Campaign to help stop child abuse
Crimes recorded in area have risen by 32 per cent
Police Scotland and West Lothian Council have launched a campaign to stop the viewing of indecent images of children after the number of crimes recorded in the area rose by 32 per cent in the last year.
The pair have teamed up with Stop It Now! Scotland and other local authorities to help prevent child sexual abuse and the viewing of such images.
Stop It Now! Scotland provides confidential and anonymous support to people who are having sexual thoughts about children and young people, supporting them manage these and control any associated behaviour.
There were 41 crimes recorded in West Lothian in 2016/17 relating to the viewing of indecent images of children, a rise from 31 the year before.
In Edinburgh during the same period the number of such crimes fell from 69 to 51, while in the Scottish Borders they fell from 14 to 13.
In East Lothian the recorded crimes rose from 10 to 12 while in Midlothian the numbers doubled from 7 to 14.
Stuart Allardyce, National Manager of Stop it Now! in Scotland, said: “Stop it Now! Scotland has worked with hundreds of men arrested for viewing sexual images of children. For many, being arrested was a real wake-up call. Many knew what they were doing was wrong, but struggled to change their behaviour on their own. That’s where our work comes in.
“We make sure these men understand the harm they have caused the children in these images, and also the serious consequences for them and their families if they don’t get to grips with their online behaviour. Once they understand this, they become far less likely to reoffend.”
In February, Stop it Now! Scotland reported that 1600 people had sought their help to stop looking at sexual images of children online in 2016 alone, either through the charity’s confidential helpline or from the selfhelp section of its website.
Detective Chief Inspector Brian Stuart of Police Scotland’s Cyber Crime Unit in the East said: “Our ultimate goal here is to protect children. Accessing these images is not a victimless crime. A child is re-victimised every time an image of them is viewed and this creates further demand for these appalling materials.
“The consequences of this behaviour for an individual are lifechanging and can include losing your job, being imprisoned and registered as a sex offender. I’d urge anyone who is having inappropriate thoughts about children to seek help from Stop It Now! Scotland. Otherwise, expect a visit from officers.”
Executive councillor for Social Policy, Angela Doran, said: “West Lothian Council supports the ‘Stop it Now’ campaign. We pride ourselves on robust responses to offending of this kind and would view any opportunity for early intervention to be valuable and worthwhile.
“Internet offending and cybercrime present ongoing concern and these interventions provide additional support to individuals who wish to take responsibility for behaviour they know is unacceptable at the earliest opportunity.”