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Key Statistics on
Child Abuse in Northern Ireland
Population
In the year
2000 there were a total of 460,538 children in NI, comprising 27.1% of the
population.
Children’s
Services
-
In
2000/01 there were a total of 24,265 referrals made to social services, two
thirds of which were in relation to children (16,037). This represents an 11%
increase in the total number of referrals from 1998/1999 and a slight decrease
in the number of children referred.
-
43.1%
of children’s referrals were in relation to childcare issues while 30.9% were
in relation to child protection issues.
Child
Protection Investigations
-
There
were 2,360 child protection investigations in 2000/2001, a figure which
represents a 20% decrease in the number of child protection investigations
carried out in 1998/1999 (2,984) and a 6% decrease from 1999/2000 (2,511).
Child
Protection Register
-
At
31 March 2020 there were 1,414 children on the child protection register, a
slight decrease since 1999 (1,463).
-
Percentage
of children on the Child Protection Register by category of abuse.
-
Neglect
47.2%
-
Physical
Abuse 36.3%
-
Sexual
Abuse
15.3%
-
Emotional
Abuse 13.4%
Looked
After Children
Data
obtained from the PSNI for the year 2000/1
A total of
4243 offences were reported to the PSNI involving children under 17. These were
broken down as follows:-
-
3,509
offences against the person comprising 541 classified as murder, manslaughter,
wounding and serious assault, a 5% increase from the previous year.
- 734
sexual offences comprising 21 buggeries, 86 rapes, 476 indecent assaults, an
almost 7% decrease from the previous year. This is mainly accounted for by a
decrease in unlawful carnal knowledge, rape, indecent assault and buggery while
reporting of the crimes of gross indecency and indecent exposure have risen.
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