Child sexual exploitation is downplayed to avoid bad publicity, report says

Inquiry into abuse in England and Wales points to extensive failures' in way exploitation by criminal gangs is tackled

Police and councils are potentially downplaying the scale of child sexual exploitation by criminal gangs over concerns about negative publicity, a public inquiry has found.

Charities labelled the findings a damning indictment" of responses to child exploitation across England and Wales, and called for urgent change to support and protect victims.

In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support for rape and sexual abuse on 0808 802 9999 in England and Wales, 0808 801 0302 in Scotland, or 0800 0246 991 in Northern Ireland. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html