Report exposes scale of child sexual abuse and exploitation across Western Europe

The annual report from the Childlight Global Child Safety Institute, based at the University of Edinburgh, draws on data from 48 studies across 19 European countries. It estimates that around 7 per cent of children in Western Europe (approximately five million) are raped or sexually assaulted before the age of 18.

The analysis also found that almost one in five children (19.6 per cent) reported experiencing online grooming or sexual solicitation before adulthood, equating to nearly 15 million children affected.

Rates of sexual assault were higher among girls (9.7 per cent) than boys (3.9 per cent).

The report also examined the growing impact of technology-facilitated abuse, including online grooming, coerced sexual interactions, and the non-consensual creation or sharing of abusive images and videos.

Alarmingly, it highlighted a surge in AI-generated “deepfake” sexual abuse material, with reports increasing by 1,325 per cent between 2023 and 2024, according to data from the US-based National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children.

Professor Deborah Fry, who led the research and serves as Professor of International Child Protection Research at the University of Edinburgh, said the findings underscore the need for investment in prevention and early intervention.

“Even though the evidence is limited to a handful of countries and prevalence estimates vary widely, what we know about sexual violence against children within families underscores the need to invest in primary prevention or stopping it before it ever starts,” Professor Fry said.

“This is a form of violence that is hardest to measure and often hardest to confront,” Professor Fry said, adding that many cases are never identified because children often stay silent.

“They may fear the abuser or that they will hurt their family, they may blame themselves – or not realise that what happened was abuse. Yet we know it can lead to lasting trauma, affecting the health and even life expectancy of survivors.”

Paul Stanfield, Childlight’s chief executive, said the findings expose the betrayal of trust too many children experience at home and online.

“People often say home is where the heart is but, sadly for too many children, home is where the hurt is,” he said.

“We see betrayal of trust by those known to children on a vast scale, compounded by insufficient protections by tech companies and regulators to prevent digital crime scenes in children’s bedrooms. It’s a hidden emergency in places where children should be safest — but it’s preventable, not inevitable.”

Childlight, a global child safety data institute hosted jointly by the Universities of Edinburgh and New South Wales, was established by the Human Dignity Foundation to build a clearer global picture of child sexual exploitation and abuse.

By combining academic research with real-world data, Childlight aims to support governments, social workers, and child protection professionals in developing effective policy and prevention strategies.