The NSPCC has released figures which show that there were 5,161 crimes of sexual communication with a child recorded in the 18 months following April 2017 when sexual communication with a child became an offence.
Figures show that: there has been an almost 50% increase in offences recorded in the latest six months compared to the same period in the previous year, and a 200% rise in recorded instances of the use of Instagram over the same time period.
The NSPCC’s Wild West Web campaign is calling on the government to bring in statutory regulation to enforce a legal duty of care to children on social networks.
Further information: Wild West Web campaign