Child Abuse Laws in the UK - Essay Example

Child Abuse Laws Introduction This paper will discuss the current issues relating to child protection laws by examining the legal framework in pace and recommending necessary reforms to improve the laws in future. The essay will discuss the current framework for inter-agency arrangements regulating child protection laws in the UK as well as the current practices and policies that have been reformed over the tears with reference to the Children’s’ Act (2004), and Working together to Safeguard Children Guidelines (2013). The essay will also analyze the extent of success for the existing child protection frameworks with regard to protecting children from abuse on the basis of the various Child Abuse Inquiry Reports. Appropriate reforms to the laws will be recommended to eliminate deficiencies in the existing legal framework. Child Abuse can be defined as any physical, emotional or sexual maltreatment or neglect of a child (Balliere & Tindall, 2003). It can also be termed as any act of commission or omission by a parent, guardian or any other caregiver which results in harming, or a threat to harm a child or children. Child abuse can occur anywhere including the child’s home, school, in various children organizations or even in the wider community with which the children interact with. The main forms of child abuse in the UK are physical abuse, neglect, sexual abuse, and emotional abuse (Balliere & Tindall, 2003). Statistics on child abuse in the UK are very alarming. In a period of one year between 2012 April and March 2013, the police recorded 23000 sexual offences against children. On average, at least one child is killed every week in the hands of an adult through physical abuse in the UK. In 2012, the police forces in England and Wales reported about 28000 cases of children running away from care as a result of constant abuse while the Sex Offenders Register for sexual offences against children recorded 2980 cases. Another shocking statistic is that about 34% of cases of child abuse are left unreported to authorities. This makes it difficult to tackle this problem. In order to adequately protect children from abuse, it is necessary to understand the factors that cause or threaten to cause abuse among children. There are various causes of child abuse. Studies show that children from violent parents who are constantly engaged in domestic violence are also likely to experience abuse from the parents. Children who get unintended pregnancies are also likely to experience abuse and neglect from their parents (Balliere & Tindall, 2003). In other cases, children with severe or moderate disabilities often have a higher rate of falling victims to abuse. Parents with a history of substance abuse are also likely to subject their children to abuse. Recent studies also indicate that children in the custody of non-biological parents, for instance those living with step parents, are 100 times more likely to face abuse. Child abuse has a wide range of effects on the children, some of which may be long term and may persist in to the adult life of the children. A recent research study dubbed Hidden Costs in Health Care: The Economic Impact of Violence and Abuse, makes the case that child abuse also has greater effects on the wider societies economic prospects. The report states that child abuse forms a greater part of expensive and costly public health policy which can be avoided with appropriate child protection legal frameworks. Some of the effects of child abuse on children include both physical and psychological effects. Child victims of abuse are exposed to a lot of physical injuries including bone fractures and may develop higher chances of contracting cancer. In some cases these physical damages may be temporary while in other cases they may persist in the long term. Among some of the permanent or long term physical infections on children as a result of abuse include brain impairments, shaken baby syndrome, and poor physical health. Psychological effects are also prevalent among abused children. Abused children may experience psychiatric problems or other forms of disorganized attachment styles. Victims of child abuse may encounter Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PSD) in their child hood and my find it difficult to raise their own children when they become parents. Some studies also show that abused children suffer at least one psychiatric disorder by the time they reach the age of 21 with issues such as anxiety, depression, eating disorders or even suicide attempts (Balliere & Tindall, 2003). Child abuse is considered an issue of high priority in the UK and detailed laws and policy guidelines have been enacted to that effect in order to protect the children. Various commissions of inquiry have been formed throughout history to study the cases of child abuse and give recommendations to improve the laws and policies of child protection. One of the most acclaimed commissions is the Victoria Climbie commission that was established in 2000 and has been instrumental in guiding the current legal framework. Legislation on children protection in the UK had until recently been the responsibility of the Westminster. The process of devolution in the Kingdom has enabled each of the nations to have their own legal frameworks for child