Norfolk Police and Crime Commissioner Sarah Taylor calls for more action to tackle sexual violence in schools
A Norfolk police chief has called for more action to tackle sexual violence in schools after an investigation revealed the alarming scale of the problem.
Sarah Taylor, Norfolk’s Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC), said she has “grave concerns” after figures obtained through a Freedom of Information request showed nearly 450 offences had been reported at schools in the county since 2020.
Children under six are among those accused of rape and sexual assault by fellow pupils, while 70% of the victims are girls.
There were nearly 300 offences reported at secondary schools, while 15% of the crimes occurred in primary schools.
Responding to the findings, the PCC said her office is currently developing an action plan to tackle sexual violence in schools that will create “long-lasting change” in the county.
Ms Taylor said: “That even one child might suffer such serious sexual offences while in what should be one of the safest of places, school, is a grave concern.
“More work needs to be done to tackle sexual offences in all forms in our schools.”
It comes as Norfolk’s branch of the National Education Union warns schools are facing a “crisis of classroom violence” and says it has received reports of an increase in younger perpetrators, aged under ten years old.
Ms Taylor says she has been meeting with education leaders and Norfolk County Council’s children’s services to develop future schemes to address the problem.
She added: “A reduction in these offences since 2022 is positive, as is the ongoing work by both the police and partner organisations, but more needs to be done.
“Collaboration is also taking place through other partnerships, which include work focused on healthy relationships and on the prevention of violence against women and young girls.
“However, I would stress that the fact that a third of the victims of these offences over the past five years are boys will not be ignored or overlooked as this work continues.”
