It's unknown how many children in the UK experience physical abuse. However, research with 2,275 young people aged 11-17 about their experiences of physical abuse suggests around 1 in 14 children in the UK have been physically abused.
This briefing collates information from a number of different sources and looks at what data and statistics are available about physical abuse to help you make evidence-based decisions in your role and organisation.
You’ll also find data from services which work with children and research into children's and adults' self-reported experiences, which help build up a picture of the scale of physical abuse.
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Our team of information specialists are on hand to find the answers to your questions.
Explains what physical abuse is, the impact it can have on different age groups, signs and indicators to look out for and what next steps you need to take if you're concerned.
What have children and adults told the NSPCC helpline and Childline about physical abuse during the coronavirus pandemic? See our insight briefing for a breakdown of the key themes.
Our report compiles and analyses the most robust and up-to-date child protection data that exists across the four nations in the UK.
Find out what data is available and what it can tell us about how many children and young people experience abuse and neglect in the UK.
Explores the different issues to consider when looking at service data, self-report data, trends and comparing statistics across different areas in relation to child abuse.