Here is the report of NSPCC.
More than 21,000 child sex offences recorded last year
Press Releases
25 January 2010
An average of sixty sex offences against children were recorded every day by police in England and Wales last year the NSPCC reveals today.
The statistics which were obtained under a Freedom of Information request from all 43 forces in England and Wales, show under-18s were victims of sex crimes, including rape, gross indecency and incest, on 21,618 occasions during 2008-09 (1).
One in seven of the children (3035) were younger than ten and 1,000 were five and under. In more than three out of four cases the offences were committed against 10 to 17-year-olds (17,091) (2).
The statistics show girls were six times more likely than boys to be the victims of a sex crime. And the number of incidents where the offender knew the victim was four times higher than those involving strangers.(3)
The Home Office gathers data from police forces for its annual crime report, which shows there was a total of 51,488(4) for all sexual offences in 2008-09, including both adults and children and only splits the figure to show those over or under 13. Combining these statistics blurs the picture and even though detailed age breakdowns of victims are collected by police they are not passed to the Home Office.
This is the second year (5) the NSPCC has collected this data and is again calling on the UK Government to publish these details and to clearly link them with the number of convictions and other penalties resulting from the recorded offences. This information could then feed into a national sex abuse prevention strategy as well as helping the development of local services to treat child victims.
NSPCC director of strategy and development Phillip Noyes said: “These figures show just how many children are still being sexually abused every day. It’s a shocking picture – even more so because these are only offences reported to the police. We believe the true extent of the problem is far worse.
“Some of these children are so young they can’t tell anyone what is happening. So it’s vital that adults look out for them and call the NSPCC helpline or contact police and social services if they are concerned.
“Even when they are older some children don’t speak out about the sexual abuse they have suffered because they’re scared they won’t be believed. But help is always available for them through ChildLine.” (0800 1111)
Ends
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Notes to editors:
1. The NSPCC asked each police force in England and Wales via a Freedom of Information request. All forces responded. The questions were: 1. How many children (under18) were victims of sex offences committed in your police force area during the year April 2008 – March 2009. 2. Can you supply a gender and exact age breakdown for these victims? 3. What is the relationship of the alleged offender to the victim, if known?
2. Not all police forces gave a specific age or gender breakdown. Some only gave age ranges.
3. Nearly two-thirds of the forces (26) provided details about offender relationships.
4. Source: Home Office Statistical Bulletin, Crime in England and Wales 08/09.
5. The total number of recorded offences for 2007-08 was 20,758 but one force did not provide any statistics.
NSPCC
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