The report warned that there is an ‘increasing failure’ to protect children (Picture: PA) Around one in seven girls and one in 20 boys in England and Wales are sexually abused before they turn 16, according to a report.
The majority of the abuse is never reported or uncovered and it is often not until adulthood that a survivor may speak out about their experience, revealed the findings.
Experts from the Centre of expertise on child sexual abuse (CSA Centre) found there was an ‘increasing failure’ to protect children.
They said child sexual abuse has become more hidden and that the gap between recorded cases and levels of abuse was likely to be widening.
The report warned there was a decline in cases being identified by child protection services or police even before the pandemic, with lockdowns making it even more difficult to spot the signs of abuse.
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Source: One in seven girls are sexually abused before they turn 16
