NSPCC Northern Ireland Policy and Research Unit: NSPCC Public Policy in Northern Ireland : NSPCC inform

Navigation menu list for sections above the current page: NSPCC Home; NSPCC inform; Public policy

Northern Ireland: Responses to Northern Ireland government consultations; Briefings; guidance

Northern Ireland Policy and Research Unit

NSPCC Public Policy in Northern Ireland

The Northern Ireland Policy and Research Unit is one of over 20 services and projects operated by the NSPCC across the province.

Download the NSPCC Northern Ireland Policy and Research Unit flyer (PDF, 282KB)

The work of our team includes:

leading the NSPCC's interface with Northern Ireland (NI) government departments, building and maintaining key relationships with officials and providing responses to government consultations

working in co-operation with statutory and voluntary organisations to improve links and facilitate better understanding between the two sectors. We have recently expanded our team through the Interchange Programme by creating a secondment opportunity for a member of staff from the Northern Ireland Civil Service
actively promoting Northern Ireland policy input into local and national media activities and campaigns
acting as a public affairs interface with elected representatives and political parties, through briefings to Northern Ireland MPs, Peers and MLAs .

Research

A dedicated research capacity enables us to carry out relevant, locally-based research on policy issues affecting children and young people to complement and assist in our influencing activities. Our Northern Ireland research agenda is guided by the NI Division Research Strategy 2006-08 and involves conducting, commissioning and facilitating relevant research.

Our on-going projects include:

Physical discipline study. Research on physical discipline has been carried out in collaboration with the Northern Ireland Children's Commissioner's Office and Barnardo's NI. This research involved an in-depth review of published journal articles between 2000-2005 and focused on the prevalence of physical discipline, the characteristics of families who use it, the impact of this form of discipline on children and young people and the views and attitudes of parents, professionals and children and young people. A survey into the practice of physical discipline, attitudes towards it and perceived outcomes with a representative sample (1000) of parents of children aged 0-10 in Northern Ireland was also commissioned as part of the work. The final report is likely to be available early 2007.

Key areas in which we intend to develop future research include:

Attrition in the child sexual abuses cases in the Northern Ireland Criminal Justice System.
The provision of therapeutic services for maltreated children in Northern Ireland - service mapping and evaluation.

Our completed research projects/publications include:

An examination of local, national and international arrangements for the mandatory reporting of child abuse: the implications for Northern Ireland
By Isla Wallace and Lisa Bunting (August 2007).
Key child protection statistics in Northern Ireland
An overview of official Northern Ireland statistics on key areas of child protection.
Females who sexually offend against children: responses of the child protection and criminal justice systems
An exploration of female sex offending against children and professional responses within the UK.
Reviewing child deaths: learning from the American experience
Bunting, L. and Reid, C.
Child Abuse Review 14(2), 2005: 82-96.
A review of the international literature on child deaths review teams and processes.
A review of the social research literature on shaken baby syndrome.
Assessment of children in need in Northern Ireland (PDF, 215KB)
Bunting, L.
NSPCC, 2004.
Child protection in A&E departments.
Parenting programmes: the best available evidence
Bunting, L.
Child Care in Practice 10(4), 2004: 327-343.

Policy

The unit takes a lead role in public policy development with government departments, using research to ensure its advice is evidence-based.

Public affairs

The Northern Ireland Policy and Research Unit promotes the external policies of the NSPCC and seeks to influence attitudes, legislation and policy development with elected representatives and the Government in ways that help end cruelty to children.

Recent work

Vetting and safeguarding. The unit has taken a lead role in advising Government on the legislation and policy relating to vetting. This includes the need to implement Part V of the Police Act 1997, as well as Protection of Children and Vulnerable Adults (NI) Order 2003. We have also campaigned for cross-border improvements and advised government departments on safeguarding policies and procedures.
Sexual offences legislation. The unit has campaigned for a review of sexual offences legislation in Northern Ireland to bring us in line with the Sexual Offences Act 2003 covering England and Wales.
Structural arrangements for child protection. The team has been working on a range of initiatives including new child protection policies and legislation, improved arrangements for the management and assessment of sexual and violent offenders, and child death review arrangements.
Physical punishment. We have championed the need for legal reform in this area to give children equal protection from assault under the law.

Download the NSPCC Northern Ireland Policy and Research Unit flyer (PDF, 282KB)

Please contact us if you require further information about the NSPCC Northern Ireland Policy and Research Unit.