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GUIDANCE ON INTERVIEWING CHILD WITNESSES IN SCOTLAND - Supporting Child Witnesses Guidance Pack
PART FIVE SPECIAL NEEDS
This is an addendum to the guidance set out in parts 3 and 4.
116 During the pre-interview planning phase any special needs should be identified. These may result from disabilities, sensory impairments or illnesses. These special needs should have been highlighted through preliminary checks with health professionals at the referral stage and where appropriate should be further clarified by contacting those professionals working directly with the child and family, e.g. the primary health care team, education professionals, community paediatrician, child psychiatrist, psychologist or therapists.
117 Special needs may also pertain to very young children, those with first languages other than English, and ethnicity.
118 This part of the guidance does not seek to cover all the circumstances or factors which may arise in connection with special needs. Instead, it focuses on issues around interviewing.
Disabilities and illnesses
119 Disabilities and illnesses vary widely in terms of type of impairment (e.g. physical, sensory, learning, social, communication), severity, and so on therefore interviewers should usually seek specialist advice from teams familiar with that specific disability and child and family. These people can advise on how to tailor the interview - including the physical setting - to the child's particular needs to make the experience as suitable and as comfortable as possible for all involved. Contact a Family, 9 a UK charity, is one source which can provide support, advice and information on a variety of disabilities, disorders, and further contacts, which professionals might find invaluable.
120 More time will be needed during the planning phase to gather and assess information from all relevant sources. If a need for a facilitator/intermediary is identified, additional time will have to be set aside to ensure they are clearly briefed about their role and remit for the interview. This will require some flexible scheduling, not only for planning meetings but also for the interview itself.
121 When looking at the child's disabilities, the focus should always be: "So what are their abilities?" Even if the child cannot communicate through the usual communication channels, this should not prevent investigative agencies from attempting to obtain their account of the event (i.e. the child should not be automatically excluded from the investigative process).
122 Planning interview for a child with special needs:
- Ideally, the facilitator/intermediary should be independent of the child (e.g. not a family member or another witness. However, in some cases, for instance with a very young child with an impairment, sometimes the only person with whom the child will, and can, communicate successfully is the person to whom they are closest and with whom they are most familiar, i.e. a parent) and have adequate training. They should be clear as to their interview role.
- If communication boards or signing are to be used, interviewers should ensure that they can provide the appropriate vocabulary that the investigative team may need to use.
- The interview room should take place in a suitable setting - i.e. one able to accommodate any equipment (e.g. a wheelchair), free from distractions and noise, have good lighting, etc. Seating arrangements should accommodate the needs of the child.
- The facilitator/intermediary should be introduced to the child and take full part in rapport building. However, the child should be made aware that the police officer or social worker is the lead interviewer and that all responses should be directed towards them, not the facilitator/intermediary.
- Instructions may have to be broken down into smaller points and the length of questions should also be adjusted accordingly.
- Children with learning difficulties may not always respond to open-ended questions. That being the case, begin with a specific question and then follow it with an open question. Interviewers should still take care to avoid leading the child or influencing their responses.
- With certain conditions, e.g. deafness, children may struggle with abstract concepts (including "trust", "yesterday", "tomorrow", "hot", "cold", "soft") therefore the investigative team will need to consider carefully how to frame questions.
- Children with special needs may have a shorter attention span, require more breaks and shorter sessions.
Very young children
123 Many of the points that apply to children with special needs may be relevant when interviewing very young children. Additional considerations for this group include the fact that very young children can be very attached to familiar figures such as a parent. They can be distrustful of strangers and become distressed or avoid contact when left alone in rooms with unfamiliar adults. Unfamiliar surroundings can heighten their distress. Furthermore, pre-schoolers are more used to interacting with adults in play situations rather than serious formal sessions so, again, building rapport will be essential and more time may be needed when explaining the conventions of the investigative interview.
When the child's first language is not English
124 A child should, wherever possible, be interviewed in their first language (or, if bilingual, the one of their preference). Only in special circumstances, i.e. where an interpreter is not available and there is an immediate need to talk to the child, should an exception be made. Interviewers should be aware that some children who use English everyday, for example at school, may revert to using their native language for certain terms, e.g. parts of the body.
125 If an interpreter is required, then they should be someone independent of the child's family and community. They should be fully briefed as to their role and remit during the interview and to the principles of the phased interview. The interpreter should also have an understanding of the child's cultural context as well as being able to speak the language. Further they should be approved for court use and be suitably vetted.
126 The interpreter should be fully aware that they must translate exactly the interviewer's questions and the child's responses. They should avoid making inferences. Moreover, interpreters should not add in or omit anything; just report what has been said.
127 If the child has any preferences regarding the interpreter's gender or ethnicity, these should be respected and accommodated wherever possible. This applies for all interview personnel (and also any forensic medical examinations).
Ethnicity
128 There may be certain barriers to communication other than language. Some children from asylum-seeking families, for example, may have had negative experiences with the authorities dealing with their application (e.g. discrimination, racism, etc.) and may therefore be mistrustful of professional interviewers. Such issues should be treated with due care and consideration.
129 When interviewing children from different backgrounds and heritage, interviewers might encounter beliefs and values that are different to their own. However, interviewers should never impose any ethnocentric attitudes during an interview. The child's culture and customs must always be respected. The following are some points to consider:
- Certain rituals or customs might affect the scheduling of the interview (e.g. prayer times, holy days, fasting).
- Behaviour towards authority figures can vary from culture to culture. In some cultures it is inappropriate for a child to question anything an authority figure says. In this situation, it is essential that the interviewer makes clear the ground rules described earlier (e.g. where the child should correct the interviewer if they make a mistake).
- Beliefs and practices regarding child rearing can also vary from culture to culture. Interviewers should respect that and avoid passing judgement.
- The issue of shame can be a major determinant of how co-operative the child and their family are with regards the investigation (a child disclosing allegations of abuse might fear retribution from their family and the community).
When the child witness becomes a suspect
130 In the course of the investigative interview, the child may impart some information that implicates them in the commission of a criminal offence. If the interviewers conclude that the child has become a suspect, and not just a victim or witness, the interview may be terminated. This should not happen abruptly but once the child has finished any statement they wish to make. Interviewers should always remember to end with Closure.
131 In such circumstances, a further interview will normally be conducted relating to the child's involvement in the newly emerged criminal offence, following established police procedures.
132 It is impossible to know exactly how an interview will unfold. Nevertheless, it is wise to anticipate such outcomes in the Planning Phase, and interviewers should attempt to have contingency plans prepared. The balance between the child's needs and welfare and that of justice must still be borne in mind. If the child's account as a victim/witness is considered the main priority and the interview is to continue, it should proceed in accordance with this guidance.
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