Every ten days in England and Wales one child is killed at the hands of their parent. In half (52 per cent) of all cases of children killed at the hands of another person, the parent is the principal suspect.
More than one third (36 per cent) of all rapes recorded by the police are committed against children under 16 years of age
A study by the NSPCC showed that a significant minority of children suffer serious abuse or neglect. Their 2000 study of the childhood experiences of 2,869 18-24 year olds found that:-
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Six per cent of children experienced frequent and severe emotional maltreatment during childhood.
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Six per cent of children experienced serious absence of care at home during childhood.
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31 per cent of children experienced bullying by their peers during childhood, a further seven per cent were discriminated against and 14 per cent were made to feel different or 'like an outsider'. 43 per cent experienced at least one of these things during childhood.
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Three-quarters (72 per cent) of sexually abused children did not tell anyone about the abuse at the time. 27 per cent told someone later. Around a third (31 per cent) still had not told anyone about their experience(s) by early adulthood.
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A quarter (25 per cent) of children experienced one or more forms of physical violence during childhood. This includes being hit with an implement, being hit with a fist or kicked, shaken, thrown or knocked down, beaten up, choked, burned or scalded on purpose, or threatened with a knife or gun. Of this 25 per cent of children, the majority had experienced 'some degree of physical abuse' by parents or carers
