The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse revealed the shocking extent of institutional child sexual abuse (CSA) in Australia. Across tens of thousands of pages, 409 recommendations were made in the aim of preventing CSA and making institutions safer for children.
One of the key recommendations for the Federal Government was the development and implementation of a national strategy to prevent child sexual abuse, to be overseen by a newly established National Office for Child Safety. This strategy, to be finalised in September 2021, focuses on preventing CSA through education and awareness, offender prevention interventions, and giving victims and survivors of CSA access to the right support at the right time.
The National Strategy will be a 10-year, whole-of-nation framework to establish a coordinated and consistent approach to prevent and better respond to CSA in Australia. In its development the National Office for Child Safety is consulting with peak bodies, victims and survivors of CSA, advocates, clinical practitioners, child protection experts, non-government organisations, academics and institutions.
A psychological perspective
In May 2021, the APS made a submission to the national office to ensure the inclusion psychological expertise and knowledge in the development of the National Strategy (bit.ly/3j3D8j8). CSA is a critical issue for psychologists, who work with victims and survivors, as well as offenders, and work to promote child safety within the community.
The APS submission focused on ensuring evidence-based practice was at the heart of the National Strategy. It is vital to improve the way CSA is conceptualised, understood and responded to by all members of the community through public education and awareness campaigns. For example, emphasising statistics that many CSA offences occur within families and family networks.
To empower victims and survivors there needs to be a focus on treatment. Effective treatment is a prevention strategy in and of itself. In the absence of appropriate intervention, the intergenerational nature of CSA will continue. While targeted professional interventions are available, community uptake would be enhanced by reducing financial barriers and increased awareness.
Although many mental health professionals are competent and equipped to provide these support services, there is a need for standardised education and training to ensure practice is evidence-based and in line with current guidelines, recognising effective treatment for children and young people across all levels of risk.
While there is community consensus on the need to support victims and survivors of CSA, it is vital that the National Strategy also focuses on offender prevention and intervention. To increase the likelihood of disclosure when CSA occurs within families, it is important for children, young people and their families to understand that offenders will be supported and offered rehabilitation. Evidence-based, sensitive and trauma-informed approaches are critical to both identify and intervene when early warning signs are present.
Summary of APS recommendations
- Expanding the National Strategy’s vision and objective statements to promote the broader wellbeing of every child and young person.
- Recognising the various community settings in which child safety is paramount, considering treatment as well as prevention, to address the needs of both survivors and offenders including their immediate support networks.
- Including clearly measurable targets across the lifespan of the National Strategy to ensure success.
- Considering treatment as a crucial component of prevention and available to the community.
- Broadening the scope of relevant contributors at all stages of the National Strategy design, implementation and evaluation.
- Consulting with the APS and other peak bodies in the delivery of all six values covering roles related to education, development of resources and guidelines, intervention and treatment, and research.
- Aligning prevention strategies with treatment initiatives to break cycles of CSA and achieve the National Strategy’s objective(s) more quickly and effectively.
- Seeking to collaborate with a range of stakeholders to promote a broader understanding of the causes and impacts of child sexual abuse and inform more specialised interventions to support all impacted individuals.
- Establishing partnerships and networks between government, peak bodies for health practitioners and educators, along with other community-based service providers and people with lived experience.
- Providing ongoing access to support for people with lived experience during consultation processes to prevent further harm.
- Implementing ongoing feedback and evaluation processes to ensure the accuracy, relevance and appropriateness of various initiatives informed by stakeholder input.
- Utilising the experience and expertise of the APS across the design, implementation and evaluation of the National Strategy to provide a psychological perspective on the circumstances of both those who experience, and those who commit, CSA.
The content of this publication is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional psychological, psychiatric or medical advice. Support services in your state or territory can be found here. The APS Position Statement on Child Sexual Abuse and Psychology can be found here.