What Is Child Abuse?
There are many different forms of child abuse which can cause significant harm to a child. The most common forms include physical, emotional and sexual abuse as well as neglect.
Physical Abuse
Physical abuse is when someone hurts or harms a child or young person on purpose. It includes:
• hitting with hands or objects
• punching
• kicking
• shaking
• throwing
• poisoning
• burning and scalding
• biting and scratching
• breaking bones
• drowning
It's important to remember that physical abuse is any way of intentionally causing physical harm to a child or young person.
It can also include fabricating symptoms of an illness or inducing an illness in a child.
Bumps and bruises don't always mean a child is being physically abused. All children have accidents, trips and falls. If a child regularly has injuries, there seems to be a pattern to the injuries or the explanation doesn't match the injuries, then this should be reported.
Physical abuse can happen in any family. But some parents might find it hard to give their children a safe and loving home if they're in a difficult situation such as facing poverty, poor mental health, substance abuse issues, domestic abuse or lack of support.
Babies have a higher risk of suffering physical abuse as well as disabled children, especially those who are unable to tell someone what's happening or don't understand what's happening to them is abuse.
Emotional Or Psychological Abuse
Emotional abuse is any type of abuse that involves the continual emotional mistreatment of a child. It's sometimes called psychological abuse. Emotional abuse can involve deliberately trying to scare, humiliate, isolate or ignore a child.
Emotional abuse is often a part of other kinds of abuse though it can also happen on its own.
Emotional abuse includes:
• humiliating or constantly criticising a child
• threatening, shouting at a child or calling them names
• making the child the subject of jokes, or using sarcasm to hurt a child
• blaming and scapegoating
• making a child perform degrading acts
• not recognising a child's own individuality or trying to control their lives
• pushing a child too hard or not recognising their limitations
• exposing a child to upsetting events or situations, like domestic abuse or drug taking
• failing to promote a child's social development
• not allowing them to have friends
• persistently ignoring them
• being absent
• manipulating a child
• never saying anything kind, expressing positive feelings or congratulating a child on successes
• never showing any emotions in interactions with a child, also known as emotional neglect
Sexual Abuse
There are two types of sexual abuse – contact and non-contact abuse. Sexual abuse can happen in person or online.
Contact abuse
Contact abuse is where an abuser makes physical contact with a child or forces the child to make physical contact with someone else. This includes:
• sexual touching of any part of a child's body, whether they're clothed or not
• using a body part or object to rape or penetrate a child
• forcing a child to take part in sexual activities
• making a child undress or touch someone else.
Contact abuse can include touching, kissing and oral sex.
Non-contact abuse
Non-contact abuse is where a child is abused without being touched by the abuser. This can be in person or online and includes:
• exposing or flashing
• showing pornography
• exposing a child to sexual acts
• making them masturbate
• forcing a child to make, view or share child abuse images or videos
• making, viewing or distributing child abuse images or videos
• forcing a child to take part in sexual activities or conversations online or through a smartphone.
Who Is At Risk Of Sexual Abuse?
Any child is at risk of being sexually abused.
Most children who've been sexual abused are abused by someone they know. This could be a family member, a friend or someone who has targeted them, like a teacher or sports coach.
Children who are sexually abused online could be abused by someone they know. They could also be abused by someone who commits a one-off sexually abusive act or a stranger who builds a relationship with them.
Some children are more at risk of sexual abuse. Children with disabilities are more likely to be sexually abused, especially those who are unable to tell someone what's happening or don't understand what's happening to them is abuse.
Some abusers target children who may be isolated for example a child who is neglected at home or is in care.
Domestic Abuse
Domestic abuse is any type of controlling, bullying, threatening or violent behaviour between people who are or have been in a relationship. It can also happen between adults related to one another. It can seriously harm children and young people, and experiencing domestic abuse is child abuse.
Being exposed to domestic abuse has serious consequences for children and young people and it can affect how they feel, think and behave in harmful ways.
Following a successful campaign by the NSPCC alongside other children’s charities and women’s organisations the UK government agreed to recognise children as victims and passed The Domestic Abuse Act 2021.
Neglect
Neglect is the ongoing failure to meet a child's basic needs. It is the most common form of child abuse. A child might be left hungry or dirty, without proper clothing, shelter, supervision, education or health care. This can put children and young people in danger and it can have long term effects on their physical and mental wellbeing.
Other forms of child abuse
Other forms of child abuse include grooming, child sexual exploitation, bullying, criminal exploitation and gangs, female genital mutilation, online abuse and child trafficking.
How Can Timms Help?
If you require any further information with regards child abuse, please contact me on freephone 0800 011 666 or via email j.taylor@timms-law.com.
