One child in every primary school class has been sent a sexual image by an adult, major NSPCC study finds

One child in every primary school class has been sent a sexual image by an adult, major NSPCC study finds.

One in 25 children aged seven to 11 told researchers an adult had sent them a naked or semi-naked picture or video on an app, site or game.

One in 20 secondary pupils aged 11 to 16 also said they had received such an image, equivalent to one in every secondary class, according to the survey of nearly 40,000 children.

One in 50 primary and secondary children admitted they had sent a nude or semi-nude picture to an adult, raising fears online grooming is far more extensive than previously thought.

Writing in The Daily Telegraph, NSPCC chief executive Peter Wanless said the “appalling” targeting of children demonstrated the need for new laws to rein in the social networks and force them to proactively detect groomers using their sites.

What should I do if my child is sent a sexual image? | The NSPCC’s advice for parents

What’s most important is for parents to speak regularly to children about their online lives, about who they’re chatting to and what apps, sites and games they like. It should be as normal as chatting about their day at school, so that children can come to you if they have anything that’s bothering them.

Practical steps you can take to protect your child online might include ensuring privacy settings are high, and putting parental controls in place. The NSPCC and O2’s website Net Aware has lots of tips and advice about online safety, as well as information on the latest sites, apps and games.

If your child has been sent a sexual image:

Reassure them they’ve done the right thing by telling you what’s going on

Report the incident to police and to the social network platform

Don’t delete the image, police can use this as evidence

If your child has sent a nude or semi-nude image of themselves or been asked to send a nude image:

To remove images from the internet, encourage them to visit www.childline.org.uk/remove and follow the steps to have the image taken down from the internet.

Talk to the child’s school so they are aware of the situation and can support them if the image is been shared with other pupils in the school

Call our NSPCC and O2 Online Safety Helpline for advice: 0808 800 5002

If you are concerned your child might be being groomed:

It’s important to note that children might not realise they’re being groomed, because they might feel that they are in a loving relationship.

Look out for a change in behaviour. Some children might become more withdrawn if they’re being asked to do things they’re not comfortable with, while others might become more confident if they’re receiving compliments and affection from an online groomer. They might suddenly become more secretive about their devices.

If the groomer is someone they know in person, children might have unexplained gifts – such as a phone. Or they might have access to drugs and alcohol.

“Those images and messages are sent through social networks and texting apps, which recklessly expose children to content and behaviours completely inappropriate to their age,” he writes.

“Technology has developed at such a pace that government, legislation and society have failed to keep up. And one result is that social networks have become a gateway to child abuse.”

He is concerned grooming is happening so frequently it has become normalised with children targeted by both strangers and by adults they know.

Responding to the NSPCC survey, the biggest of its kind ever conducted, one primary schoolgirl said: “A complete stranger asked me to take my clothes off and send him a picture. When I deleted the game, I went on another site and the same person asked me to have sex with him. I told him to ‘back off’ and then deleted that game. I have seen this person on many sites that I play and I decided to just block him.”

A secondary schoolboy said: “My coach sent me a video of Santa stripping naked.”

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One child in every primary school class has been sent a sexual image by an adult, major NSPCC study finds