Child abuse is a threat to the young ones; it has a long-lasting effect on their physical, emotional and psychological state. However, in a report from BBC, NSPCC has learned that reports related to child abuse has skyrocketed by 38 percent, the highest increase in six years since they started collecting data.
Police records show 85 sexual offenses against children every day with significant increase of the said case in Scottland and Northern Ireland.
Alongside the increase of sexual offenses against children recorded by police, there was also an increase in the number of children referred to social services due to the same reason.
NSPCC revealed that they also received the highest number of children referred to social services since they collected data in 2010, The Guardian reports. There have been 570,800 children referrals in 2013 to 2014. The percentage of children under child protection system has risen by 80 percent since 2002.
This figure is bothering and the reports are consistent, which only gives one a chill as to how this issue, despite being so known, remains neglected. The Guardian noted that this problem is so rampant in England that children already perceive it as normal.
Jon Brown, NSPCC spokesman, shared that one of the factors contributing to the rise of figures is the high-profile cases that could have encouraged other victims to come out and share their experience.
Chief Constable Simon Bailey, the National Police Chief Council (NPCC) lead for child protection, shared that police has taken this case differently. He added that there was a growing confidence among victims to report their case.
However, despite the unbelievable increment in the figures, he still considers the possibility that the latest figure might still be the "tip of the iceberg." He can be right, there is a big possibility that there are still unreported incidents.
In a report from the BBC, Peter Wanless, NSPCC's chief executive, viewed the figure as "a fraction of the true number of victims, because some endure an agonising wait of many years before telling anyone - and others never reveal what has happened to them."
The following information was taken from the compilation of figures done by Freedom of Information:
- Most victims were between 12 and 16 years old.
- However, 8,282 victims were younger than 11 and 2,895 of them were estimated to be 5 years old or younger, while 94 were babies.
- Most reported cases were against girls. There were 24,457 cases against girls and only 5,292 cases against boys.
- The Metropolitan Police has recorded the highest number of sex crime against children, reaching up to 3,523.
People are becoming more aware of child abuse and they are more supportive to fight this injustice. The Independent reports that police have improved their recordings and are strictly instructed to take this type of case as their priority.
