Harmful sexual behaviour: learning from case reviews
Summary of risk factors and learning for improved practice around harmful sexual behaviour
Published case reviews since 2018 highlight that harmful sexual behaviour (HSB) should be recognised as a potential indicator of abuse and that sometimes this can be challenging for professionals to recognise and respond to.
Professionals such as practitioners or those who work in foster care or education, should work together to look for the reasons behind a child's behaviour, provide them with tailored support and consider appropriate safeguarding responses.
The learning emphasises the importance of:
- all adults working or volunteering with children being trained to recognise and respond to abuse and neglect
- using a child-centred approach that considers the complex needs and individual lived experiences of all children and families involved
- carrying out holistic, multi-agency assessments that assess the different needs of children and take wider contextual information into account.
Browse our full series of learning from case reviews briefings
Our series of thematic briefings highlight the learning from case reviews conducted when a child dies, or is seriously harmed, as a result of abuse or neglect. Each briefing focuses on a different topic or learning for specific sectors, pulling together key risk factors and practice recommendations.
More about case reviews
We work with local safeguarding partners to ensure that learning from case reviews can be accessed and shared at a local, regional and national level.
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