Chamber and committees

Following publication of the final report, and with the agreement of Ministers, the Working Group concluded its work which was time-limited and linked to the delivery of the Action Plan. However, a number of operational and strategic groups have continued to have a focus on delivery of actions to prevent and tackle child sexual abuse and exploitation, including the National Child Protection Leadership Group, Police Scotland’s Multi-agency Group on Preventing Online Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation and Social Work Scotland’s Child Protection Subgroup.

We have subsequently established a new National Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Group with operational partners and other expert stakeholders. The Group met for the first time in November 2024 and again in December 2024 and is reviewing current activity and identifying where further work is needed to better protect children from abuse and exploitation.

In relation to recommendations on public-facing awareness activity, the Scottish Government has provided funding for a range of campaigns, including in March 2021 on child sexual exploitation and in February 2022 and February 2023 on child online safety. In 2024 the Scottish Government funded Child Protection Committees Scotland for a campaign focusing on effects of child sexual abuse. The campaign was developed in partnership with Barnardo’s Scotland and co-produced with the support of adult survivors and had a reported reach of over 1.8 million adults in Scotland.

Regarding recommendations on improving the experience of victims, a number of policies have promoted a trauma-informed approach. This includes the roll out of the Scottish Child Interview Model for Joint Investigative Interviews as part of the Bairns' Hoose Pathfinder Phase which aims to minimise the emotional impact on child victims, and ensure their safety and wellbeing throughout any investigation. The national roll-out involves specialised training for police officers and social workers focusing on the impact of trauma, child development and importance of effective planning for the needs of the child.

On recommendations regarding access to inclusive support for families and delivering recovery-focused interventions, the Scotland-specific Bairns’ Hoose Standards were published in 2023 and include Standard 3 on Inclusive Access which states:“ The Bairns’ Hoose is accessible for all children who are referred and their families, no matter what specialist needs or support they or their family require”. The opening of further Bairns’ Hooses will continue to enhance our response to providing care, recovery and justice for children who have experienced trauma, including child sexual abuse. In addition, the Scottish Government is transforming holistic family support through the Whole Family Wellbeing Funding Programme. Since 2022, we have invested over £110m in a programme of activity, including £32m for Children’s Services Planning Partnerships to improve and extend family support in their local areas.

In relation to recommendations on contextual safeguarding and a focus on locations of concern, the Scottish Government provided funding to North Lanarkshire Council in 2022-23 to test the implementation of contextual safeguarding within child protection processes. The Scottish Contextual Safeguarding Core Group, a subgroup of Child Protection Committees Scotland, has also been established to guide, support and encourage the development and implementation of the contextual safeguarding approach across Scotland. The group aims to facilitate collaboration amongst professionals, share best practice and promote consistency in delivery across different contexts, including groups, schools, neighbourhood and online spaces.

The Barnardo’s report also recommended development of an approach to risk that emphasises children’s needs. National Guidance for Child Protection in Scotland published in 2021 and updated in August 2023 describes the responsibilities and expectations of everyone who works with children, young people and their families. The guidance includes a strengthened focus on risk assessment through consistent use of Interagency Referral Discussions (IRDs)- the start of the formal process of information sharing, assessment, analysis and decision-making – whenever a concern about abuse or neglect of a child or young person is reported. It makes clear that when a child is at risk of, or has experienced child sexual exploitation, an IRD should be convened without undue delay .We have developed and successfully piloted a national multi-agency IRD training course which will be rolled out across Scotland this Spring. The training will support more consistent IRD practice including in relation to cases involving child sexual exploitation.

In line with recommendations on ensuring best practice is shared, the Scottish Government funded a 2-year National Learning and Development Co-ordinator post to provide resources and support to assist local areas adapt their local responses in line with the national guidance. Included amongst the range of learning materials developed are specific resources on Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation which were made available in 2024.

Progress has also been made in relation to recommendations that were for the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration (SCRA) and Children’s Hearings Scotland (CHS) including on training and improving the timeliness of decision-making. SCRA have published detailed guidance for all Reporter staff and developed Harmful Sexual Behaviour Training for reporters which covers child sexual exploitation and includes the key findings of Barnardo’s research. SCRA’s “Programme Protect” has been running since 2022 and focusses on efficiencies including the timeliness of decision-making. CHS now includes child sexual exploitation in pre-service training for all new Panel Members, which is updated every year. In partnership with Strathclyde University’s Children and Young People’s Centre for Justice, CHS has developed a comprehensive Practice Guide and training module for panel members on ‘responding to the needs of older children’. This addresses child sexual exploitation, and its interrelationship with Child Criminal Exploitation, and how this should be addressed in decision-making.

Steps have also been taken to address recommendations to enhance the voice of children in decisions that affect them. In November 2020, the Scottish Government launched a national advocacy service to support children and young people who may need independent, expert advocacy support to reinforce their rights when they may need to be involved in a Children’s Hearing. These services are offered Scotland-wide and a Children’s Hearings Advocacy Expert Reference group chaired by Scottish Government supports the design, delivery, and implementation of the scheme.

The Scottish Government agrees with the aim of Barnardo’s recommendation on research to improve our collective understanding of all forms of childhood sexual abuse and exploitation. Any data must however be gathered in a manner that is appropriate, sensitive and minimises the risk of re-traumatisation of victims. We continue to consider opportunities to explore the scale and nature of child sexual abuse and exploitation. Progress also continues to be made on data gathering and sharing by agencies in Scotland. Data on reported concerns about child abuse or neglect is collected by Police Scotland and reported nationally in a monthly dashboard, and this dataset is currently being extended to provide more in-depth analysis of characteristics and trends in abuse and exploitation. This will provide an improved understanding of prevalence of different forms of abuse, including child sexual abuse and exploitation.

In line with recommendations on strategic oversight, a number of Scottish Government and partner-led groups were involved in delivering these activities to tackle child sexual abuse and exploitation. In order to enhance our approach to this issue we established a new Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation National Strategic Group in October 2024. This comprises operational partners and other expert stakeholders, and its purpose is to review current actions and agree where additional focus is needed to better protect children from abuse and exploitation. The group will assess existing workplans and consider where further consideration and further work may be required for specific issues.