Trends in child maltreatment

摘要

Ruth Gilbert and colleagues' conclusion that there is no evidence of a decline in the prevalence of child maltreatment in England (Feb 26, p 758) might be premature. Data from child protection plans or registrations and self-report surveys suggest a different conclusion for physical violence, contact sexual abuse, and verbal abuse. Since 2007, after the tragic death of Peter Connolly, both professional experience and official data indicate that child protection activity has increased. The numbers of children in England subject to child protection plans at year end increased from 26400 in 2006 to 39100 in 2010. Meanwhile, the focus of activity on specific types of maltreatment seems to have changed. In England, registrations for physical abuse fell from 40% of all registrations in 1994 to 15% in 2009, and sexual abuse registrations declined from 26% to 6%. Registrations for neglect, however, increased from 27% to 45%.