Child Sexual Abuse

Independent Enquiry into Child Sexual Abuse have an ambitious research programme which will fill gaps in the knowledge about child sexual abuse and make sure our recommendations are informed by the latest learning.

Child Sexual Abuse:

• At least half a million children are estimated to experience some form of sexual abuse each year. Supporting professionals to have the knowledge, skills and confidence in identifying and responding to concerns of child sexual abuse is fundamental in addressing this.  Our new film series distils key information from our recent resources quickly and accessibly for professionals in 12 short films. The resources are:
  • Signs and Indicators: A template for identifying and responding to concerns of child sexual abuse
  • Communicating with children: A guide for those working with children who have or may have been sexually abused
  • Supporting parents and carers: A guide for those working with families affected by child sexual abuse

• Supporting practice in tackling child sexual abuse: A film series for professionals, by professionals - YouTube

Support for Families:

• Supporting parents and carers: A guide for those working with families affected by child sexual abuse. This new guide helps professionals, including specific content for policing, to provide a confident, supportive response to parents and carers when concerns about the sexual abuse of their child have been raised or abuse has been identified.  By supporting parents and carers, professionals can not only help the whole family recover, but also provide the best possible outcome for the child.  The guide explains the impact that sexual abuse has on the whole family, the importance of the role of the main care givers and wider family in supporting a child who has been abused and, the importance of the role of professionals to support parents and carers to support their child. This is the third in our new series of practice resources, designed by professionals for professionals to build knowledge, skills and confidence in identifying concerns of child sexual abuse; communicating with children and supporting parents and carers when there are concerns of child sexual abuse.

Sibling Sexual Abuse:

• Tuesday 14^th June, Radio 4’s File on 4 broadcasted a special episode about sibling sexual abuse (SSA). On the programme they debuted two of the National Sibling Sexual Abuse Project’s three key reports, all of which are now published online and accessible to the public and professionals alike. Although the project (which was funded by the Home Office and Ministry of Justice and hosted by Rape Crisis England and Wales) ended in March 2022, we hope that these reports will continue to assist and support you in providing the best possible support for those affected by SSA, the form of child sexual abuse considered to be most common within the family setting in the UK. These three reports are as follows and can be accessed on the project’s webpage, hosted by Somerset and Avon Rape and Sexual Abuse Support (SARSAS):

• • SARSAS Freedom of Information Report  – Establishing the prevalence of sibling sexual abuse as reported to and recorded by police forces across England and Wales.
  • SARSAS Sibling Sexual Abuse Policy Report – Acknowledge, address and adapt – Closing the gap between sibling sexual abuse as the most common form of child sexual abuse in our homes and the most ignored form of child sexual abuse in the UK.
  • SARSAS Sibling Sexual Abuse Professional Survey Report – Awareness and understanding of sibling sexual abuse amongst professionals in frontline sectors in England and Wales.

Harmful Sexual Behaviour:

• Harmful Sexual Behaviour by Children Report

• Harmful sexual behaviour: labelling actions, not children - Names are powerful things. They can affect how people see you, and how you see yourself. That's why it's so important to focus on actions, rather than labelling children as 'abusers', when talking about harmful sexual behaviour (HSB).

• SSCP Children and Young people Survey Results - Peer-on-peer abuse in Schools