Sexual offences against children soar in England, Wales: charity

The number of sexual offences against children recorded by police in England and Wales soared by more than a third last year, figures released Wednesday by a leading children's charity showed.

National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) on Wednesday published the annual report "How Safe Are Our Children 2015."

A total of 31,238 offences, including rape, sexual assault and grooming, were reported to police in the 2013-2014 period, equivalent to 85 each day, according to the report.

It said the majority of victims were aged between 12 and 16, and more than one in three (8,282) were younger than 11.

In addition, 2,895 victims were aged five and under, with 94 babies were included.

Figures showed the number of offences recorded against girls were 24,457, five times higher than that of boys. The number against boys were 5,292.

Statistics from the report also showed that the number of recorded sexual offences against children in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland increased by up to 40 percent in 2013/2014 compared with the previous year.

"These figures are disturbing and clearly illustrate child sexual abuse is a continuing and widespread problem that needs urgent action," said Peter Wanless, CEO of NSPCC, adding the number was just a fraction of the true number of victims.

NSPCC said the reasons of the dramatic growth might attribute to the raising awareness of victims and improved police recording methods. Endit