An independent inspection of adult safeguarding arrangements across Northern Ireland's criminal justice system has identified shortcomings that weaken protections for adults most at risk of abuse, exploitation and neglect.

The Acting Chief Inspector of Criminal Justice in Northern Ireland, James Corrigan, said urgent steps were required to ensure adults at risk of harm or in need of protection receive timely access to justice and the support they are entitled to. "As a society, adult safeguarding is a fundamental responsibility and simply put, it is everyone's business," said Mr Corrigan.

"Yet, we all know of cases and organisations where people have suffered physical and emotional abuse, and when neglect went unreported for too long. Financial exploitation has also become more evident and prevalent, both within and outside families.

"Too often efforts at prevention were either insufficient or absent, and the reporting of alleged crimes has increasingly involved police investigations and prosecutions through the Courts," he said.

At the time the inspection fieldwork was carried out, Northern Ireland did not have a statutory basis for adult safeguarding, in contrast to Scotland, England and Wales. Inspectors reported that the regional Adult Safeguarding Prevention and Protection in Partnership policy, developed by the Departments of Health and Justice, continued to guide operational practice but was outdated and had not kept pace with the growing complexity facing criminal justice bodies or evolving practice.

"Existing arrangements were in a period of transition and while ongoing work to progress the new Adult Protection Bill was welcome, concerns were raised with Inspectors that without clear guidance, sufficient funding and resourcing, its implementation risked being delayed and fragmented, with some parts of the legislation not commenced until a later date," said Mr Corrigan.

He also flagged a continuing concern that the Northern Ireland Prison Service could not directly refer adult safeguarding concerns arising within prisons to Health and Social Care Trust teams for assessment by suitably qualified social workers, despite being referenced in the regional Partnership Policy. "This gap placed adults in prison at risk of differential treatment, despite these concerns having been raised by Inspectors in successive prison inspection reports since 2023 and recommendations for improvement being made that were accepted," said the Acting Chief Inspector. While acknowledging clear leadership commitment across criminal justice organisations to safeguarding principles and partnership working for those aged 18 and over at risk, Inspectors found that governance and monitoring were inconsistent. Adult safeguarding information was not routinely reported to senior management across all inspected bodies, constraining strategic oversight and opportunities to learn from patterns and trends. Data collection and analysis, especially regarding outcomes for adults at risk or in need of protection, were also underdeveloped.

"Inspectors acknowledge the work of specialist teams such as the Police Service of Northern Ireland's Public Protection Branch and Probation Officers from the Probation Board for Northern Ireland who demonstrated strong knowledge and reflective practice. Our case file reviews also provided examples of good practice, where timely referrals resulted in protective measures being put in place," said Mr Corrigan.

However, Inspectors also found that adult safeguarding was not consistently recognised as a distinct concept by frontline Police Officers and staff across all organisations. There were variations in how concerns were identified, recorded and escalated, and the quality assurance of safeguarding decisions was limited.

"In the last year alone, CJI reports on Probation Approved Premises, the Year Three Review of the effectiveness of the implementation of the Domestic Abuse and Civil Proceedings (Northern Ireland) Act 2021, the Use of Special Measures in Northern Ireland Criminal Courts and Follow-Up Review of Police Custody, have all involved aspects of adult safeguarding," said Mr Corrigan.

"Adult safeguarding cases often involve older victims or men and women with complex needs, and for these members of our community, lengthy decision-making processes and Court timeframes have a disproportionate impact.

"As such, adult safeguarding should be recognised as a core element of public protection in line with delivering Safer Communities as a priority in the Northern Ireland Executive's current Programme for Government.

"This report makes four strategic and two operational recommendations to support improvement which when implemented, will strengthen existing adult safeguarding arrangements.

"As the Adult Safeguarding Bill is considered at the Northern Ireland Assembly Committee stage, we hope this report and its recommendations could be helpful to Ministers, locally elected representatives, Departmental Officials, as well as criminal justice organisations and other stakeholders," concluded the Acting Chief Inspector.