Sexually abusive children who slip through the net

More than two thirds of children involved in abusive sexual behaviour are not formally monitored and only 8% have been placed on the sex offenders register, according to the first report into the issue. The study reveals that children as young as five are the perpetrators of sexually harmful behaviour and follows the case of Colyn Evans who was sentenced to life imprisonment in June 2005 for the murder of Karen Dewar. Evans had been known to the authorities for years and had been accused of committing 14 offences between the ages of 10 and 16. But he was never a registered sex offender, having been dealt with through the children's hearing system which cannot refer young people. Once he left the hearings system, he was not picked up by the authorities partly because he was not on the register.

The study, conducted by the Scottish Executive funded Criminal Justice Social Work Development Centre at Edinburgh University, raises serious concerns about the level of supervision and programmes available to youngsters who may pose a risk. The study across six of Scotland's local authorities found that of 189 children, 33% were not subject to monitoring through child protection registration, sex offender registration or a supervision requirement, at the time of the survey. Although 41% had been subject to compulsory measures at some time in their lives, less than half were recorded as working on a voluntarily basis at the time of the survey, for a range of reasons. Of the children, six in 10 were reported for sexually harmful behaviour involving coercion and or aggression.

Bill Whyte, director of the centre, said: "This raises questions about how best to register and monitor these children and whether we have got the right kind of treatment programmes available. A great deal of work has been done on adult sex offenders but it is a concern that so little has been done to explore what kinds of treatment and supervision works for children. "It is a very sensitive area and surely we would not want to suggest that someone under the age of 14 is really a sex offender. Many adult sex offenders may have been abused as children and some of the children exhibiting sexually harmful behaviour may go on to be adult sex offenders, but it is vital to remember that most of those children who have been abused will not go on to become sex offenders."

The report says: "Where children and young people present significant risks to others, a robust system of registration should be considered." It is estimated that between one-quarter and one-third of all UK cases of sexual abuse are perpetrated by those under 18. Of the 189 children involved in the study almost 40% were between 13 and 15. Children aged seven or under accounted for 3% of the total. Almost three-quarters of the children and young people had been involved with three victims or fewer; 41% had one victim. One panel member said: "There are concerns about the fact the panels cannot place a child on the register even, and it only occurs in a small number of cases where there are serious worries about their sexual offending behaviour." Fergus McNeil, lecturer in social work at Glasgow University, said harmful sexual behaviour cannot be expected to go away by itself. "We do not want to label children but we have to strike a balance between being unduly interventionist and unduly optimistic about the fact these children will grow out of it," he said. An executive spokeswoman said: "We expect all sex offenders, regardless of age, to be monitored in relation to the level of risk. All children in this study were under the supervision of social work services. "As announced last year, we appointed a team of experts in to develop national guidance on this. That group will present its report to ministers soon."

Lucy Adams
23 May 2006

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