A Christian parent’s guide to mandatory reporting: What’s going on and why it matters

Trigger Warning: This article contains information about child sexual abuse

You might have heard the phrase “mandatory reporting” popping up in the news or in Parliament recently, especially in relation to protecting children from abuse. But what does it actually mean? Who does it apply to? And more importantly, what do we as Christian parents need to know when it comes to the safety of our children and our wider church family? 

What is mandatory reporting? 

In simple terms, mandatory reporting means that people in ‘regulated activity’—like teachers, doctors, social workers and weekly youth leaders—could have a legal duty to tell the authorities if they know, suspect, or are told that a child is being sexually abused. 

Currently, for example, if your child’s group leader suspected or knew your child was being abused but chose not to report it, or to cover it up, they wouldn’t face any repercussions. Adding mandatory reporting to the law would change that.  

This is part of a bigger piece of work by the UK government to tackle child abuse after years of heartbreaking stories about abuse being missed or covered up. The idea is that if people are legally required to report concerns, fewer children will slip through the cracks.