Recently Schools in Hampshire and Hampshire Police have been warning this week (9th December 2017) about the perils of sending inappropriate images and the possible consequences.
This is a topic that we frequently cover in Self Protection classes at the club, but the advice bears repeating online and documenting again.
According to research by the children’s charity Barnardo’s
“Last year alone police recorded 9,290 accusations of sexual offences where both the perpetrator and victim were under 18. This compares to 5,215 accusations being made in 2013, representing a 78 per cent rise.”
It’s worth remembering that although the age of consensual sexual intercourse is 16 it remains illegal for anyone under the age of 18 to take, possess, distribute or show anyone an abusive or indecent image.
If an under 18 takes a photograph of themselves and sends that to another under 18, then they have committed an offence, if the recipient keeps the image then they also have committed an offence.
