Police in England and Wales recorded at least 8,500 sexual offences against children aged 12 and younger on or near school premises between 2021 and 2025, according to a Guardian analysis of data from 33 police forces. The figures include close to 2,000 rapes and attempted rapes, averaging out to nearly five sexual crimes and one rape allegation received by police every single day during the four-year period.
Police Data Reveals Thousands of Offences Against Under-13s in Schools
The analysis of freedom of information requests shows that primary and secondary schools experienced an average of 4.7 sexual offences per day against children aged 12 and younger from 2021 to 2025. More than a third of the rape victims identified in the reports were under 13 years old. While most police reports did not specify the age of the alleged perpetrator, 1,890 of the offences committed against under-13s involved an offender described as under 18. Where the sex of the victim was documented, nearly two-thirds of the reported crimes affecting under-13s involved female victims.
Beyond crimes involving those under 12, police records showed a minimum of 2,300 sexual crimes against children between 13 and 16, plus another 9,100 sexual crimes against individuals aged 13 or older that were documented as happening in the vicinity of or within schools from 2021 to 2025. Three-quarters of those cases involved a female victim. The data also listed 6,140 crimes related to the creation, possession, taking, or sharing of prohibited or indecent images of children under 18.
Did You Know? Excluding the year 2021 when schools experienced closures between January and March due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the rate of sexual offences outside London rose from 26.6 per 100,000 children under 13 in 2022 to 27.6 in 2025.
Campaigners and officials demand urgent action to protect children from sexual violence
The children’s commissioner for England, Dame Rachel de Souza, responded to the findings by describing peer-on-peer abuse in schools as widespread, normalised, and frequently brushed under the carpet. She emphasized that the issue extends beyond educational institutions into wider society. Janaya Walker, interim director of the End Violence Against Women campaign, stated that the data underlines an urgent need to protect children from sexual violence at school. Soma Sara, chief executive and founder of the Everyone’s Invited campaign, noted that while rape culture is now openly discussed in schools and society, the rapid evolution of the online world and the proliferation of violent pornography present immense challenges for teachers trying to keep pace.
Legal representatives and education leaders have similarly voiced alarm over the dataset. Andrew Lord, a partner with Leigh Day solicitors representing survivors of sexual abuse, asserted that authorities can no longer claim ignorance regarding the prevalence of the issue, adding that parents deserve assurance that schools are safe. Pepe Di’Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, called the prevalence of the incidents appalling and urged ministers to go further in regulating online platforms.
Government and Police Responses to School-Based Abuse
A government spokesperson described the figures as appalling and highlighted that a school’s duty to respond to sexual violence and harassment is now statutory. The government pointed to staff training designed to spot concerns early, alongside pledges to teach healthy relationships and consent early as part of a strategy to halve violence against women and girls. Officials also cited the Online Safety Act as a mechanism forcing tech companies to tackle harmful content and protect young people online.
Becky Riggs, acting chief constable and lead for abuse investigation and child protection at the National Police Chiefs’ Council, observed that the large volume of reports might be a result of increased confidence among child victims to speak out and a rise in general awareness. She called for a whole-system response involving policing, education, social care, health services, technology companies, and communities. Meanwhile, headteachers are looking toward phone bans and social media restrictions to help curb online harms, particularly those involving artificial intelligence and deepfakes.
Police record thousands of sexual offences against young children in schools
What is the total number of sexual offences recorded against under-13s in schools?
Police recorded at least 8,500 sexual offences against children aged 12 and younger on or near school premises between 2021 and 2025, according to the analysis of data from 33 police forces in England and Wales.
How many rape reports were included in the police data?
These statistics encompass nearly 2,000 reports of attempted rape and rape, which means police received an average of one rape allegation at a school every single day. More than a third of those rape victims were under 13 years old.
Why might the true number of offences be higher than the recorded figures?
The analysis relies on data provided by only 33 out of 43 police forces in England and Wales that responded to freedom of information requests. Variations in how forces collect data and keyword searches of summary notes across different forces also mean the true figure is likely to be significantly higher.
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