Specialist Crime

Child Abuse Investigation Command

The Child Abuse Investigation Command investigates a variety of crimes against children. They work in partnership with colleagues from other agencies, such as children social care, health and education, to reduce the risk of harm to children and young people across the capital.

They also work closely with partner agencies to increase opportunities for London's diverse communities to contribute to safeguarding children.

The command has a range of specialist teams, covering different aspects of child abuse investigation:

• There are 17 Child Abuse Investigation Teams covering the 32 London boroughs. The teams investigate allegations of abuse against children, under 18 years of age, involving family members, carers or people in a position of trust. This includes allegations of physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse and neglect.
  
  Find your nearest Child Abuse Investigation Team.
• The Major Investigation Team investigate child homicides and complex child abuse cases.
• The Serious Case Team investigate serious assaults against children.
• The Paedophile Unit specialises in combating the activities of those who manufacture and distribute indecent images of children. They also tackle child abuse on the Internet by targeting the activities of paedophiles online. This includes dealing with the grooming of potential victims.
• The Paladin Team safeguard children entering and leaving the country at all London ports including railway stations and airports. In particular, the team investigate child trafficking.
  

Police Family Disclosure Protocol

The Police Family Disclosure Protocol provides timely advance notice to police of the existence of family law proceedings, and the level of police information sought. The protocol encourages police and parties involved, including children social care, to share information at the earliest opportunity when family cases are contemplated.

The protocol has the support of The Judiciary, the Ministry of Justice and the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO).

The point of contact on Child Abuse Investigation Teams for requests is the detective inspector for the team.

Download the Police Family Disclosure Protocol in PDF format (306Kb)