Independent Inquiry Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) Recommendation 4 Child Protection Public Awareness Campaign

31 December feels like the right moment to pause and reflect.

I’ve been running the SEE IT. SAY IT. SORT IT. child protection public awareness campaign since late November — posting every day from then, through the festive period until now.

I could write a post every day for the whole of 2026 & beyond.

But I think most people have got the gist.

What this campaign has reinforced — again and again — is this:

• Child sexual abuse is still widely misunderstood
• Denial remains one of the biggest barriers to protection
• Abuse hides in familiar places and trusted relationships
• Risk increases when routine safeguards disappear
• Children often try to tell — but adults don’t always hear
• Silence, minimisation and institutional caution continue to fail children

IICSA was clear about these issues in 2022. It was also clear about what was needed next as part of its package of recommendations : a sustained public awareness campaign.

That still hasn’t been delivered nationally.

It is needed now more then ever….with their target of halving #VAWG – do we even know the metrics?

Over the past few weeks, government has announced and launched several major initiatives — including the Grooming Gangs Inquiry, the Child Protection Authority consultation, and the updated #VAWG Strategy.

These matter.

And they deserve careful, informed scrutiny.

Throughout January, I’ll be picking up on each of these in turn — looking at what’s being proposed, what’s missing, how they align (or don’t) with IICSA’s findings, and what they mean in practice for children and survivors.

Then, in February, I’ll return to SEE IT. SAY IT. SORT IT. during Sexual Abuse & Sexual Violence Awareness Week, shifting the focus back to:
• prevalence
• long-term impact
• what has changed
• what hasn’t
• and what still urgently needs to happen

For now, thank you to those who’ve read, reflected, shared — and quietly taken this in.

Awareness is not the end goal.

Action is.
SEE IT. SAY IT. SORT IT.

#ActOnIICSA #SeeItSayItSortIt
#ImplementIICSARecommendations

If you would like to support our work here is the link www.justgiving.com/s-o-b