Concern At Big Rise In Child Sex Offences In Leics & Northants

Sex offences against children have more than doubled in Leicestershire and Northamptonshire over the past five years.

New data from the NSPCC reveals Leicestershire Police recorded 1,238 last year, compared to 444 in 2014/15.

In Northamptonshire reports increased from 668 to 1,321.

Anna Edmundson from the charity says urgent action is needed:

Detective Chief Inspector Gavin Drummond, Leicestershire Police’s child safeguarding lead, said: “We have seen an increase in the reporting of sexual offences against children and we believe this is due to an increased confidence in victims coming forward and reporting such matters to police.

“We take all reports extremely seriously and have specialist officers who can offer support and guidance to victims. We work closely with partner organisations within our multi-agency safeguarding hub to ensure victims have access to the most appropriate support services available.

“Working alongside such partner agencies is key to identifying, assessing and tackling sexual offences where children are involved.

“As a force, we have been at the forefront in raising awareness of the dangers of online grooming. Leicestershire Police has played an active role in the production of two films – Kayleigh’s Love Story and Breck’s Last Game – which have been rolled out to children and young people in both the UK and beyond.

“Both films were produced to help both parents and children in spotting the signs of online grooming.”

Northamptonshire Police say the increase reflects the greater confidence the public have in its ability to deal effectively with both current and non-recent sexual abuse.

A spokeswoman said: “We strongly encourage reports of this nature and we’ve done a lot of work in the past five years to encourage people to report offences, no matter when they happened, and empower people to come forward.

“Tackling child sexual abuse in all its forms is an absolute priority for Northamptonshire Police and the Force continues to invest heavily in resources aimed at supporting victims and bringing the offenders to justice.

“Anybody with any concerns about a child should call Northamptonshire Police on 101. We would always rather investigate a report and find it comes to nothing than not be told at all.”