PANEL STATEMENT– Friday 23 January 2014

PANEL STATEMENT– Friday 23 January 2014

 

SAFEGUARDING SUPPORT

 

The Panel is committed to engaging with victims and survivors throughout the course of the Inquiry. The Panel is also committed to supporting victims and survivors as they are involved in the Inquiry’s work. We have not started to take evidence from anybody at the moment because the Chair will decide, once appointed, how best to make those arrangements.

 

The Panel acknowledges that disclosing details of abuse may re-traumatise and that this re-trauma may continue after their engagement with the Inquiry. However, final decisions on what this longer term support model might look like will depend on the evidence taking procedures which must be agreed by the Chair. 

 

The Panel has set up a safeguarding support working group to assist a new Chair in making an informed decision on the model for support, and the Secretariat is consulting with safeguarding professionals on the model of support which the Inquiry could employ.

 

Since the Panel first engaged with survivors in October, safeguarding support has evolved.  The Panel acknowledges that the first two formal listening meetings which took place before the panels’ first meeting did not have specific safeguarding support. Following feedback from victims and survivors, support was provided at the next two meetings in Bristol on 5 December and Manchester on 12 December. Further feedback highlighted the value of having a gender balance so that those attending have a choice on whether they want male or female safeguarding support. 

 

In early January we established a pool of safeguarding support providers and a support package was put in place in readiness for the eight regional listening meetings. This pool, made up of providers from across the country such as The Southmead Project in Bristol, Survivors Manchester and Inspire You Me & Us CIC were due to travel to locations as north as Carlisle and south as Plymouth to engage with victims and survivor groups. We welcome our ongoing discussions with the Survivors Alliance to help us in further developing this work.

 

The Panel is clear that the purpose of the listening meetings is to engage and listen to victim and survivor representatives. They are not evidence taking sessions. The Secretariat has made clear in the joining instructions and at the start of the meetings that the meetings are for sharing views and that individual experiences will not be investigated. These listening meetings are confidential.

 

In advance of a Chair being appointed the Panel will continue with the preparatory work needed to ensure that they can deliver a robust Inquiry for all those people who have been victims of child sexual abuse.

 

We are not funded to provide support but are pleased to see the Home Office announced a new victims’ fund of £7.5m.  We understand some of this will be allocated to groups providing support to adult and child victims of sexual abuse as well as responding to support requests as a result of the setting up of the inquiry.

 

For further Information contact:

 

Dave Jervis -  davidjervis3@gmail.com

07771 982759

 

Usha Choli – usha.choli1@childsexualabuseinquiry

07795 301624

 

Issued by the Secretariat to the CSA Independent Inquiry Panel at 6.33pm

23.01.15

Published with permission by Team Inspire