Children’s charities call for more work on tackling child-on-child sexual abuse
A variety of children’s charities have called for more help to be given to children who commit sexual offences against their peers.
In light of a report by BBC’s Panorama, the NSPCC and the Lucy Faithfull Foundation have said that the issue of child-on-child sexual offences is not yet widely understood.
The BBC report stated the number of reported sexual offences by under 18s against other under 18s in England and Wales rose by 71% from 4,603 between 2013–14, to 7,866 from 2016–17.
An NSPCC spokesperson said: “These figures confirm that thousands of children each year are victims of abuse inflicted by other young people.
“Ensuring those who commit these offences are helped to address their sexually harmful behaviour is vital in reducing the number of victims.”
Matt Whitticase, Media and Communications Manager at the Lucy Faithfull Foundation, said: “The issue is that most people here in the UK just don’t think about it (child-on-child abuse). When they think of child sexual abuse they usually think of gangs and the type of people who get reported on in the news.”
Sexual health and wellbeing service Brook has also expressed their desire for a more effective sexual education curriculum to be implemented in schools to safeguard against modern dangers.
A spokesperson said: “We know from our direct work with young people that they want and need sex education that is fit for the 21st century and promotes equal, happy relationships.”
