A duty on all teachers, doctors, nurses and social workers to report child cases of female genital mutilation (FGM) to the police will come into force next week.
New legislation announced earlier this year make such disclosures mandatory and professionals who fail to report the illegal practice in under-18s could face the sack.
Under the new law, health and social-care professionals and teachers in England and Wales will be obliged to report all cases of known FGM in under-18s, whether it is disclosed by the victim or seen by the professional.
Failure to report cases within a month, unless there are “exceptional” safeguarding issues, could result in the professionals facing internal disciplinary action or referral to regulators, which could bar them from practice.
At a conference on Monday, Karen Bradley, minister for preventing abuse and exploitation, announced the legal obligation would begin on 31 October.
