Introduction
The internet has become a significant tool in the distribution of indecent photographs/pseudo photographs of children. Internet chatrooms, discussion forums and bulletin boards are used as ameans of contacting children with a view to grooming them for innapropriate or abusive relationships, which may include requests to make and transmit pornographic images of themselves or to perfom sexual acts live in front of a web cam.
Contacts made intially in a chat room are likely to be carried on via e-mail, instant messaging services, mobile phone or text messaging. There are now criminal offences in the grooming of children.
There is also growing concern about the exposure of children to innapropriate material via interactive communication technology – e.g. adult pronography and/or obscene material. Children themselves can engage in text bullying and use mobile phone cameras to capture violent assaults of other children for circulation.
Referrals
There is evidence to suggest that people found in possession (that is having downloaded) photographs/psuedo images of children are likely to be involved directly in abusing children. Therefore when someone is discovered to have placed or acessed such material on the internet, the police should be informed and will normally consider the likelihood that the individual is involved in the active abuse of children, in many cases as part of a mutli-agency assessment.
Where a child, family, or adult in question is already known to Children’s Social Care, a referral about the concerns should be made to the Duty Officer in the Referral and Assessment Team, or to the child’s Social Worker, if known.
The individuals’ access to children will need to be established, within the family, employment and in other settings, and consideration given to the impact upon their current employment, under the Managing Allegations guidance (see below).
Managing Allegations Guidance
There is new guidance in the management of allegations in relation to staff and volunteers in all organisation and agencies. Where a person is found or there are concerns that they have been accessing child abuse images whether or not they have children of their own, there will need to be consideration of the risks they pose to children within their employment, volunteering and leisure activities, by the Police and the Local Authority Designated Officer. Detailed Guidance is available on the South West Shared Procedures website – www.swcpp.org.uk.
Strategy Meeting
Where there are particular concerns about specific children, or due to the nature of their employment/activities, a Strategy Meeting with the Police, Social Care and where relevant the Local Authority Designated Officer for managing allegations will be arranged. Where appropriate S47 enquiries will be undertaken in respect of any child/ren and a Core Assessment and Child Protection Conference where relevant will be held to consider the risks to the child, and any others.
The police will also consider appropriate notification to the Internet Watch Foundation of concerns about child abuse images and other illegal materials on the internet. In addition the age and origin of the images must be considered in order to establish if a child is currently being abused. If this is established, then the child/ren would need to be identified and S.47 enquiries initiated.
The Police are able to interrogate computers and produce evidence of its use as part of their investigations into alleged child abuse. Therefore honestly held suspicions, based in fact about such use, should also be referred to the Police.
Training, Support and Advice
The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP – www.ceop.org.uk) provides training and education programmes to all agencies on the safe use of the internet and the protection of children, including the ‘thinkUknow’ education programme to children at Key stage 3 and 4. CEOP has also produced good practice guidance for parents available from their website.
The British Educational Communications and Technology Agency (BECTA – www.becta.org.uk), works with the Home Office and the ICT industry to raise awareness about the safe use of intractive communication technologies by children.