CYP Now - More training needed for social workers to report child sexual abuse, study says

Social workers need increased training to identify and report child sexual abuse (CSA) to help reduce the impact it causes on children and families, new research suggests.

Social workers need more training to improve confidence in reporting CSA, researchers say. Picture: Adobe Stock

A report, which presents the findings from an evaluation of a pilot programme delivered by the Centre of expertise on child sexual abuse (CSA Centre) says improving the social work response to CSA is essential to reduce the long term effects of sexual abuse on individuals and families.

Establishing an evidence-informed understanding of sexual abuse and offending among social workers, team managers and early help services will increase confident and competent responses to such cases, it states.

Such a move would also bring benefit to public services and society as a whole, the report adds.

Nearly 40 social workers from a range of teams in local authority children’s services were chosen to take part in the intensive training and development programme which ran between October 2018 and January 2020.

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