protection although all the laws across Scotland, Northern Ireland, and England and Wales are broadly similar. Legislation on children protection is divided in to both criminal and civil law, although some acts may contain provisions relating to both criminal and civil laws. Criminal law deals with the individuals that offend or risk offending against children while civil law contains both private and public processes aimed at minimizing the risks of child abuse. Some of the laws governing child protection in the UK include the Children Act of 1989, Sexual Offenses Act 2004, Adoption and children Act 2002, the children Act 2004 and the Working Together to Safeguard Children (2013) among others. This essay will focus on reviewing existing inter-agency arrangements for child protection and provide an analysis of the objectives and goals of Working Together to Safeguard Children 2013, The Children Act 1989 and The Children Act 2004. The essay will also assess the effectiveness of the existing law and consider whether and what sort of reforms might address existing concerns and deficiencies. A Review the Existing Inter-Agency Arrangements Inter-agency arrangements refer to the cooperation and coordination between various agencies in the education, health and social sectors in order to promote child protections. Inter agency cooperation is a necessary effort and the first meaningful step in child protection since this can be a foundation for more pieces of legislation. The necessity of this inter agency arrangements has been made necessary due to a number of high profile deaths of children since 1948, among them Maria Colwell, Jasmine Beckford, Lean White, Kimberly Carlile, Chelsea Brown, Victoria Climbie and a more recent case of Baby Peter (WTSC, 2013). Despite these children dying under various circumstances, there are similarities among all their deaths that have called for adequate measures to be taken in order to prevent further deaths of children as a result of abuse or negligence. Key similarities in all these cases as the various commissions of inquiry found out include the inexperience of social workers and their inadequate skills in handling children and the limited resources that meet the required standards and insufficient legal frameworks to safeguard the issues of children. Inter agency cooperation could have ensured multiplicity of agencies involved in handling the children thereby having enough resources and skills to prevent the unfortunate cases of deaths of these children. A lack of inter-agency cooperation has over the years been highlighted as a contributing factor in all these cases. Since these high profile cases, it has become paramount for various agencies in the education, health and social sectors to come together and cooperate under the established guidelines in order to promote the welfare of children. The need for inter agency cooperation was first emphasized by the commission of inquiry in to the death of Maria Colwell in 1974. The commission identified a lack of structures to promote communication between various agencies in the country with regard to child protection. Child protection usually involves a lot of different agencies that ought to communicate amongst themselves. There is need to have an understanding of the roles and responsibilities of each agency and let each agency be involved in the protection of the children (White, Carr & Lowe, 2008). In the past few years, there has been poor coordination among the various agencies dealing with children. This has led to numerous cases of negligence and other forms of child abuse since the various agencies involved in protecting children do not communicate adequately to respond to these cases thus leading to death of children. Three commissions following the deaths of Kimberly Carlile, Jasmine Bedford and Tyra Henry all highlighted the failure of the agencies in working together successfully to prevent the unfortunate deaths of these children (WTSC, 2013). The social services sector was faulted for instance for its failure to intervene and ensure the children were well taken care of. The Cleveland Report also alluded to the fact that medical professionals and social services in some cases overrode the role of parents in protecting children by being overzealous in diagnosing sexual abuse among children and being too hasty in their interventions. The Cleveland Report, published in 1988 faulted the breakdown in communication lack of inter-agency cooperation for being the major contributors to cases of neglect and child abuse (WTSC, 2013). There are various guidelines that have been put in place to promote inter-agency cooperation. These include Framework for the assessment of children in need and their families (2000), the Working together to safeguard children (2010), Statutory guidance on making arrangements to safeguard and promote the welfare of children under section 11 of the Children Act 2004 (2007) and the more refined the Working together to safeguard children (2013). The Working together to safeguard children (2013) replaces all the other preexisting frameworks and aims at bring together different stakeholders including local authorities, social services, education institutions, the voluntary and community sector and the families. The framework became operational on 15th April 2013 (White, Carr & Lowe, 2008). This guidance clarifies the main legal requirements in child protection thus making it much clearer the roles and responsibilities of organizations and individuals in helping promote the welfare of children and to keep children safe. It is intended to create a national framework within which various professionals and agencies work together either jointly or individually to develop their own mechanisms of working together in promoting the welfare of children (Kate W. & Adrian, 2007). Analysis of the aims and objectives of Working Together to Safeguard Children 2013, The Children Act 1989 and The Children Act 2004 Working to safeguard children is a framework in the UK that provides guidelines by bringing together different stakeholders to collaborate in protecting children, and acts as a basis of legislation for laws governing child protection. The 2013 version is the revised and updated version that provides guidance to individuals and organizations on how they should work together to promote the welfare of children ad safeguard their interests (Roach, 2011). It also creates a framework upon which practitioners are expected to assess the children and determine if there are any interventions that need to be undertaken to save them. The Working Together to Safeguard Children (2013) sets out core legal obligations and makes it easier for organizations and individuals to together in protecting children. The Working Together (2013) replaces all the other legal frameworks that had been enacted before. This statutory guideline is meant for various stakeholders including the local authorities, the police, social workers, medical professionals, adult services, and the education sector among others. The statutory guideline relates to various other enacted laws including section 7 of the Local authority Social Services Act of 1970, section 11 of the Children Act 2004, and Section 16 of Children Act 2004 among other statutory provisions. The main objective of this guideline is to create a framework for more collaboration and cooperation among different stakeholder in this field in order to create an environment where children are respected and protected (Kate W. & Adrian, 2007). The guideline puts in place appropriate structures to foster communication and enable understanding among the various stakeholders. Another objective of these guidelines is to establish a foundation for future legislation to improve the conditions of children in the country and protect them against child abuse. The aims and objectives of Working Together 2013 are meant to fill the void that has been in place for a very long time in the history of child protection in the UK. The need to have proper and adequate guidelines to encourage and promote inter-agency cooperation has been a central part of child protection debates since the 20th century (Lonne,P.et al 2009). Existing laws and structures at the time proved to be inadequate in ensuring there was necessary collaboration among stakeholders. Most people were left out of the scope of the laws and guidelines at the time because their roles in child development were not very elaborate and understood. The laws were scattered from one place to the other (White, Carr & Lowe, 2008). This framework has been effective in amalgamating the existing laws and producing a great framework to promote the welfare of children. The objectives of these guidelines seem to usher in a new era where inter-agency arrangements will be central to child protection strategies (Lonne,P.et al 2009). This is expected to have a major impact on the welfare of children and will reduce to a large extent the number of child abuse cases and by extension, resultant deaths. The Children Act of 1989 is considered as the first major step in the UK in promoting the safely and welfare of children. This Act was introduced in the UK in a bid to clarify and reform the plethora of laws that existed at the time. The Act is acknowledged for its recognition of the fact that children have the right to be protected from exploitation and abuse as well as the right to inquiries to promote their welfare (Kate & Adrian, 2007). The central point of this statute was the fact that the family is the most appropriate place for developing children in an environment where their rights will be protected and respected. The Act recognized the importance of the family in raising children. The Children Act 1989 became fully implemented in England and Wales in 1991 while it was fully implemented in Northern Ireland five years later in 1996. Among key principles of this piece of legislation include the fact that children’s welfare is of paramount significance, parents are central to all strategies of child protection, both the local authority and the family should collaborate in safeguarding the security of children as well as the need to take various factors in to consideration when handling children such as their race, language, religion and culture. The main objectives of thee Children Act 1989 were to create a functional piece of legislation that would clearly bring the issues of child abuse to the forefront through involving both the family and the local Authorities (Diduck & Kaganas, 2006). The law intended to bring together the various pieces of law that were scattered so as to create a resourceful piece of legislation