NSPCC: Queen’s Speech omission leaves children at risk

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Tuesday, 06, Nov 2007 12:00

Coroner’s Reform Bill

A vital opportunity to reduce child abuse deaths has been missed by the omission of the Coroner’s Reform Bill from the Queen’s speech 2007, delivered today Tuesday 6th November.

Currently, coroners are not legally obliged to pass on their findings about a child who has died from abuse to the Child Death Overview Review Teams. The teams, due to be introduced in April 2008 are tasked with finding out how and why children die from abuse in order to prevent further deaths.

Phillip Noyes, NSPCC director of public policy said “A child could die from abuse and the very people tasked with stopping child deaths would know nothing about it. We have missed a golden opportunity to recover essential child death information. If we are to prevent future deaths we have to understand how and why they happen. We can only do this by ensuring the Child Death Review Teams have all the information they need.”

Children and Young Person’s Bill

The NSPCC also has concerns about omissions in the Children and Young Person’s Bill, which was announced in today’s speech. The NSPCC is urging the Government to ensure that every young person who has been abused has access to therapeutic services, including young people in care as part of the Children and Young People Bill.

While the Society is pleased that that the Bill will provide greater protection for children in care, not all children who have experienced abuse and neglect can access vital therapeutic services such as counselling.

Phillip Noyes continued “More than six in ten (62%) young people in care will be victims of abuse or neglect. It’s essential that they have access to therapeutic services to help them recover from their ordeals.”

Equal Protection from Assault

The NSPCC is disappointed that there will be no legislation to give children the same equal protection from assault that adults enjoy. The law on hitting children was amended three years ago with the Children Act 2004 and gave parents the legal defence of 'reasonable punishment' for some minor forms of common assault of their children. The NSPCC is campaigning for a clear law that says violence towards children is wrong.

The recent review of Section 58 of the Children Act 2004 has further highlighted the need for law reform. Teachers, health and social care professionals have raised concerns that the law on hitting children is widely misunderstood and the law impedes their ability to give families consistent messages about acceptable punishment.

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About the NSPCC

The NSPCC is the UK’s leading children charity specialising in child protection and the prevention of cruelty to children. The NSPCC’s purpose is to end cruelty to children FULL STOP. Its vision is of a society where all children are loved, valued and able to fulfil their potential. The NSPCC runs 180 projects and services across the United Kingdom and Channel Islands, including ChildLine, the UK’s free, confidential 24-hour helpline for children and young people. The NSPCC helps over 10,000 children and their families every year.