FP News Top Story

The Canadian Press - ONLINE EDITION

England report finds extensive child sex abuse with thousands at 'high risk'

By: Gregory Katz, The Associated Press

Posted: 11/21/2012 3:51 AM | Comments: 0 | Last Modified: 11/21/2012 4:46 AM

LONDON - An extensive report has found high levels of child abuse in England, with more than 2,400 victims during a 14-month period that was scrutinized.

The Office of Children's Commission interim study released Wednesday also found about 16,500 additional children are at "high risk" of sexual exploitation based on behavioural changes that were noted.

The report, which did not cover Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, is characterized as the largest ever study of child sex abuse in England, and suggested urgent action be taken to better protect vulnerable children.

"This report is a wake-up call," said Maggie Atkinson, Children's Commissioner for England. "Each and every one of us owes it to all victims to be vigilant, to listen and to act to stop the sexual exploitation of children."

The report follows a series of reports of "grooming" cases in which rings of men preyed on troubled underage girls.

It also comes after the police and the BBC have been sharply criticized for failing to take action against the late Jimmy Savile, an entertainer who has been alleged to have repeatedly abused young girls.

The commission found that abuse is greater than had been thought and that many sexual exploitation victims are not seen by professionals and do not have their cases recorded.

The report based its assessment of the number of children at risk on reports from police departments, local children's services boards and primary care units. It concluded that child sex abuse "goes largely undetected" for a variety of reasons, including inconsistent data collection that makes accurate reporting difficult. It also pointed out that there is no specific crime called "child sex abuse," making the crime difficult to track.

"It is not possible to state definitively how many children are victims of child sex abuse in any given period because there is no recognized category of abuse for sexual exploitation," the report said.

Fact Check

Have you found an error, or know of something we’ve missed in one of our stories? Please use the form below and let us know.

* Required

In which story did you find the error? *
Please post the headline of the story or the title of the video with the error.
What was the error? *
Please post exactly what was wrong with the story.
What should we have written?
Please indicate your source for the correct information.
Who else should we interview to improve this story?
Please include any contact information you may have.
Can we contact you in the future for advice on stories about this topic?
Yes

No
First Name: *
Last Name: *
E–mail Address: *
This will only be used to contact you if we have a question about your submission, it will not be used to identify you or be published.
Phone: *
This will only be used to contact you if we have a question about your submission, it will not be used to identify you or be published.
Colour:
Are you blue? If you can see this, leave it blank and get some CSS support.
Enter the words that you see: * This is to prevent our forms from being filled out automatically.
You have failed to correctly identify the words in the box above. Please try again.

More FP News Top Story

Undock

You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.

Have Your Say

New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.

The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.