISA MCCRINDLE: was never identified while they were
LISA MCCRINDLE: children, and they go on to experience
LISA MCCRINDLE: that in silencel.
LISA MCCRINDLE: So, in terms of what can professionals do:
LISA MCCRINDLE: number one, familiarise yourself
LISA MCCRINDLE: with an understanding about child sexual
LISA MCCRINDLE: abuse. Be aware that it's much more common
LISA MCCRINDLE: than you may think. So, we would expect
LISA MCCRINDLE: that 1 in 10 children by the age of 16
LISA MCCRINDLE: will have experienced some form of child
LISA MCCRINDLE: sexual abuse.
LISA MCCRINDLE: Then the next thing that what we find that
LISA MCCRINDLE: prevents professionals addressing child
LISA MCCRINDLE: sexual abuse is feeling uncomfortable
LISA MCCRINDLE: talking about it and talking to children
LISA MCCRINDLE: about their concerns.
LISA MCCRINDLE: So again, getting comfortable with that,
LISA MCCRINDLE: thinking about how you would have those
LISA MCCRINDLE: conversations, potentially even with your
LISA MCCRINDLE: colleagues practising those conversations.
LISA MCCRINDLE: How would you do that and how are you
LISA MCCRINDLE: going to respond if a child does give you
LISA MCCRINDLE: either a direct indication that
LISA MCCRINDLE: something's happening or perhaps an indirect
LISA MCCRINDLE: indication that something's happening and
LISA MCCRINDLE: you need to respond to that? I would say
LISA MCCRINDLE: that you don't need to do that on your own.
LISA MCCRINDLE: There are lots of resources out there to
LISA MCCRINDLE: support professionals in doing that.
LISA MCCRINDLE: And when I say professionals, again, I'm
LISA MCCRINDLE: talking about all of those different
LISA MCCRINDLE: professionals that work with children.
LISA MCCRINDLE: What we do know is that children are more
LISA MCCRINDLE: likely to be confiding in people that they
LISA MCCRINDLE: know and trust. So, those individuals
LISA MCCRINDLE: that have a trusted relationship with
LISA MCCRINDLE: children are much more likely to be the
LISA MCCRINDLE: ones that can identify concerns
LISA MCCRINDLE: in the child's behaviour, in the behaviour
LISA MCCRINDLE: of those around them, but can also then
LISA MCCRINDLE: maybe be the people that children will be
LISA MCCRINDLE: able to tell if they support them to do
LISA MCCRINDLE: so. So we have resources available for
LISA MCCRINDLE: that. In terms of understanding, our key
LISA MCCRINDLE: messages from research series are really,
LISA MCCRINDLE: really succinct summaries of the research
LISA MCCRINDLE: evidence around a whole different range of
LISA MCCRINDLE: aspects of child sexual abuse they are
LISA MCCRINDLE: completely readable with a cup of coffee
LISA MCCRINDLE: and a slice of cake, with your elevenses
LISA MCCRINDLE: as a professional, and you could get the
LISA MCCRINDLE: key bits of information that just gives
LISA MCCRINDLE: you the knowledge and the confidence.
LISA MCCRINDLE: We then have a series of practice
LISA MCCRINDLE: resources that help professionals to
LISA MCCRINDLE: understand the signs and indicators of
LISA MCCRINDLE: sexual abuse, to think about how they
LISA MCCRINDLE: would communicate with children about
LISA MCCRINDLE: sexual abuse. So, understanding what are
LISA MCCRINDLE: the barriers that prevent children from
LISA MCCRINDLE: talking about it, and how can they, as
LISA MCCRINDLE: professionals, support children?
LISA MCCRINDLE: We have resources around supporting
LISA MCCRINDLE: parents and carers. As I said, parents and
LISA MCCRINDLE: carers are really the key to supporting
LISA MCCRINDLE: children. They spend the most time with
LISA MCCRINDLE: them and they're going to have the biggest impact
LISA MCCRINDLE: on child's recovery. So, really important
LISA MCCRINDLE: to support parents and carers.
LISA MCCRINDLE: So there is lots of information out there
LISA MCCRINDLE: in terms of the resources available as
LISA MCCRINDLE: well as the training that we offer at the
LISA MCCRINDLE: CSA Centre.
PRODUCER: At the NSPCC, we recognise that the work of
PRODUCER: professionals involved in safeguarding can be
PRODUCER: challenging, and we will continue to strive to
PRODUCER: provide you with the support you need to best
PRODUCER: protect children.
PRODUCER: Here's Peter Wanless once more.
PETER WANLESS: My message to those people
PETER WANLESS: who are working directly and indirectly
PETER WANLESS: with children who are at risk of child
PETER WANLESS: sexual abuse, or who have experienced that,
PETER WANLESS: is: thank you for everything which you
PETER WANLESS: do to help these children.
PETER WANLESS: It's much more difficult than it
PETER WANLESS: might be as a consequence of so
PETER WANLESS: many of you working in a system that can
PETER WANLESS: feel dysfunctional, disconnected,
PETER WANLESS: insufficiently resourced and supported, and
PETER WANLESS: with many people around you having multiple
PETER WANLESS: priorities that don't always seem to put
PETER WANLESS: the victims and the potential victims of
PETER WANLESS: child sexual abuse front and centre.
PETER WANLESS: I acknowledge that.
PETER WANLESS: The inquiry acknowledges that and
PETER WANLESS: sets out an ambitious agenda
PETER WANLESS: for positive change.
PETER WANLESS: So, in the hurly-burly
PETER WANLESS: and pressures of those of you who work
PETER WANLESS: with children continuing to do that vitally
PETER WANLESS: important work, when it sometimes feels
PETER WANLESS: against the odds, be assured that
PETER WANLESS: there are many of us who are going to
PETER WANLESS: continue to press for and
PETER WANLESS: argue the case for decisive change
PETER WANLESS: to secure a better organised, resourced
PETER WANLESS: and supported national approach to
PETER WANLESS: keeping children safe from child sexual
PETER WANLESS: abuse.
PRODUCER: Thanks to Maria Neophytou, Lisa McCrindle and
PRODUCER: Peter Wanless.
PRODUCER: You can find a link to the CSA Centre's key
PRODUCER: messages from research series, as well as other
PRODUCER: resources around recognising and responding to
PRODUCER: child sexual abuse, in the podcast show notes.
PRODUCER: In the next episode of Recommendations for
PRODUCER: Change, we'll be looking at the importance of
PRODUCER: data to child protection.
PRODUCER: How does gathering and analysing data help us to
PRODUCER: effectively respond to child sexual abuse?
PRODUCER: If you've been affected by any of the issues
PRODUCER: raised in this podcast, you can reach out to the
PRODUCER: NSPCC Helpline for support.
PRODUCER: Call 0808 800 5000
PRODUCER: or email help@nspcc.org.uk.
PRODUCER: This podcast series was produced in Autumn 2023.
PRODUCER: All information was correct at the time of
PRODUCER: recording, but the world of child protection is
PRODUCER: ever-changing.
PRODUCER: To stay up to date, visit the NSPCC Learning
PRODUCER: website at nspcc.org.uk/learning.