Child Sexual Abuse (CSA)

Information for professionals

Coventry Safeguarding Children Partnership hosted a child sexual abuse learning event in May 2023. The event included guest speakers and information from local organisations:

This video is approximately 2 hours, each segment will play automatically at the end of each video.

Non-abusing parent

Intra-familial Child Sexual Abuse does not happen in a vacuum and assessment or intervention in cases needs to take account of all family members. 

There is a distinction between a non-abusing partner’s capacity to protect, their ability to protect and their likelihood of protecting. Their knowledge of the abuse could be anywhere on a spectrum:

• Did not know anything
• Knew something was going on, but not that
• Passive collusion – wondering, suspecting CSA but nothing to confirm
• Active collusion – knowing something is going on but convincing self-nothing going on
• Co offending active participation – willingly or under coercion
• Offending independently

Non-abusing parents are likely to experience worry of the loss of their child and/or partner, being treated with suspicion, potential grooming or physical violence and isolation. The consequence of this does not empower the parents to protect their children.

The CSA Centre’s ‘Supporting Parents and Carers’ guide is designed to help professionals understand more about how child sexual abuse affects parents and their children, so that they can support them effectively.

The Parents Protect website also provides information, safety plans and advice to parents. They have also developed an online child sexual abuse and exploitation awareness learning programme for parents, carers and professionals.

Mosac helps all non abusing parents and carers whose children have been sexually abused.

The CSA Centre recognises that in order to be successful in preventing child sexual abuse from happening, and protecting children who are experiencing abuse, we must develop a better understanding of perpetration.

Effectiveness

Commissioning and providing effective services is essential to intervention and recovery for children at risk of or affected by abuse. The CSA Centre is committed to building the evidence base on effectiveness of services that respond to child sexual abuse.

Responding to CSA

To effectively deal with a problem as pervasive and important as CSA requires everyone with a stake in working to prevent child sexual abuse to get involved. In addition to our core strands of research on the scale and nature of CSA, the evidence base of effectiveness and CSA offending, the CSA Centre has published reports on a wide range of aspects of and interventions around CSA.

Institutional CSA

The term ‘institutional child sexual abuse’ is used to distinguish child sexual abuse (CSA) in an institutional context from that occurring in the family or other settings. It can take place in a wide variety of settings where individuals are in a position of power and trust in relation to children.

Supporting practice in tackling child sexual abuse film series

The CSA Centre have produced a 12-part short film series for professionals, by professionals.

Communicating with Children Guide

Research and practice show that it can take years for a child to get to the point where they feel able to tell someone about their experiences. It’s vital that anyone who works with children knows how to recognise what is happening and understands how to help the child to have that conversation. This guide brings together research, practice guidance to help give professionals the knowledge and confidence to act.

Sibling Sexual Abuse

Sexual abuse involving child siblings is thought to be the most common form of intra-familial child sexual abuse, and is an issue that most protection professionals will encounter at some stage.

The BBC has released a File on 4 episode which focuses on sibling sexual abuse in the UK. The episode features families who have experienced this form of abuse and looks at the challenges they have faced - Sibling sexual abuse: The last taboo?

NSPCC Learning  - Providing support where there’s been harmful sexual behaviour (HSB) between siblings

Tools

If professionals are worried a child is being exploited, they can use the Child Exploitation Indicator Tool to submit a concern.

Signs & Indicators Template

Research shows that the majority of children and young people will not tell anyone at the time of their abuse, and if they do, they are much more likely to tell friends or family than someone in a professional role. The CSA Centre’s Signs and Indicators Template helps professionals address this: gathering the wider signs and indicators of sexual abuse to build a picture of their concerns.

The CSA Centre have produced a guide which provides practical support for those in education settings to respond to children’s needs and safety when incidents of harmful sexual behaviour occur. The Guide looks at key actions for a school when an incident of harmful sexual behaviour has occurred, including a safety plan template for recording and reviewing arrangements, as well as broader practical advice such as how to communicate with children, and their parents. 

Steps towards prevention toolkit - Lucy Faithfull Foundation

Other downloadable resources.

Resources for survivors

• The Survivor’s Trust are a national umbrella agency for over 135 specialist rape. Sexual violence and childhood sexual abuse organisations through the UK and Ireland.  
• The National Association for People Abused in Childhood - a website and free helpline for survivors of sexual abuse.  We have very few services (locally and nationally) for survivors of sexual abuse, so this is an useful resource for you to pass to service users so they have someone to talk to about their experiences.
• One in Four - Support survivors with counselling, groups, advocacy, and about resources and practical exercises for support.
• Survivors UK – website for male survivors of sexual abuse and assault.
• 1 in 6 - website for male survivors of sexual abuse.
• Rape Crisis Rape Crisis helpline – 0808 802 9999 – National organisation offering support and counselling for those affected by rape and sexual abuse. See website for local groups or contact directory enquiries.
• Mind provide advice and support to empower anyone experiencing a mental health problem.

Other services

• The Child Exploitation and Online Protection unit (CEOP) site
• ThinkUKnow
• Internet Watch Foundation
• Stop it Now! work to prevent child sexual abuse, working with people who are worried about themselves and others and help support parents and families.
• NOTA supporting professionals to prevent sexual abuse - National Organisation for the Treatment of Abuse.

Further reading

• Internet Watch Foundation Annual Report
• Internet Matters 'Look at me' Sexting Report
• Independent enquiry into CSA Reports – Investigation reports
• IICSA Research reports