Rise in number of Childline calls from sexually exploited children

The NSPCC’s round-the-clock service has delivered 4,500 counselling sessions in the last year – up 16 per cent from the previous year - to children and young people, the youngest aged nine, who were coerced or forced into sexual activity.

At their South East base in London, 753 counselling sessions took place over the 2018/19 period, including an average of 12 calls from children who have been sexually exploited.

In more than a third of counselling sessions, young people disclosed they were targeted online - usually through social media or video games – often by their peers or people known to them.

Most children received help from Childline because they were forced to perform or watch sexual acts or had been persuaded into sending naked images or videos of themselves - while some were threatened with the images and told they would be shared with friends and family.

As a result, the NSPCC is calling on the government to provide proper training to teachers so they can deliver effective and relevant lessons about healthy relationships, consent and sex, and support young people to get help from a trusted adult.

Dame Esther Rantzen, Childline Founder and President, said: “This pernicious form of sexual abuse was where domestic abuse used to be. Older people need to recognise and understand that victims feel trapped because of an overwhelming sense of shame and humiliation. They think they'll be blamed, but often they are tricked by people they believe to be genuinely in love with them.

“It is important we explain these new dangers to young people, and how they can be persuaded, cajoled, threatened into actions they come to bitterly regret. Teachers can play their part, and so can families. Difficult as it is to broach such a sensitive subject, parents can forewarn their children about this danger, and so forearm and protect them against it. And of course, remind them that they can safely contact Childline for help and support.”