Sex Offences Committed on Children

I’d like to make a Freedom of Information Act request for statistics about sex offences committed on children, which I am sending to all police forces in England and Wales. Your police force was very helpful in supplying the NSPCC with similar information last year and in 2008.

1. How many children (under 18) were victims of sex offences committed in your police force area during the year April 2009 – March 2010.
2. Can you please supply a gender and exact age breakdown for these victims?
3. Can you please supply a gender and exact age breakdown for the offenders in these cases?
4. How many sex offences against children (under 18) in your police force area in (a) 2007/08, (b) 2008/09 and (c) 2009/10 resulted in a conviction or a caution?

In addition your clarification as follows

Thanks for your time on the phone just now.

I have received feedback from a number of police forces that they are unable to provide child sex offences conviction data, but some have said they can provide detection information (also described as ‘disposal’ or ‘outcome’ data) for sex offences over the last three years.

It would be fantastic (and very kind!) if you have some way of communicating to other forces in England and Wales that I am very happy to receive detection/disposal/outcome data rather than convictions, if they are able to supply it.

In accordance with section 1(1) (b) of the Act our response is provided below;

FOI 2692 - Victims of Sexual Offences