Child abuse is appalling in all its forms and affects some of the most vulnerable in society, but it is also something that is little discussed or understood. Today the ONS has published its latest estimates of the experiences people aged 18 years and over had during childhood. Meghan Elkin explains how the numbers should be used and why they should not be compared with previous estimates.
Abuse in childhood is highly complex and, while there is no specific offence of ‘child abuse’ in law, it is typically defined as any maltreatment of a child and considered in four main categories. They are emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse and neglect. There is no source that measures the extent and nature of abuse currently experienced by children in England and Wales.
The crime survey provides the best available indicator of the extent of child abuse by asking adults about their experiences of abuse before the age of 18. The questions are capturing people’s recollections today of what they experienced during childhood. This could be someone in their 80s recalling childhood in the 1940s, right through to someone in their 20s recalling more recent experiences. The numbers we’ve published today are therefore a reflection of past experiences, not of current levels of child abuse.
Comparing with previous estimates
The Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW) estimated that 13.6 million people aged 18 years and over (29.0%) had experienced “any abuse” before the age of 18 years.
While this looks much higher than when we last published data in 2020, the estimates should not be compared. Since that release, we have worked closely with stakeholders and experts in the field, as well as cognitively testing new questions and improving them further. This led to substantial questionnaire changes which will have impacted the estimates.
A key change was to better reflect the definition of a child. Previously, to reduce respondent burden, we covered experiences before the age of 16. However, users emphasised the importance of aligning to the definition of a child and reflecting experiences under the age of 18. As a result, we changed our approach and asked everyone aged 18 and over about experiences before they were 18.
There are various other changes to the way questions are asked and what the range of responses cover which will have had an impact on the estimates.
For instance, during testing, we received feedback from respondents that the wording “Please do not include minor smacks and slaps” was felt to be minimising abuse people experienced and that respondents found it difficult to define “minor”. We consulted with users on removing this wording and they supported the change. This also brings us in line with guidance from the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) and others to not use the word “smack”. We have seen a notable increase in the physical abuse category compared with data published in 2020. However, it is not possible to say how much of this is due to the wording change and how much is due to other changes.
This time we have also been able to include an estimate of neglect within our overall abuse measure. This is a key improvement responding to feedback from a number of users.
Meanwhile, we have not included analysis of the number of adults who witnessed domestic abuse as a child. Our redevelopment of the domestic abuse crime survey questions highlighted limitations with how this data was captured. Given the resulting impact on quality, we have therefore excluded this from today’s release.
All these changes, and many other more subtle tweaks to the question wording and responses, mean the two sets of estimates – from 2020 and today – should not be compared. Nonetheless, today’s figures provide a picture of appalling crimes and a range of data that will be vitally important in supporting decision making for those working to improve support and outcomes for those impacted.
Making further improvements
As noted, an ongoing challenge with child abuse statistics is understanding the current prevalence in society. For the past few years, we’ve been working to assess the feasibility of collecting this data via a survey.
Asking children about their experiences of abuse requires careful consideration of the support and safeguarding procedures that should be in place. We’ve been collaborating with NSPCC to review how a survey on such a sensitive topic could be appropriately implemented within a school environment.
We are also developing an online survey for those who have left school aged 16-25. This survey would provide more detail than the crime survey while also speaking to a sub-group of the population who are closer to childhood than the full crime survey sample.
Our current priority is final testing of the online survey questions themselves. We are looking to publish more information on this project in the coming months. If you would like more information contact crimestatistics@ons.gov.uk.
Child abuse is a difficult topic. If you ever feel you need support, help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You can text SHOUT on 85258, this is a free and confidential service. Or you can visit The Mix website.
Meghan Elkin is the head of crime statistics at the ONS