David Pearson, executive director of the Churches' Child ProtectionAdvisory Service, said while guidance released by the Department forEducation and Skills last week goes a long way towards addressing how todeal with faith-based child abuse, greater priorities need to be placedon building up relationships within communities.
"The new guidance could be quite helpful for practitioners generally,but there needs to be emphasis on building links," he said. "There needsto be a constructive engagement between children's services, police,other agencies and faith communities. As you create awareness, not onlyis it good for that community, it helps isolate situations which need tobe dealt with."
Safeguarding Children from Abuse Linked to a Belief in Spirit Possessionexplains how to identify child abuse linked to a belief in possessionand gives guidelines on best practice. It notes that while the number ofabuse cases linked to a belief in spirit possession are relativelysmall, they cause much distress to a child.
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