Child Abuse

What is child abuse?

Child abuse is a generic term describing the physical or mental mistreatment of anyone under the age of 16.

This abuse takes a variety of forms, from serious sexual and physical assaults to mental and psychological ill-treatment.

Child abuse can be conducted by both commission, such as with sexual assault, or by omission, as in the case of neglect or abandonment.

Child abuse is a particularly sensitive, emotive and delicate issue, and is widely perceived as a heinous crime by the general public.

Most forms of child abuse are a criminal offence but civil actions may be taken in negligence against local authorities and police entrusted with child protection.

Background

There is a vast range of legislation and common law guidance regulating the treatment of children, but the earliest statutory examples are the Infant Life Protection Act 1872 (regulating 'baby farming') and the Children Act 1889, imposing criminal sanctions to deter mistreatment of children.

Under the provisions of the poor laws, poor law guardians and juvenile courts were given powers to commit children into the care of local authorities.

Modern arrangements for child protection are incorporated into a range of legislation and have undergone an intense period of review since 2001.

In particular, the Home Office published a white paper in 2002 titled 'Protecting the Public', which contained a number of new proposals relating to child abuse offences, including an offence of 'grooming' and the strengthening of the sex offenders register (created under the Sexual Offences Act 1997).

The new provisions were contained in the Sexual Offences Act 2003, which was aimed at protecting children and the most vulnerable. The legislation, which came into force in May 2004, covered offenders who used new technology to abuse children. The act also contained measures to strengthen the monitoring of offenders on the sex offenders' register and a range of new offences and harsher sentences for sexual offences against children and vulnerable people.

Further reform of the current interagency approach to child protection (between the police and social services) has been reviewed following the Lord Laming report in 2003.

Lord Laming recommended fundamental changes to the organisation and management of services to support children and families. Among the many recommendations were the creation of a 'Children and Families Board' at the heart of Government, a 'National Agency for Children and Families' and a national children's database.

Controversies

Although anyone responsible for child abuse of any sort is treated with public opprobrium, the issue of 'paedophiles' and the potential for their rehabilitation and subsequent re-introduction into society has attracted much controversy in the UK and elsewhere.

This is largely because of the highly emotive nature of the sexual abuse of children, resulting from the perceived innocence of youth, the vulnerability of children and social conceptions of these child abusers as evil and beyond help.

Indeed, when it comes to punishment for those convicted of sexual offences against children, the notion of rehabilitation and human rights is confronted by a social desire for punishment and retribution. This is reflected in a rising trend in vigilantism and community 'witch hunts' against those released back into the community.

The issue remains a vexed one, with the judiciary's sentencing of offenders and Government initiatives to crack down on child abuse often clashing with social perceptions of the culpability of these offenders and the appropriate level of punishment.

Statistics

Each week at least one child will die as the result of an adult's cruelty

The current cost of child abuse to statutory and voluntary organisations is £1 billion a year. Most of this is spent dealing with the aftermath of abuse rather than its prevention

There were 25,900 children on child protection registers in 2005 because they were at risk of abuse – down from 30,020 in 2001.

Most abuse is committed by someone the child knows and trusts

Latest available figures show that in 2002, 45 per cent of all rapes and attempted rapes in England and Wales that resulted in conviction were committed against children under 16

There are 80 to 100 homicides of children aged between 0 to 16 each year in the UK

In 2005 there were around 385,300 children 'in need' in England who were known to local authorities as requiring some form of social services provision

The number of people cautioned or charged with offences relating to abusive images of children on the internet in England and Wales quadrupled from 2001 to 2003 from 549 to 2,234

Statistics 1 and 2 (NSPCC, 2003); Statistic 3 (NSPCC, 2006); Statistic 4 (NSPCC, 2003); Statistic 5 (Home Office report by Kelly, Lovett and Regan 2005); Statistic 6 (NSPCC, 2004); Statistic 7 (DfES, 2005); Statistic 8 (NCH, 2005)

Quotes

"I recognise the fact that over the years, successive Governments have refined both legislation and policy, no doubt informed in part by earlier inquiries of this kind, so that in general, the legislative framework for protecting children is basically sound. I conclude that the gap is not a matter of law but in its implementation."

Lord Laming, Report of the Climbie Inquiry, 2003

"Everyone can be part of the human barrier against child abuse."

NSPCC chief executive Mary Marsh on new drive "be the FULL STOP", part of the NSPCC's FULL STOP campaign to end cruelty to children, 2006

"It is a courageous piece of legislation and I believe that it provides laws, such as the new grooming offence, that are fit for the 21st century and strikes the right balance between giving greater protection for victims and ensuring fairness under the law for defendants.

Home secretary David Blunkett on the passing of the Sexual Offences Bill in 2003.