What action it is taking, following the findings of the independent national review published in September 2026, to improve the consistency…

The Scottish Government recognises the need to improve information sharing in cases of group-based child sexual abuse and exploitation (CSAE), including where risks or allegations cross local authority boundaries. The Independent National Review highlighted the challenges partners face in sharing information, however it also recognised strong practice through inter-agency referral discussions (IRDs) where agencies share information about child protection concerns and plan joint action to protect children and young people.Recognising the central role of IRDs in the child protection process, the Scottish Government has provided £468,000 this financial year to support the continued delivery of IRD training for professionals with child protection responsibilities in 2026-27.In addition, the Scottish Government has launched a CivTech challenge entitled "How can technology support multi-agency processes for the protection of children in Scotland?" The project aims to develop technical solutions for a national platform to support practitioners undertaking child protection processes, including IRDs, with the overarching goal of improving information sharing and ultimately outcomes for children. Further information is available here.Alongside this, work to improve CSAE data is being taken forward through the National CSAE Strategic Group Data Subgroup. The subgroup’s workplan includes analysing available CSAE data, improving the use of data to support prevention and early intervention, and strengthening CSAE data capture and quality.To further strengthen information sharing and the use of data across agencies, a Common Data Platform for Scotland is being developed through the Scottish Prevention Hub, a partnership between Public Health Scotland, Police Scotland and the Edinburgh Futures Institute. The platform aims to safely bring together data from key public services to support earlier intervention and more informed decision-making. CSAE has been identified as a core use case for the Proof of Concept phase.