Teenagers’ forced marriage trauma

Rising numbers of young girls are seeking help to cope with the trauma of forced marriage, support groups have warned.

Hundreds of “frightened” and “helpless” teens as young as 13 are contacting Childline for support. The charity said it delivered 12 per cent more counselling sessions in 201617 than in 2015-16.

It comes as the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children said some families use the long school summer holidays to pull children out of Britain and marry them off abroad to strangers.

Family and community loyalties, mixed notions of honour and the film of secrecy over the taboo issue make its true scale hard to grasp, the NSPCC said.

Girls added that fears of ostracism, cultural expectations and punishment for relatives acted as barriers against them speaking out.

NSPCC chief executive Peter Wanless said: “Forcing a child to marry shows a complete lack of regard for their feelings, thoughts or ambitions.

“We must be clear that, regardless of cultural expectations, this is a crime and an abuse of human rights.”