What is child physical abuse?
Physical abuse happens when a child is deliberately hurt, causing injuries such as cuts, bruises and broken bones. It can involve hitting, shaking, throwing, poisoning, burning, slapping or suffocating.
Physical abuse happens when a child is deliberately hurt, causing injuries such as cuts, bruises and broken bones. It can involve hitting, shaking, throwing, poisoning, burning, slapping or suffocating.
In the UK, one in 14 children aged 11-17 (6.8%) have experienced emotional abuse.
Active emotional abuse involves an adult deliberately trying to scare, humiliate or verbally abuse a child. Passive emotional abuse happens when a parent or carer denies the child the love and care they need in order to be healthy and happy.
Sexual abuse includes: grooming a child with the intention of sexually abusing them; all forms of penetrative and non-penetrative sex; sexually exploiting a child in return for gifts, money or affection; and making, looking at and distributing indecent images of a child.
In the UK, four out of five children aged 11-17 (82.7%) who experienced contact sexual abuse from someone around their own age did not tell anyone else about it.
Sexual abuse involves forcing or enticing a child or young person to take part in sexual activities. It does not necessarily involve violence and the child may or may not be aware of what is happening.
Neglect may involve a parent’s or carer’s failure to: provide adequate food, clothing and shelter; protect the child from physical and emotional harm or danger; supervise the child properly; make sure the child receives appropriate medical care or treatment.
One in seven children aged 11-17 (13.3%) have been neglected. Almost one in ten (9.8%) have experienced severe neglect.
Neglect is persistently failing to meet a child’s basic physical and/or psychological needs resulting in serious damage to their health and development.
Around one in five (18.6%) children aged 11-17 have been severely maltreated. More than one in eight children aged 11-17 (13.4%) have experienced severe maltreatment by a parent or guardian.