Protect children and support survivors of child sexual abuse

CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE IS STILL HAPPENING ON A COLOSSAL SCALE IN THE UK.

WE HAVE THE EXPERTISE TO CHANGE THIS BUT NEED YOUR HELP

Three years ago, the final report from the Independent Inquiry into Childhood Sexual Abuse (IICSA – “ick-sa”) laid bare a national shame: for decades, institutions prioritised their own reputations over the safety of children.

The Inquiry heard from 7,500 survivors, reviewed 2.5 million pages of evidence, and exposed a devastating truth, one we can no longer afford to ignore.

But since that report landed in October 2022, not one of the 20 urgent recommendations has been implemented.

NOT ONE.

In that time, the governments own figures estimates 1.5 million children have been sexually abused.

THAT’S ENOUGH CHILDREN TO FILL EVERY CLASSROOM IN 1,500 OF THE LARGEST SCHOOLS IN THE UK.

“There is no doubt that if mandatory reporting had been in place, (recommendation 3 of the IICSA report) just four years ago, the teacher who I confided in about sexual assault from peers, would not have been allowed to then rape me. Concerns about him were circulating but never acted on, he wasn’t registered and afterwards I had no support. All of these [failures] are [addressed in the] recommendations in IICSA’s final report. No one protected me, yet so many played a part in my further exploitation”

[Anon. female sexually abused aged 13 by two peers 4 years older than her, then raped by the male teacher who she confided in.]

The human cost? Shattering.

Survivors face higher risks of lifelong trauma – resulting in mental, emotional and physical health issues, and even suicide.

The financial cost? £12.6 billion every year

across our healthcare, education, welfare and justice systems.

WHO ARE WE?

We are a volunteer group of experts in the sector - bringing specialist expertise from a range of disciplines and we are constantly hearing from survivors who have been let down by the system. We are former leaders of IICSA, expert witnesses, solicitors, survivors of child sexual abuse and child sexual exploitation, and CEOs of specialist voluntary sector agencies.

Sexual abuse/exploitation has no borders. It affects everyone from every nationality, background and community which is why prevention and support must be for everyone, regardless of who they are or the circumstances of the abuse.

We have seen the fight against Child Sexual Abuse/Exploitation politicised time and time again. When will it be time to come together and finally say, ENOUGH?

We’re fighting to turn IICSA’s recommendations into real change, and to make sure survivors are no longer met with silence and delay. But we can’t do it alone.

The scale of what we can do depends on how much we raise. We’ve had success before — our last campaign pushed the Government to begin work on a Child Protection Authority, but this will take years, and much more change is urgently needed. With enough support, we can work with the right people to make that happen, ensuring this issue stays in the public eye and on the political agenda.

HOW CAN YOU HELP?

Donate today. Every single pound helps keep the pressure on through lobbying and campaigning.

Share. To help us with the campaign and keep the conversation going- it is only through communication that we can elicit change.

Volunteer your time. Passion and persistence matter - we want to hear from you.

Join our mailing list to be kept updated on our work

This is our moment to act.

Together, we can hold power to account.

Together, we can protect children and support survivors.