The charity said that examination of Ministry of Justice figures had revealed that children were being failed because the small number of convictions did not match the 2,756 known child victims of abuse in 2009.
Research also showed that of the people prosecuted for rape of a child under the age of 13, only 41 per cent were found guilty; similarly, only 37 per cent of those prosecuted for sexual assault of a child under 13 were convicted.
Barnardo’s chief executive Anne Marie Carrie said: "These children are being let down by the system. They are being failed twice; once by the failure to prevent them becoming victims in the first place and again by the failure to punish their abusers and secure justice.
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