Online grooming increases by 101% in the East of England over 5 years
More than 3400 offences were recorded by police over this period
Last updated 21st Aug 2023
Online grooming has increased by 101% in the East of England over the space of 5 years - according to data collected by the NSPCC from local police forces.
The children's charity have revealed this percentage increase amounts to 3,400 online grooming crimes recorded by police in this region.
The UK-wide figures also reveal:
- Four in five (83%) of grooming cases over the six years taking place against girls, where the gender was known.
- Snapchat was used in more than a quarter (26%) of total instances over the six years, while Meta-owned products were used in almost half (47%), where the means of communication was known.
- 150 different apps, games and websites were used to target children according to the police data analysed since 2017/18.
The NSPCC have been campaigning for an Online Safety Bill for six years during the time period this data was collected.
The legislation, which is to be brought to parliament in a few weeks, would hold tech companies responsible for the care of young users.
See the breakdown of online grooming increases in your area here:
- Online grooming cases in Bedfordshire have increased by 179% since 2017/18.
- There has also been a:
- 64% increase in Cambridgeshire (including Peterborough)
- 323% increase in Essex
- 46% increase in Hertfordshire
- -1% decrease in Norfolk
- 150% increase in Northampton
- 37% increase in Suffolk
While not included in the overall breakdown of data for the East of England - we also note that online grooming across Rutland and Leicestershire has increased by 93%.
Gareth Hill from the NSPCC said:
"This problem is certainly not one that is going away. In the last 6 years we've seen 3400 online grooming crimes in the East of England.
"This spiked last year to the highest on record sitting at 676 cases recorded.
"75% of these crimes are taking place in Meta-owned platforms and Snapchat - most primarily on Instagram and Snapchat where children are the most.
"In terms of who's being targeted, the data also shows that it is 12- 15 year olds primarily girls."
Sir Peter Wanless, NSPCC Chief Executive said:
"Today’s research highlights the sheer scale of child abuse happening on social media and the human cost of fundamentally unsafe products.
“The number of offences must serve as a reminder of why the Online Safety Bill is so important and why the ground-breaking protections it will give children are desperately needed.
“We’re pleased the Government has listened and strengthened the legislation so companies must tackle how their sites contribute to child sexual abuse in a tough but proportionate way, including in private messaging.
“It’s now up to tech firms, including those highlighted by these stark figures today, to make sure their current sites and future services do not put children at unacceptable risk of abuse.”