Last week statistics were released of sex offences by adults in position of trust.  This would be for school teachers, Scout Leaders, care staff and youth justice workers to name a few.

Statistics have shown that sex offences committed by adults in positions of trust have increased by more than 80% since 2014.

The number of professionals sexually exploiting 16 and 17 years old rose from 159  in June 2014 to now  an astonishing 290!

In total nearly 1000 crimes have been recorded since 2014.  This is only crimes that have been reported and there will be people who will still be suffering in silence today as they are still subjects of the abuse, do not have the courage to come forward, are understandably suffering psychologically as a result of their experiences or do not even know who to speak to.

Following release of these statistics the NSPCC #TrustToLead campaign is now urging the Government to extend position of trust law to cover all adults regularly with children, including religious leaders, adults working in the arts, outdoor pursuits and other activities.

The Governments has recently said that it plans to extend the law to cover sport coaches.

Not only is abuse taking place by people in positions of trust, but also online.

It is not known how many children and adults are affected by online abuse as some children may not even realise they are being abused.

In 2016, the Internet Watch Foundation identified over 57,000 URLS containing child sexual abuse images.  Could you have been included in this? Could your child have been included in this? Do you supervise and know what your child is viewing online?

Statistics for online abuse released by the NSPCC have revealed that there were over 12,000 counselling sessions with young people who talked to ChildLine about online abuse in the past year.

The NSPCC has also indicated that there were over 2,100 counselling sessions with young people who talked to Childline about online sexual exploitation in 2016/2017.

1 in 3 children are the victims of cyber bullying and almost 1 in 4 young people have come across racist or hate messages online.

Unfortunately, victims of sexual abuse will suffer significant psychological harm due to the actions of their abusers, and for these victims we realise there is unfortunately no getting away from what has happened to them however pursuing a claim often helps our clients to bring closure to their ordeal following the sentence to provide the resources to fund the medical treatment and therapy they may require.

If you or someone you know has been the victim of abuse or have been affected by online abuse, whilst we appreciate that it is often difficult to talk about what has happened, our team is experienced and dedicated to speaking with you in the strictest of confidence. You can call us on 0330 134 6430 or contact us by email.