History
Before devolution child protection legislation across the UK was made and passed by Westminster. Nations had their own laws but the framework set out by the different acts was broadly similar.
Since 1999 the process of devolution has seen power and responsibility transferred from Westminster to national governments in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
Legislation to prosecute people accused of child cruelty has been in force since the 1880s but it has taken a series of high profile child abuse deaths and subsequent inquiries to establish the child protection system we have today.
1945
The first formal child death inquiry in England was the Curtis Committee Report into the death of Dennis O'Neill, who was killed at the age of 12 by his foster father.
1973
The death of 7-year-old Maria Colwell led to the establishment of our modern child protection system.
1984
Further changes were prompted partly by the inquiries into several other child deaths, including 4-year-old Jasmine Beckford.
1989
The Children Act 1989 established the legislative framework for the current child protection system in England and Wales.
1995
The Children (Northern Ireland) Order 1995 and the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 established the legislative framework for the current child protection systems in Northern Ireland and Scotland.
2000
The death of 8-year-old Victoria Climbie led to Lord Laming’s report (2003) which led to sweeping changes to the way children's services were structured in England and Wales.
2001
The Children's Commissioner for Wales Act 2001 created the first children’s commissioner post in the UK.
2002
The deaths of 10-year-olds Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman in Soham led to the strengthening of legislation across the UK to protect children from adults who pose a risk to them.
2004
The Children Act 2004, informed by Lord Laming’s report, established a Children’s Commissioner in England (the last of the UK nations to appoint one); created Local Safeguarding Children's Boards (LSCBs) in England and Wales; and placed a duty on local authorities in England to appoint a director of children’s services and an elected lead member for children’s services, who is ultimately accountable for the delivery of services.
2006
Scotland the Minister for Children published a review of the Children’s Hearing System, entitled Getting it right for every child (Creegan, C., Henderson, G., and King, C., 2006), highlighting a dramatic increase in identified children with multiple needs.
2008
The death of 1-year-old Peter Connelly led to further reviews of social service care in England by Lord Laming, with the House of Commons debating the case.
2009
Lord Laming’s The protection of children in England: a progress report (2009), ordered following the Peter Connelly case, makes 58 recommendations for child protection reforms.
2010
The new Secretary of State for Education, Michael Gove, commissioned Professor Eileen Munro to conduct an independent review of child protection in England.
2010
Minister for Children and Families Tim Loughton announced that Local Safeguarding Boards in England should publish the overview report and executive summary of all case reviews initiated on or after 10 June 2010.
2011
Professor Munro’s report A child-centred system (2011) set out recommendations to “help to reform the child protection system from being over-bureaucratised and concerned with compliance to one that keeps a focus on children, checking whether they are being effectively helped, and adapting when problems are identified”.
The Safeguarding Board Act (Northern Ireland) 2011 set out the law for the creation of a new regional Safeguarding Board for Northern Ireland and the establishment of five Safeguarding Panels.
2012
Operation Yewtree was set up to investigate sexual abuse allegations against Jimmy Saville and others.
2013
The Independent review into child sexual exploitation in Rochdale examined the council’s response to issues around child sexual exploitation.
2013
A new version of Working Together to Safeguard Children was published in England, informed by the Munro review.
2014
The Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 provided Wales with its own legislative framework for social services for children and adults.
Under Section 145 it gives powers to Welsh Ministers to issue codes of practice providing guidance, objectives and requirements on local authorities’ provision of social services.
2015
The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse in England and Wales (IICSA) officially launched to consider the growing evidence of institutional failures to protect children from child sexual abuse.
The Children’s Services Co-operation Act (Northern Ireland) 2015 requires public authorities to contribute to the wellbeing of children and young people in regards to physical and mental health, learning and achievement and living conditions.
2016
The Football Association (FA) launched an internal review into child abuse following allegations of child abuse. The Scottish FA announced an independent inquiry.
2017
The Digital Economy Act 2017 extended protection from online pornography by allowing sites which display pornography to children to be blocked in the UK.
2018
An updated version of Working together to safeguard children (Department for Education, 2018) was published for England, replacing LSCBs with safeguarding partner arrangements.