Huge spike in ‘peer-on-peer’ sexual abusive among teens
THE number of teenagers seeking help about sexually abusive relationships has risen by almost one third, Glasgow figures show.
The charity Childline said counsellors working in its Glasgow based dealt with 499 contacts across the UK from 2017 to 2018 compared with 381 the previous year, an increase of 31 per cent.
However, the NSPCC-run service said the scale of the problem is possibly much greater, as there are fears children and teenagers do not understand that what has happened to them is abuse.
Across the UK, counselling sessions for peer-on-peer sexual abuse rose by 29 per cent in the last year to 3878, with many young people reporting they are confused about sexual consent.
The charity has re-launched #ListenToYourSelfie campaign to help teenagers recognise if they are in an unhealthy relationship.
One girl aged 14 said: “My boyfriend is sometimes violent towards me and recently he’s forced me into doing sexual things when I didn’t want to.
“I’m scared of how he would react if I tried to end the relationship.”
The NSPCC is calling for the issue of abuse and how to recognise its signs to be covered by Relationships Education in primary schools and Relationships and Sex Education in secondary schools.
Dame Esther Rantzen, Founder and President of Childline said: “Young people tell us that they have been compelled to take part in behaviour against their will, which sometimes involves them suffering violence.
“We know that relationships can be confusing and it can be hard to know if the dynamic is changing and things are starting to go wrong.
“If you ever feel pressured to do something you don’t want to, we urge you to get support, either from a friend, a trusted adult or Childline.
“The Childline service is confidential and you can contact us via our message board on our website.”
The charity has previously released figures showing that more than one in 10 children (12 per cent) aged 12 to 13 have made or have been part of a sexually explicit video.
Nearly one in 10 (9 per cent) of children in the same age group are worried that they are addicted to porn, found a survey of nearly 700 children for the NSPCC’s ChildLine service.
Any youngster who may worried about peer sexual abuse can call Childline on 0800 11 11.