NSPCC chief to lead historic abuse review
Derren Hayes
Monday, July 7, 2014
NSPCC chief executive Peter Wanless has been chosen by the government to lead a review into the handling of historic child sex abuse allegations.
In a statement to Parliament on Monday afternoon, Home Secretary Theresa May said Wanless will lead the review into how the Home Office, police and legal prosecutors handled information given to them about organised child sexual abuse allegations in the 1980s and 1990s.
May said that Wanless will be assisted in the review by "an appropriate senior legal figure", with any findings reported to the Attorney General Dominic Grieve. It is expected to take eight to 10 weeks to complete.
The decision follows mounting questions about how past claims of sexual abuse by high profile public figures were handled by government departments at the time. This includes the apparent loss of 114 files relating to abuse allegations about organisations and individuals passed to the Home Office.
May said: "I think the question of record keeping may well be something that the panel will be looking at. Over the time period we were looking at, there were a number of different approaches taken by government in relation to record keeping. This is one of the aspects that we will obviously need to consider."
Wanless said: “It’s important to discover everything we can about what happened to these files, not only to help those who may have been victims of abuse many years ago but also to protect those children at risk now.
“The NSPCC is known for its independence and I will approach this review with the due diligence and dedication it warrants - which is what all children have every right to expect.”
May also announced that a Hillsborough-style inquiry will be set up into historical sexual abuse, which will be chaired by former senior high court judge Elizabeth Butler-Sloss and will report after next May's election. The inquiry will be wide-ranging and could be converted into a full public inquiry if necessary, May added.
Lady Butler-Sloss led the Cleveland child abuse inquiry in the late 1980s.
"What I intend is that the terms of reference for the panel inquiry should be drawn quite widely and should not relate just to central government policy,” she told Parliament.
“Local authorities, both with their responsibility directly for child protection and then placing of children in care in various courts, will be an important source of information."
May’s announcement comes just a day after Education Secretary Michael Gove told the BBC there would not be a full public inquiry - arguing that if there are allegations against individuals, they should be passed to the police.
Reacting to the annoucement, Alan Wood, president of the Association of Directors of Children’s Services, said: “The government’s response to these legitimate public concerns is welcome. These are matters of the utmost importance and sensitivity and should be treated accordingly, in the interests of general public confidence but especially in the interest of any child that may have been abused or put at risk of abuse by any such failings.
"It is right that there should be a more urgent approach to the specific concerns of an alleged cover-up; we welcome the introduction of an independent person to lead that process and trust they and their team will be afforded every possible level of support and access to conclude this review.
"The broader inquiry is also to be welcomed. We trust it too will be adequately supported to complete its more complex and potentially more significant task.”
