Failing to report or protect children from sexual crimes
Laws targeting sexual offences against children
Learn about laws making it a crime not to report sexual offending against children and, within institutions, not to protect a child from sexual abuse.
Failing to report sexual offences against children
If you believe a child is experiencing sexual abuse by another adult, you must report it unless you have a reasonable excuse. If you don’t have a reasonable excuse, not reporting the abuse is a crime.
Failing to protect children from sexual offences
It is a crime in institutional settings for certain people not to protect a child from a known risk of sexual offending.