by Charles Hymas, Telegraph
Youngsters detained over sexual offences up a fifth to 3,809 from year before, with suspects nearly all boys
Children are being arrested for sex offences in record numbers amid evidence of more abusive relationships, a government-backed report has revealed.
Police data show that the number of children arrested for sexual offences in 2024-25 rose by nearly a fifth to 3,809, from 3,225 in the previous year.
This was up 74 per cent from a low during the pandemic of 1,979 in 2020-21 and higher than the previous peak of 3,633 in 2015-16.
Boys accounted for almost all children arrested for sexual offences during that period, making up 98 per cent of arrests during the past decade.
The research was conducted by the Youth Endowment Fund (YEF), a charity backed by £200m government funding and set up to investigate ways to prevent children becoming involved in violence.
It suggested it could indicate a genuine rise in the number of sex assaults by children but also may reflect a greater willingness by victims to report crimes to police.
Separate research based on a survey of 11,000 children aged 13 to 17 by the YEF found one teenager in every school class had suffered physical or sexual abuse while in a relationship.
Some 15 per cent of teenagers said they had suffered abuse, including being pressured into sex, physically hurt or having explicit images shared online without their consent.
Read also: Violent porn is behind the rise in youth sexual offences by Stella O’Malley, UnHerd