Scottish Government pressed over mandatory reporting of child abuse

Mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse must be considered by a new Scottish Government group, sources have told Holyrood.

The set-up of the Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation National Strategic Group was announced earlier this week amidst a political row over a grooming gangs scandal in England.

The remit of the panel, announced by children’s minister Natalie Don-Innes, has not yet been established, not have its leaders or full membership been revealed. Sources told Holyrood it must include new legal requirements on the adults tasked with safeguarding young people.

Crimes against thousands of girls, mostly by gangs of Pakistani and Kashmiri men, emerged over several years from the early 2000s and are the subject of renewed debate after US-based X owner Elon Musk highlighted the matter on his social media platform, attacking Prime Minister Keir Starmer and the UK Government.

Three years ago, a report by Professor Alexis Jay included the mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse as one of 20 recommendations to ministers.

This step will now be taken forward by the Labour government, which has declined to hold a new national inquiry into grooming gangs despite pressure from former Conservative ministers, Musk and others.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said those who cover up or fail to report the sexual abuse of a child could face professional or criminal sanctions under a new offence to be included in the Crime and Policing Bill.

Separate legislation would be required to introduce a similar measure in Scotland and, at First Minister’s Questions, John Swinney said the Scottish Government is “considering” the UK Government move and will “consider all relevant recommendations” from the ongoing independent Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry, which covers offending towards minors in care.

The comment came after children’s minister Natalie Don-Innes announced the establishment of the new strategic group. She said Edinburgh-born Professor Jay will be amongst its members, but it is understood that she will not chair the body and the Scottish Government has declined a request to set out its membership, or to say whether its terms of reference will include mandatory reporting. 

Holyrood understands that Jay was initially reluctant to join the Scottish Government-led group because it was not clear whether mandatory reporting would be something it would advocate or support. Holyrood also understands that the initial co-chairs, from Police Scotland and the Scottish Government, have already had to be replaced, with one stepping down and the other returning to a local authority post after completing a secondment. And, speaking privately, sources close to the group said consideration of mandatory reporting must be part of the process.

The issue has entered the public domain just weeks after a roundtable discussion on the matter was held at Holyrood. Speaking at FMQs, Fulton MacGregor MSP, convenor of the Cross-Party Group on Adult Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse, said there is a “strong coalition of support for this measure from a broad range of survivor agencies and, crucially, from survivors themselves here in Scotland”.

Swinney said: “I want to be very clear that in Scotland today, professionals already have a professional duty to report child abuse. A practitioner's failure to report child abuse could constitute a breach of their employment contract, lead to disciplinary action or give rise to a claim for civil damages. Practitioners could also be struck off from social work, teaching or medical registers for gross misconduct. We are, however, considering the United Kingdom Government's proposed planned approach to mandatory reporting, and will consider all relevant recommendations coming out of the independent Scottish child abuse inquiry that I referred to in my earlier comments.”

Following questions from Holyrood about the new group, the Scottish Government said: “The Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation National Strategic Group was set up last year and first met in November 2024 to provide expertise and increase cross-sectoral working to address the risks and harms of child sexual abuse and exploitation in Scotland. The group is co-chaired by the Scottish Government and Police Scotland, and brings together key stakeholders including social work, health and education, local authority representatives, expert practitioners, charities, researchers and academics.”