NSPCC and government launch child abuse whistleblowing helpline
The NSPCC has joined forces with the home office to launch a whistleblowing helpline for employees to speak out about child protection failures.
The government has provided 拢500,000 to set up the service, which will be open Monday to Friday and includes a helpline as well as email support. It is designed for employees from any sector who may be afraid to raise concerns about the way their organisation is dealing with child abuse cases.
鈥淭oo often, people with concerns have kept silent because they have been fearful of the consequences for their jobs, and this can have devastating consequences for the children involved,鈥 said Peter Wanless, chief executive at the NSPCC. 鈥淎 feature of the child abuse scandals of recent years has been people who said they thought something wasn鈥檛 right but were unsure whether they could discuss concerns confidentially outside their organisation.鈥
Users of the new service will be offered advice about whistleblowing processes and be legally protected from any workplace discrimination as a result of their concerns, which will be passed on the relevant investigatory bodies. The service is also expected to highlight patterns of failure across the country.
鈥淪ome employers are making great strides in strengthening whistleblowing processes, but more can be done to encourage employees to report malpractice without fear of victimisation - particularly in relation to children where the cost of failure is so high,鈥 said Karen Bradley, minister for preventing abuse exploitation and crime. 鈥淣o one should be afraid to report concerns about failures in child protection.鈥