[MindfulMoment]

For those of you in the UK, if you tell your T about past abuse and your abuser is still alive, does your T have to report it? Like, are they mandated to?

MM

[JaneTennison1]

How old are you? I'm not sure if that makes a difference.

[ThisWayOut]

I'm not seeing a specific mandated reporting law for the UK. It may be best to ask your T hypothetically about that. Maybe phrase it in terms of what would prompt T to break confidentiality? If your T doesn't mention abuse, then you could ask specifically about abuse situations.
I know in the US, it's only mandated for elder, child (anyone under 18), and "disabled persons"...

[divine1966]

I am not in UK but just my 2 cents. I am a mandated reporter for minors. It is no matter if they are my students or not. I would think therapists would be mandated to report with minors. Is this therapy for a minor? I doubt it needs to be reported for adults because some people make stuff up o guess. I wonder if anyone responds who knows the answer would be interesting to know

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[SoupDragon]

It would depend I think on risk to others. If your T thinks you are at risk and under 18, there may be a duty of care to report. Also if you are over 18 but from the information, your T thinks someone else is at risk from the person they may report.

I had concerns about a family member may be abusing others and my T worked with me to empower me to do something it terms of reporting my concerns.

I also don't think a T would do something behind your back and would discuss it with you.

[Nammu]

I think it depends on when the abuse happeded, if it is still ongoing and how old the person is. Seems like it's a judgment call if it's not actively happening at this time and whether the victims are still in danger.

I'd ask the T out front what the answer is if it is keeping you from sharing stuff you need to work on

[Willowleaf]

I am in the uk and when I work with children I have to report it. But you should know as it is one of the first things I say when setting up boundaries even with small children. My own t told me she has to report if I am going to hurt someone else. Not just thinking but actually planning to do it, but not anything that happened to me. Hope this makes sense.

[waggiedog]

Hello there and yes, I'm in the UK. I def go along with what others here have said and discuss this important issue with your T. That way you'll know where you stand. Also as most have mentioned here, it depends on your age group I'd imagine. The only sure way, and to put your mind at rest, is to ask outright. I know there's a duty of care to minors but that doesn't automatically mean your privacy will be at risk.
I hope you get to resolve this as it's much more beneficial to be able to be open with you T in order to be helped. xxxxxxxxxxxxx

I asked my T this. I'm from the UK.
If it's something that happened to me, no. I'd she felt minors were in danger, yes. It's her legal responsibility.

[Merecat]

There's no legal requirement to report abuse in the UK. Some people are required to by virtue of their employment, eg teachers and social workers but we don't have mandated reporters in the way other countries do. The position is further complicated by there being different legislation across the 4 nations. A lot will depend on how you access counselling, generally speaking people in private practice will hold more confidential than if you access counselling through your local authority.

Your counsellor should have fully explained their position re confidentiality to you when you started working with them but in the UK I would always ask because different people will hold different boundaries depending on their levels if risk tolerance.

yes, my T had to report my past abuse - this was because I was underage. however, this does NOT mean you have to press charges. i had to speak to police and told them i didn't want to press charges.

[divine1966]

Originally Posted by Merecat

There's no legal requirement to report abuse in the UK. Some people are required to by virtue of their employment, eg teachers and social workers but we don't have mandated reporters in the way other countries do. The position is further complicated by there being different legislation across the 4 nations. A lot will depend on how you access counselling, generally speaking people in private practice will hold more confidential than if you access counselling through your local authority.


Your counsellor should have fully explained their position re confidentiality to you when you started working with them but in the UK I would always ask because different people will hold different boundaries depending on their levels if risk tolerance.

You don't have mandated reporters? How about teachers? School social workers? We definitely have that

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[MindfulMoment]

She did tell me about confidentiality when we first started, but I can't remember exactly. I'm over 18. I know it sounds ridiculous, but I'm pretty protective of my abusers because they make up important parts of my life. I don't want to tell her stuff and them get in trouble.

[SoupDragon]

Re: UK Position

“The current statutory framework and government guidance makes very clear that decisions on whether to report concerns and allegations of child abuse to external agencies is discretionary, it is not mandatory. The worst that can happen to a person who fails to report an allegation or concern is that when the truth comes out, often many years later, that person may be disciplined by the professional body to which he or she belongs"

There are proposals to change this and for mandatory reporting to be introduced following a significant case involving a celebrity.

[SoupDragon]

I know of someone who was abused by her father. She did not report the abuse until many years later he started to abuse her daughter (his grand daughter), so sometimes through reporting we can protect others. However I totally understand the obstacles to this when it is such a close relationship with someone who is a parent both in terms of misplaced loyalty and shame.