News & Updates
Survivor Newsletter- IICSA Changemakers
Posted on
Recent publications
Truth Project – research paper 2 – using staff training and consultation
Truth Project – research paper 1 – how did survivors experience participation?
Support matters: an overview of services for children and parents affected by sexual abuse
Internet Watch Foundation annual report
Recommendations for Change: an NSPCC learning podcast series
Remember that you don’t have to immerse yourself in academic or detailed publications around
child sexual abuse if you do not want to. You are in control of how much information you
absorb and what is actually useful for you and your wellbeing. Below are a pick of some recent
publications that may be of interest, but skip this section if you want to!
What’s ‘actually’ happening?
In all honesty, this update looked completely different a week ago!
With the announcement of the General Election by the Prime Minister a lot has changed for us
within Changemakers as the majority of our work focuses on lobbying government and
working on legislation and policy. Here are some of the main things to be keeping an eye on:
Victim and Prisoners Bill
After the announcement of the general election, it was a tricky 24 hrs of not knowing if this Bill
would or wouldn’t come back into what is called ‘wash up’ (where they finish bills that are
open and far enough along the passage of a bill to be completed). Thankfully it had its third
reading last week and passed royal assent. This is a huge relief as many of you have been
working on this in some capacity for the last 2 years and it’s integral to how children and
survivors of CSA are treated.
Criminal Justice Bill
This unfortunately did not make it into ‘wash up’ which means the bill will be dropped. This is
most directly relevant for our work because this is where the Mandatory Reporting (MR)
amendment was sitting. At the moment we’ve had no reply about what will happen to MR in
general and officials have said they will release a written statement in due course. No matter
our individual views on MR, the fact this bill is being dropped is frustrating and deeply
disappointing in many ways.
Law of Apologies
We’re awaiting further information on this but indication from the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has
been that they will keep this consultation open as planned. However, due to parliament
dissolving soon, that consultation will then not be able to be actioned or progressed so we’re
trying to ascertain from the MoJ what the intention is behind keeping it open.
Finally…
Many of our Survivor Advisory Community and wider colleagues are feeling a deep tiredness
this week, which often arises when faced with yet another change or shift in the landscape
and timelines of our work around child sexual abuse. Please remember, no matter whether
you are a disclosed or undisclosed survivor, family member, practitioner or just someone
reading this out of interest – it is okay, and vital, to take time out to rest, feel, breathe deep
and steady yourself in order to continue the momentum.
The Survivor Advisory Community has opened its doors!
Elizabeth is a member of the IICSA Changemakers Survivor Advisory Community, she is
also an author, poet, public speaker.
Before writing her first book, ‘Silhouette of a Songbird’, Elizabeth had never read or
written any poetry. Her previous counsellor suggested finding a hobby as an outlet which
Elizabeth did somewhat reluctantly, joining a community choir.
To her surprise, singing in choir had such a positive impact on her mental health, it
encouraged Elizabeth to try other creative avenues taking up singing lessons, drama and
creative writing to improve her lack of confidence. With encouragement and support from
her drama teacher, Elizabeth began to explore poetry as a creative tool to express all the
bottled-up feelings, anger and pain she struggled to articulate as a child.
As well as giving talks about her lived experiences, supporting charities and organisations
through writing, podcasts and speaking engagements, Elizabeth uses her poetry to give
strength and hope for all those who are searching to make sense of a traumatic past, to
empower others to have a voice and right to be heard. She continues to raise awareness
of the complexities and impact of childhood trauma to break the stigma and silence
around difficult conversations, including the benefits of creative arts.
Elizabeth also loves to explore the humorous side of day to day living, writing comedic
verse as a way of navigating some of life’s trials and tribulations.
If anyone wishes to learn more about Elizabeth’s work, please do feel free to check out
her website: www.elizabethshane.com. By sharing her journey, Elizabeth hopes this will
help others feel understood and know they are not alone.
Meet… Elizabeth
I F Y O U ’ D L I K E T O L E A R N M O R E A B O U T T H E S U R V I V O R A D V I S O R Y
C O M M U N I T Y A N D T H E Y W O R K T H E Y D O I N C H A N G E M A K E R S , O R H OW T O J O I N , P L E A S E E M A I L T H E S U R V I V O R P A R T I C I P A T I O N MANAGER AT
[email protected] | [email protected]
Changemaker Spotlight chats
I F Y O U ’ D L I K E T O G E T I N T O U C H P L E A S E E M A I L U S
Current learning opportunities
The charity Sounddelivery Media is curating a Festival of Learning, where a festival
pass will give you access to a whole range of online masterclasses, learning lunches,
peer meet-ups, wellbeing sessions. These sessions will bring fresh skills, new
inspiration, and best practice to social purpose organisations, with lived experience
expertise at the heart.
Changemaker Spotlight chats
A C H A N C E T O S E E T H E H U M A N S B E H I N D T H E N A M E
Episode 1: Clare Kelly (Head of Programmes IICSA Changemakers)
Episode 2: Matthew McVarish (Survivor, Activist and Co-Founder of The Brave Movement)
Episode 3: Susie Hargreaves OBE (CEO of Internet Watch Foundation) Coming soon!
Episode 4: Gabrielle Shaw (CEO of NAPAC) Coming soon!
Upcoming events
I P P P R I A N D V S C P W E B I N A R 3 ( O N L I N E ) : 7 T H J U N E
https://www.aru.ac.uk/international-policing-and-public-protection-research-institute/events/ipppri-vscp-webinar-series/webinar-3-csae-language-and-victim-blaming
Upcoming events
I P P P R I A N D V S C P W E B I N A R 4 ( O N L I N E ) : 2 8 T H J U N E
“And here you are living, despite it all”
Rupi Kaur