Adults are afraid to interact with other people’s children because they fear being labelled a paedophile, according to a report published today by the thinktank Civitas.
The report, Licensed To Hug, calls for regulation and vetting to be relaxed because the “dramatic escalation of child protection measures has succeeded in poisoning the relationship between the generations.”
In the past, the report says, adults would have routinely helped children in distress or rebuked those who were misbehaving but now think twice about the consequences. Instead, there was now “an atmosphere of mistrust”.
The problem is only likely to get worse, says the study, with the introduction next year of the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) which will increase the number of adults vetted before being allowed to work with children to over 11 million – a quarter of the adult population.
From October 2009, the ISA will require any adult who comes into contact with children or vulnerable adults through their work or in voluntary groups to be vetted.
The ISA will also provide a constantly updated list of people who are not allowed to work with children or vulnerable adults.
