Around 1 in 6 children are sexually abused before they are 16 and many aren’t able to tell anyone.
We can’t leave it to children to protect themselves so it’s vital for all adults to have the knowledge to confidently keep children safe from harm, online and offline.
That’s why we’ve brought together our top tips for parents and carers to help stop child sexual abuse.
Encourage them to talk about what they’ve been doing online, who they’re talking to and remind them that they can come to you if they have any concerns.
Talk to your child about sex and relationships in a way that’s appropriate for their age. There are lots of great resources to help, such as the NSPCC Pantosaurus tool.
A family safety plan is a great way to identify risks and have open discussions about what everyone’s expectations are as a family and how you can set appropriate boundaries.
Books can also be a good way to help start important conversations and can make these topics seem less scary.
Help reduce the chance of your child seeing something inappropriate by learning and talking to them about the safest ways to search the internet.
Use our traffic light tool to help tell if a child or young person’s behaviour is age-appropriate, worrying or harmful, and how to react and protect children.
Around one-third of child sexual abuse is carried out by under-18s. Take a look at our advice to help prevent this, and to find out about the warning signs and how to respond.
Sometimes unexplained changes in a child’s behaviour could indicate something is not right. Make sure you’re able to recognise these warning signs to help protect them.
There might also be changes in an adult’s behaviour that could indicate they might be causing harm to a child.
If you have any worries then we can help you and talk through any issues. You can contact the experienced advisors on our Stop It Now! helpline to get confidential support and advice.
The helpline is anonymous and you do not need to tell us your real name or location, so you talk openly and can get the advice you need. If you’re not ready to talk to someone yet, you can use our live chat or send us a secure email.
(Updated January 2022.)
Our Stop It Now helpline, self help and programmes are there to help anyone concerned about child sexual abuse. Shore is for teenagers worried about sexual behaviour.
Our helpline 0808 1000 900
2 Birch House, Harris Business Park, Hanbury Road
Stoke Prior, Bromsgrove, B60 4DJ
Lucy Faithfull Foundation is a Registered Charity No. 1013025, and is a company limited by guarantee, Registered in England No. 2729957.
As you may have noticed, our website looks a little different now. We’ve restructured and redesigned the site to be more accessible to you, so we’d love to know what you think. All feedback will remain anonymous; we do not collect any personal identifying information.
As you may have noticed, our website looks a little different now. We’ve restructured and redesigned the site to be more accessible to you, so we’d love to know what you think. All feedback will remain anonymous; we do not collect any personal identifying information.
