Easy access to pornography is blamed as the reason more than 1,000 school-age children fell victim to sex crimes during the huge yearly rise in cases.
- More than 1,000 students were victims of sexual assaults in schools
- NSW statistics show muggings increased from 721 in 2021 to 1,121 in 2022
- Hayley Foster blames child access to pornography
More than 1,000 students were sexually assaulted in NSW schools in 2022, newly released data shows, with a leading charity blaming children’s easy access to pornography as the main cause.
Reports of sexual touching and sexual assault in the state increased from 721 in 2021 to 1,121 in 2022, with the number rising steadily every year since 2012, according to data from the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Investigation (BOCSAR).
This included 326 alleged victims of sexual assault, more than double the number registered in 2021.
The data covers private and public elementary and secondary schools across the state, and could include attacks outside of school hours.
More than 1,000 students were sexually assaulted in NSW schools in 2022, newly released data shows, with a leading charity blaming children’s easy access to pornography as one of the main causes (file image )
Less than five percent of the cases progressed to legal action. Of the 62 preparers who faced legal action, 60 were men.
Only 34 of the victims were over the age of 18 and 615 victims were women.
Hayley Foster, chief executive of sexual assault advocacy group Full Stop Australia, said the rise in crimes against children is due to access to pornography.
“There are large numbers of young people, particularly girls and LGBTQI youth, who experience sexual violence at high rates,” she said. daily telegraph.
“We can’t have this conversation without talking about the availability and nature of the pornography that nine- or ten-year-olds freely access on their devices.
“Harmful and disruptive behavior is becoming normalized and young people are being traumatized by those experiences, which have serious and often lifelong impacts.
Hayley Foster (pictured), chief executive of sexual assault advocacy group Full Stop Australia, said the rise in crimes against children is due to access to pornography.
He added that students need “respectful and widespread relationship education,” specifically “dealing with consent so that young people don’t rely on pornography for their sex education.”
Crime rates in 2022 fell in many categories in New South Wales, but crimes committed predominantly against women have bucked the trend.
The COVID-19 pandemic greatly disrupted criminal behaviour, resulting in unprecedented drops in crime in New South Wales, particularly in the volume of property crime.
But reports of domestic violence, sexual assaults and restraining order violations were higher in the year through June compared with the year through June 2017, according to data released in September.
Consent education was introduced to the curriculum for senior years in NSW schools in 2020.
NSW Police Force Child Abuse Squad Commander Linda Howlett added that police work closely with the education department to deal with sexual behavior by students.
“We know that sometimes students feel more comfortable confiding in a teacher or a school counselor, and we are encouraged that more will come forward to report incidents,” he said.
“Some child offenders don’t realize that what they’re doing is a criminal offence, whether it’s taking pictures or inappropriate touching, so we need to get them to understand the boundaries of what’s inappropriate and what’s criminal.”
