Latest government data reveals that incidents involving the death or serious harm of children under five where abuse or neglect is known or suspected increased by 27 per cent in April to September 2020 compared with the same period in 2019.
Such incidents increased by 31 per cent for children under one (a total of 102 children) and 50 per cent for children aged one to five (a total of 48 children), the data shows.
Citing the figures, the Nuffield Foundation’s Protecting young children at risk of abuse and neglect review states that “the pandemic has disrupted the usual pathways for referring children to services, meaning children at risk of abuse and neglect may be being missed. “These issues appear to be even more acute for infants and for babies born in the pandemic, with many children’s centres closing and health and GP check-ups coming via video link or telephone.”
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