The High Court will allow a Judicial Review of whether the UK government failed to act on key recommendations from the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse ‘IICSA’.

The legal challenge was brought by the Maggie Oliver Foundation, which argued that the government has not provided a clear timetable for implementing the recommendations proposed, after the inquiry examined how public and private institutions failed to protect children from sexual abuse. The inquiry, which made 20 recommendations in its final report in October 2022 and in May 2023, cost £200 million and took 7 years.

The foundation was established by Maggie Oliver, a former Greater Manchester Police detective. Oliver became widely known after speaking out about police failures in tackling grooming gangs. Her foundation has since campaigned for stronger action against child exploitation, and for the full implementation of the recommendations from the IICSA.

When the inquiry’s final report was published, the then-Home Secretary Suella Braverman said the Government needed to act on all but one of the recommendations.

Later, Yvette Cooper acknowledged that “far too little progress” had been made in actioning the inquiry’s recommendations.

The Independent Inquiry into Grooming Gangs is due to commence later this year, with Baroness Anne Longfield CBE appointed to chair the inquiry as part of a 3-person panel. The Inquiry will focus exclusively on grooming gangs and will openly ask how ethnicity, religion and culture impacted the response from the authorities and from the perpetrators. Baroness Longfield will instigate and oversee investigations in areas where it is suspected serious failures occurred, and the actions of the police, council, social services and other agencies will be examined. Any evidence that could support prosecution of perpetrators will be passed to the police. The victims and survivors will play an active role in the inquiry, and witnesses can be compelled to give evidence.

At the hearing on 5 March 2026, Mr Justice Kimblin said that “the protection of children was a core duty of each of us and our institutions, including our government institutions”. He allowed a judicial review into whether the government failed to meet the “legitimate expectation” that the findings of the child abuse inquiry should be actioned.

The judge rejected two specific legal challenges to the government’s decision on recommendations from the inquiry, raised by the foundation. One of these related to the lack of a unified national data set about child abuse. The judge ruled that decisions about how such policies should be implemented fall with the government’s responsibility – not the court’s. For the same reason, he also rejected a challenge relating to the law on whether courts can make decisions about children in care.

Switalskis welcome the decision of Mr Justice Kimblin and hope that the Government will now be held to account and these important recommendations will be actioned in full.

Support and Legal Advice

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For confidential legal advice, contact Amy Clowrey  by phone 01924 970 212  or email Amy.Clowrey@switalskis.com  , or visit our website  to make an enquiry.