Thank you to everyone who joined us on 19th June for our webinar reviewing the UK Government’s response to IICSA’s final recommendations. Hosted by ACT on IICSA, Switalskis and The Survivors Trust, the event examined the UK Government’s progress on implementing the 20 recommendations showing where movement has occurred, and where government progress remains dangerously slow or absent. 

The findings are sobering. At the time of the webinar: 

• Only 3 of 20 recommendations were in progress 

• None had been implemented 

• It has been over 1,000 days since the final report was published 

• An estimated 1.5 million children have been sexually abused since IICSA published its final report in October 2022¹ 

• 4.5 million children have experienced sexual abuse since the Inquiry began in 2015 

These statistics are unacceptable. Every day of government delay puts more children at risk of sexual harm and continues to fail adult survivors. 

Update on Recommendation 3: Establishing a Child Protection Authority (CPA) 

ACT on IICSA has focused its efforts over the past year on Recommendation 3: the creation of a national Child Protection Authority. 

In earlier discussions, the Department for Education (DfE) suggested adapting the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel (CSPRP) into the CPA to enable a faster establishment. ACT on IICSA made clear this would require major changes in scope, scale, and remit. The DfE agreed in principle and committed to consulting us before any such changes were made. However, in the run-up to our June webinar, this commitment appeared to be undermined: 

• No further meetings with DfE had occurred since February 

• Panel roles were advertised with no reference to CPA or the suggested revised remit 

• Consultation with ACT on IICSA did not happen as promised 

As a result, ACT on IICSA withdrew support for the CSPRP being used as the CPA’s basis. 

Post-webinar developments 

Following the webinar, senior officials from DfE and the Home Office contacted the ACT on IICSA core steering group. A meeting took place on 24th June with Professor Alexis Jay and John O’Brien. The outcome: 

• DfE acknowledged the CSPRP cannot form the basis for the CPA due to the scale of required changes 

• There will now be a new consultation on the CPA’s scope and scale by end of 2025 

• ACT on IICSA will have regular planning meetings with DfE, starting late July/early August 

• A wider consultation with the specialist sector will follow once a draft plan is developed 

While this movement is welcome, we remain extremely concerned by the significant delay. A full three years after the recommendation, the government has announced it will begin yet another consultation process, but not until December 2025.  

We also note that public-facing materials (e.g., the CSPRP Chair announcement) still incorrectly frame the Panel as the future CPA. Transparency is essential, and public statements must reflect actual decisions. 

Home Office update

The Home Office is responsible for many of IICSA’s recommendations and has held regular consultations with ACT on IICSA and other sector leaders. 

Despite public statements from: 

• Yvette Cooper (Home Secretary), 16^th January 2025: “But despite all those national inquiries, reports and hundreds of recommendations, far too little action has been taken and shamefully little progress has been made. That has to change. Before Easter, the government will lay out a clear timetable for taking forward the 20 recommendations from the final IICSA report.”Read the full statement here: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/next-steps-to-tackle-child-sexual-exploitation 

• Jess Phillips (Safeguarding Minister), 8^th April 2025: “To prioritise the protection of children and improve national oversight and consistency of child protection practice, this government will establish a new Child Protection Authority. 
  Building on the national Child Safeguarding Review Panel, the Child Protection Authority will address one of IICSA’s central recommendations by providing national leadership and learning on child protection and safeguarding. 
  Work to expand the role of the Panel will begin immediately and we will consult on developing the new Authority this year.” Read the full statement here: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/tackling-child-sexual-abuse-and-exploitation-update 

Clearly, this plan has now changed but the public has not been told. We call on the DfE to urgently clarify the CPA’s status and set a firm, early timeline for its delivery. 

A senior official on 24th June stated that the Home Office cannot commit to implementing all 20 recommendations. This is a deeply troubling and inconsistent position that has not been publicly clarified. Furthermore, during a stakeholder meeting hosted by Minister Philips (online, 22^nd June), ACT on IICSA asked when the timetable for implementing all IICSA recommendations would be published, as promised by the Home Secretary. The minister stated that this was not possible because it depended on other departments. ACT on IICSA has therefore requested that the Home Secretary publicly clarify this position in light of her statement from January this year. 

ACT on IICSA is calling for:

• The immediate establishment of the Child Protection Authority, without delay or duplication of IICSA’s research 

• A public update from the Government on its commitment to all 20 recommendations 

• A clear and published timeline for implementation across all departments 

• Urgent collaboration between the DfE, Home Office, Department of Health and Ministry of Justice to address all recommendations 

• Transparent communication that treats survivors with honesty they are owed 

Every day of delay means 1,369 children are sexually abused. We cannot wait any longer. 

Get involved with IICSA: 

• Track progress on the IICSA recommendations
• Use our language guidance when discussing IICSA 
• If you gave an account to IICSA, we invite you to share your reflections for a thesis project. The study also looks at your thoughts on the final recommendations and the government’s response.