Phizzy - The investigation referred to above is by the Charities Commission and is very toothless in this particular area in that it can only act on breaches of Charity Law.
Laws can be changed! A couple of years ago there was a U.K. petition for parliament to revoke the WTBTS charity status. It was too narrow in scope. IMHO it should have required parliament to change the charitable law to promote and protect UK citizen's basic human rights.
Why can't Brits petition parliament to revise charitable laws to require charitable organizations to promote basic societal requirements like create and implement effective child protection practices, promote critical thinking instead of using "undue influence" to control members, and promote tolerance - not hatred and discrimination? To be an EU member countries promise not to infringe on basic human right that include freedom of thought. Why can't U.K. law require charitable organizations to do the same.
People can think – organizations can’t! When people act contrary to the law, they are held accountable. If charitable laws are changed and an organization’s practices are contrary to the law, then the organization and its leaders should be held accountable.
Effective policies to protect children from sexual abuse would include:
- Background checks of members caring for children and in authority positions supervising activities involving children;
- Reporting all suspected criminal acts to police ASAP and before reporting them to the organization’s legal department;
- Requiring parents or at least two non-related and opposite-sex adults supervise an organization’s activities when children are present; and
- Organizations must not promote ostracizing members to other members for any reason.
Peace be with you and everyone, who you love,
Robert