News & Updates

Inquiry update – May 2022 IICSA

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Inquiry update – May 2022  
In this month’s e-bulletin you’ll find: The Inquiry’s ‘Engagement with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer/questioning + victims and survivors’  report published today A set of accounts shared by victims and survivors A relook at the ‘Child protection in religious organisations and settings’ report A feature about the Inquiry’s presence at NSPCC’s How Safe Conference We hope you find this e-bulletin informative. Please get in touch if you’d like further details about our reports or information on the wider work of the Inquiry.

LGBTQ+ child sexual abuse victims and survivors blamed for their abuse   Some LGBTQ+ victims and survivors of child sexual abuse were told their identity or orientation was a result of the abuse they experienced, a new report by the Inquiry found. This severely damaged their self-identity and mental health, with some survivors being told they had brought the sexual abuse upon themselves. ‘Engagement with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer/questioning + victims and survivors’ found LGBTQ+ children face specific challenges that make them vulnerable to child sexual abuse, with additional barriers making it difficult to disclose, access support or form adult relationships. Read more.
1,100 child sexual abuse accounts published by Inquiry to amplify survivors’ voices   The Inquiry has released an online the final set of accounts of more than 1,100 victims and survivors who came forward to the Inquiry’s Truth Project. The first of its kind in the UK, the collection has, along with the thousands of other experiences shared with the Truth Project, helped inform primary research regarding child sexual abuse as well as recommendations for change across the Inquiry’s 19 investigation reports.  Survivors spoke of sexual abuse across multiple settings, the difficulties they’ve faced in speaking out and the devastating impacts of abuse on their lives. Read more.  

Child protection in religious organisations and settings investigation report: responses to recommendations   The ‘Child protection in religious organisations and settings’ report examined evidence received from 38 religious organisations with a presence in England and Wales.   The report makes two recommendations:    (i) that all religious organisations should have a child protection policy and supporting procedures; and    (ii) that the government should legislate to amend the definition of full-time education to bring any setting that is the pupil’s primary place of education within the scope of a registered school, and provide Ofsted with sufficient powers to examine the quality of child protection when undertaking inspection of suspected unregistered schools.
Several organisations have responded stating that the Inquiry’s report prompted them to make improvements and review their child protection policies.

The Home Office stated that it was considering the recommendations made by the Inquiry’s report and committed to legislating on both matters. 

Read the report.   Inquiry shares Truth Project impact at safeguarding conference   The NSPCC’s ‘How Safe’ conference took place virtually on 11 and 12 May. The theme for the year was empowering others to play their part in protecting children from abuse.    Ann-Marie Field, Chief Operating Officer and Jennifer Briggs, Head of Analytics represented the Inquiry. They spoke about the Truth Project, the importance of hearing lived experiences of victims and survivors, and implementing a trauma informed approach throughout the Inquiry’s work.   They also highlighted the impact of the Truth Project, including six reports based on survivor accounts; child sexual abuse in religious institutions, residential care, custodial institutions, sports, schools and healthcare settings. These can be read on our website.
Please get in touch if you’d like further information about the Inquiry’s wider work.