Review of previous reports and inquiries into child sexual abuse

Last December, the Chair of the Inquiry, Professor Alexis Jay OBE produced a comprehensive work programme which stated that in August, we would set out how we will approach the work to review previous inquiries and reports into child sexual abuse.

The Inquiry’s Terms of Reference (ToR) require us to “consider all the information which is available from the various published and unpublished reviews, court cases, and investigations which have so far concluded.”

In line with these ToRs, this review will:

• Examine what recommendations were made previously to better protect children from sexual abuse with a view to identifying what underlying issues have resisted work to improve institutional responses to child sexual abuse
• Identify whether there are consistent issues identified in previous reports in relation to contemporary incidents (rather than non-recent abuse) which can inform Inquiry work on recommendations for the future
• Identify any barriers to change which are preventing or frustrating attempts at improvement or reform, as well as any factors considered helpful in improving the response of institutions to child sexual abuse.

The analysis will look at over 200 separate inquiries, reviews and reports and will help the Inquiry to see whether the same issues arise repeatedly or whether new and different issues have arisen over time. The first phase of the work will be conducted internally, after which the Inquiry will seek the views of those responsible for responding to such reviews and inquiries.

This work is now underway and the Inquiry will publish further updates as the work progresses.