Response to the letter of interim findings on Greater Manchester’s multi-agency complex safeguarding peer review process and the GMP Child Protection Inspection report

His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary, Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) have today (13 December) published a letter of interim findings for their inspection of Greater Manchester's multi-agency complex safeguarding peer review process.

They have called this process a ‘unique regional multi-agency collaboration' between the region's strategic safeguarding partners: Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), the ten Greater Manchester local authorities, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) and the Greater Manchester Integrated Care Board (NHS GM ICB).

The process allows peer reviewers at these organisations to review how cases of child sexual exploitation were handled across the system and share the learnings to improve the practice and processes across the different bodies.  These learnings directly help to raise potential concerns and protect our vulnerable children from criminal and sexual exploitation.

This letter is part of the final instalment of the independent assurance process aimed at assessing improvements made by Greater Manchester Police (GMP) , all the Greater Manchester councils, and local health services, and the effectiveness of multi-agency responses to child sexual exploitation (CSE).

The review, which was commissioned by Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, in 2017 seeks to provide assurance that the region's police force, councils and health bodies have the right culture and systems in place to protect children from sexual exploitation.

Letter of interim findings

While the final report is due in summer 2025, HMICFRS described the initial findings as ‘encouraging' and noted that the process largely meets its aims of using its findings to inform strategy and improve the work to safeguard children across the city-region.

It highlights the commitment of the strategic safeguarding partners to the process, and the support from leaders and practitioners in the region. That safeguarding practice has improved is seen as evidence of the process' effectiveness.

The review also shows areas where the process could be strengthened by including contributions from children, parents and carers, expanding the partnership to areas such as education and ensuring tools and processes are consistent across the different organisations.

National Child Protection Inspection

HMICFRS have also published their national child protection inspection of Greater Manchester Police, which assesses the forces performance in all areas of safeguarding children at risk.

The force was rated Good in two areas and Adequate in the remaining three, with the areas to improve including online child sexual exploitation and staff understanding the wellbeing support options available to them.

The force is described as having strong oversight of its performance, practice and the quality of service it provides.  HMICFRS found that this strong leadership and governance, has had a positive effect on outcomes for children and gives several examples of how this has been the case. It also notes the strong partnership working between GMP and the wider safeguarding system in GM.

It also sets out the changes that have been made since 2021, including the reintroduction of child protection investigation units on each district, and the plan that was introduced to ensure these units had the right numbers of officers and staff and that they all had the required training.  Previous review reports clearly showed that resource levels in the past were too low and training inadequate.

Whilst effective leadership is crucial, there is clear evidence in the report that this has made its way to the front line.  Inspectors found that operational officers and staff all understood the need for them to be child centred and that the protection of children was a priority for the force.

Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, said:

“From the very beginning, I said that the main aim of this review was to give the public confidence that Greater Manchester has the right culture and best possible systems in place to protect children from child sexual exploitation.

“What HMICFRS has published today is a significant step in the right direction to answer that question.

“Having read the report and letter in full, I am firmly of the view that the Greater Manchester system is in a demonstrably different and far stronger place today than it was in the days covered by the previous reviews.  They provide clear evidence that leaders and practitioners have positively responded to what has gone before and that they are committed to going further.

“This is encouraging to see but we cannot be complacent. There are areas identified for further improvement and more reports to come before my question can be fully laid to rest.

“So today, I am saying to the public of Greater Manchester that you can be confident that the Greater Manchester system is in a much stronger place to protect and safeguard children at risk of criminal and sexual exploitation.

“However, I will remain relentless in my determination to ensure Greater Manchester is as safe as it can possibly be for our children.  Today marks a juncture but that work will never conclude.”

Chief Constable Stephen Watson, said:

“This report recognises that the GMP of today is one that affords child protection the priority that it deserves; it puts victims at the heart of what we do; it works effectively with partners to safeguard children, and it has developed a well-trained, committed, and determined workforce that specialises in this work.

“What remains of the utmost importance however is that victims, survivors, and vulnerable people receive a first-class response every time. In this I recognise that we still have further improvements to make. HMIC make helpful recommendations in this regard which we have readily embraced and have already acted upon.

The protection of our children will remain a key priority for GMP, and I am determined that we, together with our partners, will continue to work hard at getting better – those most vulnerable in our communities deserve nothing less.”

Next steps

Following the airing on 3 July 2017 of the BBC documentary, The Betrayed Girls, about child sexual exploitation in Greater Manchester, the Mayor announced he wanted to assure himself and the public that everything possible has been done to protect children today and in the future, and prevent it from happening again.

Since then, independent reviews into non-recent CSE in Manchester (Part One) and Oldham (Part Two) have been completed, and Rochdale (Part Three) reported at the end of January, this year.

Part Four looks at the current handling of CSE. Led by HMICFRS, supported by Ofsted and the CQC, it is a deep and wide-ranging review of the effectiveness of current practice in handling child sexual exploitation in Greater Manchester.

The full Child Protection Inspection Report and interim findings for the peer review process come ahead of further full reports due in summer 2025. 

A HMICFRS report covering the:

• Effectiveness of the GM complex safeguarding peer review process – final report
• Effectiveness of GMP Operations Green Jacket, Sherwood and Exmoor – investigations into non-recent CSE and which are related to the previous 3 CSE Review reports
• Effectiveness of GMP's response to victims and survivors of child sexual exploitation who have been identified through the work of the independent review team previously appointed by Greater Manchester Combined Authority, and which were detailed in the Part 3 CSE Assurance Review report

There will also be an Ofsted report on the effectiveness of local authority children's service practice relating to child sexual and criminal exploitation for all ten councils in Greater Manchester.

Deputy Mayor for Safer and Stronger Communities, Kate Green, said:

“I welcome the reports and thank HMICFRS, Ofsted and the CQC for the work they have done.

“There are further reports to come next year, that will shine a light even further onto the outcomes of this comprehensive review.

“Today's reports are clear that, while good progress has been made, there is still more to do to ensure that the whole GM system is good in every respect at protecting our children. That work has already begun, and will continue under my oversight on behalf of the Mayor.

“The first three reports commissioned by the Mayor laid bare the horrific abuse experienced by children in Rochdale, Oldham and Manchester and the failure of services, including GMP, to protect them, between 2005 and 2014.

“We cannot undo the harm those children suffered, and the trauma many continue to experience as adults. But we can and must ensure that no child growing up in GM today or in the future will be failed by our public services in the way those children were.

“That will be my priority in the coming months and years, and all of us are determined and wholeheartedly committed to achieving that goal.”