Following the publication of Provision of therapy for child witnesses prior to a criminal trial by the Home Office (2001), the Crown Prosecution Service and the Department of Health, Pauline Pearson shares some thoughts on the subject.

So your child finally breaks the silence barrier and tells you what's been happening in their life - they've been abused. You can hardly believe that it can be true except that you've had to cope with an angry, tearful, distant, distrustful stranger - your son or daughter! You want to make it all better for them but you can't. You wonder what will happen if social services and the police get involved. Hasn't your child, your teenage son or daughter, gone through enough already? Won't having to make a video interview or give a statement mess them up even more? Suppose they have to go to court and be cross-examined? To top it all, you've heard that your child cannot have any therapy or counselling until after the court case and how long is that going to be? Maybe it would be better to forget about making a statement rather than letting your child carry all this pain inside them?

So what's the answer?

It's not a question of either/or in regard to therapy. The new practice guidelines make it clear that whether or not a child receives therapy is decided by all the professionals involved in their welfare. Parents and carers, together with the child (if of sufficient age and understanding) will be consulted too. What is of prime concern is What would be in the child's best interests? Part of that will be What does the child want?

If it is quite clear that the child needs therapy and that having therapy might prejudice any criminal proceedings, then careful thought has to be given to the possibility of stopping proceedings. In other words it might be in the child's best interests not to go ahead with a trial.

If a child is able to wait for the therapy till after a court case then that might be preferable. If the court case is likely to prove quite distressing to the child or young person, they may need support and counselling later.

Any counselling before criminal proceedings take place needs to be undertaken extremely carefully in order to avoid contaminating evidence. Helping a child deal with their feelings or preparing for appearing in court may cause fewer problems but it still needs to be done by professionals with the “blessing” of the other professionals involved and the knowledge of police and CPS. The Crown Prosecution Service can be approached for guidance on the likely effects of a particular therapeutic approach on the evidence of a witness.

The therapist would also need to keep very careful records, whether written, taped or videoed, and these would have to be available for the court proceedings, if required. New information might be given to the therapist and it would be important before commencing therapy to ensure that the child or young person understands that anything of significance would have to be passed on to the authorities. There are always limits to confidentiality - hard though that may seem.

While we're talking about therapy for the child or young person, we mustn't forget the needs of parents and carers for support and, sometimes, therapy too.

Helping an adult to come to terms with what has happened to their child will, I believe, help their child feel more secure and able to cope with the situation. I believe that caring Christians can play a valuable part in getting alongside the distressed adults, supporting them practically and maybe going to court with them. You can make a difference!

Provision of Therapy for Child Witnesses Prior to a Criminal Trial Practice Guidelines, can be obtained from:
CPS Communications Branch, Tel: 0207 796 8442

or at: www.cps.gov.uk , www.doh.gov.uk/qualityprotects and www.homeoffice.gov.uk

Other resources include:

NSPCC and ChildLine (1998) The Young Witness Pack, NSPCC, London

NSPCC and ChildLine (2000) Giving Evidence What's it really like? NSPCC, London

Barnardo's 1996, So, you're going to be a witness. Barnardo's, London

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