Latest figures for 2007/08 show that 13,237 children were counselled for sexual abuse - the highest level in the organisation's 22-year history and a 53 per cent increase since 2004.
Of those that called, 465 were aged seven or under and around 6,000 said they had been raped.
In more than half of all calls the sexual abuse was by a family member and in just over a quarter of cases the abuser was someone else known to the child. Just four per cent of calls involved sexual abuse by a stranger.
Head of ChildLine Sue Minto said: "Some calls about sex abuse include details of other extreme forms of abuse like being hit, tied up, threatened with their life and being plied with drugs. Many are less severe but still devastating for the child."
She added that promotional campaigns by the NSPCC, which merged with ChildLine three years ago, and child sex storylines in programmes such as Eastenders, had encouraged more children to call the service.
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