The reality of sexual abuse and violence against children and young people is changing. In England and Wales, more than half of registered offenders in 2024 were aged between 10 and 17. In many cases, victims were abused by groups of teenagers. The reports are shocking.
Every year thousands of survivors seek help from the UK’s only dedicated national helpline for victims of child abuse, NAPAC. Despite many years of experience, professionals were not prepared for the new reality of abuse.
“We’ve had several people call us saying that the smell of the earth gave them a strange reaction and that they remembered being buried to death and then being revived and, yes, it’s horrible, really horrible. Even our team needs support to respond to these calls.”
Every day NAPAC receives reports of shocking experiences lived by children and young people, victims of physical, emotional or sexual abuse. Since 1998, NAPAC has been an essential support for those experiencing profound childhood trauma. On average, it receives around 10 thousand calls per year.
“One of the most shocking findings in 2024 is the huge increase in child-on-child abuse. This means that in a group context, two or more people, 24% are children who commit serious sexual crimes against other children. This is happening now and I would call it a crisis.”
41% of abuse committed by minors is related to pornographic images, often captured by teenagers themselves in behaviors considered experimental. Richard Fewkes, director of the working group against child sexual exploitation, warns of the dangers of normalizing violent pornography among young people.
“Children have access to pornography. This pornography is becoming more violent and misogynistic. And, due to this ease of access, there is a generation, especially of boys, who see this as normal behavior. And they reproduce this behavior with girls. 17% of crimes committed by minors against other minors are rape.”
The British government has already recognized the seriousness of the situation. Abuse among minors is now more common than sexual exploitation by organized networks. How to respond to this crisis?
“We cannot criminalize an entire generation of children. We need a prevention and education approach. But we have to respond appropriately to different crimes. If we don’t do this and if we ignore what is happening, this will be a critical point and as a society we will say that we have failed. We cannot afford to fail.”
A British government spokesperson says a range of measures are being taken to help prevent child sexual abuse, bring more perpetrators to justice and improve support for victims and survivors. It is estimated that in the UK around 11 million people were abused as children. But threats to young people are evolving and the law is often too slow to adapt.