that would be very broad in addressing the issues of children. The objectives of this set of laws have been very instrumental in creating subsequent statutes for protecting children. The objective of bringing various stakeholder such as the family and local authorities in to the issues of children has been very instrumental in developing modern child protection strategies and policy guidelines where more agencies, organizations and individuals have been brought on board. It must be noted however that the children act of 1989 had its own limitations since its objectives did not address the issues of inter-agency collaboration by putting in place adequate structures to ensure there was proper understanding and communication among the various agencies involved in children (Lonne,P.et al 2009). The Act also excluded other important stakeholder such as schools, social services, foster homes and medical professionals among others. The Children Act of 2004 is another revolutionary statute in UK with regards to child protection. This Act does not in any way amend or replace the earlier version of Children Act 1989. It rather develops complementary strategies, processes and guidelines for integrating various stakeholders in protecting children. The statute was created on the back of Lord Laming’s report that investigated the death of the eight years old Victoria Climbie in 2000 (Diduck & Kaganas, 2006). The report found out that Victoria’s death was as a result of massive failings of about 12 agencies and organizations that had a role in protecting children. Victoria’s death would have been avoided had there been a collaborative effort among these twelve agencies. The report made radical recommendations for immediate changes to the existing laws in order to foster more cooperation among different agencies. The resulting law was the Children Act of 2004. The main objective of this law was to prevent further deaths of children by promoting a collaborative approach among various agencies involved in protecting children. The law also aimed at creating appropriate structures in the government to address issues of children, thereby creating the office of the Commissioner for Children in England (Kate W. & Adrian, 2007). These objectives have largely been effective in instituting changes in the framework for protecting children as well as creating a great foundation for future legal structures. The law has been an influential part of the Working Together to Safeguard Children (2013) policy guidance framework. Assessment the effectiveness of the existing law and consider whether and what sort of reforms might address existing concerns and deficiencies The UK has encountered a lot of cases of child abuse over the past few years. There have been numerous reports of commissions of inquiries that have been very instrumental in providing recommendations for changes to the laws and creating the existing legal framework. The law has gone through numerous transformations over the years to be what it is now (Diduck & Kaganas, 2006). Significant steps have been made over the years to enact the laws and create policies and policy frameworks that inform future legislations in this area. Despite being very effective in protecting children against the various forms of child abuse, there is still room for improvement in the future. Child abuse is a crime and like any other crime, it adapts to changes in the environment and takes various forms as the external environment changes in terms of technology and globalization (Lyon, et al, 2003). Children therefore continue to face new and emerging challenges in the contemporary world and the future promises to bring more challenges (Brammer, 2009). With this in mind, it is necessary to keep changing, amending and enacting new laws in the future in order to take to consideration the challenges at the time. The current law on child protection is a great statute and has improved on the previous approaches that had been widely in use. There are various recommendations that can be implemented to improve the current law in order to make it more effective. The current law has focused more on physical abuse to children that has in most cases led to deaths of children (Brammer, 2009). There needs to be a lot more legal provisions with regard to other forms of child abuse such as the emotional neglect inflicted to children by adults. Emotional neglect should be incorporated in to the criminal element of child abuse and should attract huge punishments since it is one of the most popular forms of abuse among children. Bibliography Balliere & Tindall F. J. 2003. Children’s Rights and the Developing Law, 2nd Edition, Butterworths, London. Brammer A. 2009. Social Work (3rd Edition). Longman, New York. Diduck & Kaganas. 2006. Family Law, Gender and the Stat Hart Publishing. Kate W. & Adrian L. J. 2007. The Child Protection handbook (3 edition). Bailliere Tindall. Lonne,Parton, Thomson & Harries. 2009. Reforming Child Protection. Routledge, London. Lyon C. M., Cruz P. D. Cobley C, Reid C, and Petrie S. 2003.. Child Abuse. Family Law. White, Carr & Lowe. 2008. The Children Act in Practice, 4th Edition. Butterworth. Working Together to Safeguard Children, (WTSC). 2013. A Guide to inter-agency working to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, DOH, Home Office. Read More