Health professionals will not have to report teenagers who are having underage sex to the police, says guidance for England on child protection published this week. The guidance advises that decisions on referral to child protection agencies should be considered on a case by case basis.

The guidance was developed by the UK Department for Education and Skills to update previous recommendations after a series of child abuse cases and changes in legislation and policy.

It included a review of the Bichard inquiry, carried out after the murder of two schoolgirls by Ian Huntley, a school caretaker with a history of sex with underage girls. The inquiry report recommended that police should be informed whenever someone aged under 16 was …