Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse Coming to Cornwall

Posted on: 15th September 2018

Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse is coming to Cornwall in November and this post has links to documents that will tell people exactly what it is about and how they can come forward to give their evidence.

The panel are experienced, skilled people who recognise that many victims of Child Sexual Abuse might have lived for years not daring to tell of their past experience. They want to encourage people to come forward whether that abuse happened in Cornwall or elsewhere. Although the project hopes that people will feel able to give evidence they recognise that it will be a huge difficult step for many to take so encourage people to talk with them even if not sure how much they are are ready to say or whether they want to give formal evidence. Anyone coming forward needs to be reassured that they will be in control and can decide not to go any further at any point.

The letter explaining the project

Re: ​Cornwall Will Be Heard
I am pleased to be writing to let you know that the Independent Inquiry Child Sexual Abuse will be bringing its Truth Project to Cornwall in November 2018. The project has been given the title Cornwall Will Be Heard​. Cornwall Will Be Heard will visit four locations in the week commencing 19th November 2018 in order to give Victims and Survivors the choice of sharing their experience of child sexual abuse either locally or further afield. Venues for the private Truth sessions are in the process of being commissioned.
In September this year an Inquiry-led awareness-raising campaign will be launched targeting key media outlets in Cornwall. This, we hope, will let local communities know that Truth is arriving in Cornwall and be persuasive in encouraging Victims and Survivors to come forward with their experience. However, we realise that local organisations working with Victims and Survivors will enable this to reach further. We would therefore like to discuss how we might work together on this to promote Truth across your networks.
Additionally, in September myself and other staff from the Inquiry will be meeting key stakeholders in Cornwall to discuss our plans for this initiative. We are interested in how you can contribute to these and appreciate you will have local knowledge that we do not. It is therefore anticipated this planning will be an interactive and ongoing process throughout the
lifetime of Cornwall Will Be Heard​. I will be in touch again shortly to arrange a visit to your organisation.
Of relevance to our plans is the fact the Inquiry published, on 25th June, a batch of 50 anonymised accounts of child sexual abuse shared by participants in the Truth ProjectThese give an important insight into both the institutional failures Victims and Survivors have experienced and the lifelong impact that abuse has had on their lives. They make for salutary reading, but also demonstrate the valuable insights that have been shared with the Truth Project to date and the reason why we wish to build upon this through projects such as Cornwall Will Be Heard​. The document is included as an attachment in the email
accompanying this letter.
Finally, please find enclosed a copy of Truth Project booklet which we hope will answer any queries you have about its key elements; this is also included as an attachment in the accompanying email to this letter. We hope you find this useful in promoting it with those you work with. More generally, should you have any queries regarding anything in the content of this letter please get in touch at: southwestinquiryoffice@iicsa.org.uk.
We very much look forward to working with you in bringing Cornwall Will Be Heard to the
Victims and Survivors of the county.
Yours Sincerely

David
David Poole
Head of Inquiry Office – South West England
Independent Inquiry Child Sexual Abuse

Truth Project Booklet