In 2023/24, children’s services placed 2,160 children on child protection plans for this reason – making up just 3.5% of all new plans.
It is the lowest number in three decades of data collection on the topic – with a quarter of plans recording the issue 30 years ago.
The “alarming decrease” is despite a rise in child sexual abuse convictions over the same period, states the Child sexual abuse 2023/24: Trends in official data report by The Centre of expertise on child sexual abuse (CSA Centre).
Criminal proceedings were brought against 9,215 defendants for child sexual abuse offences in the year to December 2023, which is the highest number since 2016 and 15% more than the previous year.
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