An investigation into sexual offenses involving children in schools across England and Wales has revealed alarming figures, with an average of five primary-aged children reporting sexual assaults on or near school premises each day. Over a five-year period from 2021 to 2025, police forces logged at least 8,500 sexual offenses against children aged 13 or under, including around 2,000 alleged rapes and attempted rapes, equating to about one rape allegation per day in schools.

The data, obtained through Freedom of Information requests submitted to 43 police forces, showed that 33 forces provided information, while ten did not respond. Among the incidents where the victim's gender was specified, nearly two-thirds of the sexual offenses committed against children under 13 involved female victims. The majority of perpetrators were believed to be fellow pupils, with at least 1,890 offenses involving perpetrators under the age of 18.

Dame Rachel de Souza, the Children’s Commissioner for England, described child-on-child sexual abuse in schools as “widespread, normalised and too often brushed under the carpet.” Advocacy groups echoed this concern, with Janaya Walker, interim director of the End Violence Against Women campaign, calling the findings “shocking but sadly not surprising,” emphasizing the urgent need to protect children from sexual violence in educational settings.

Pepe Di’Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, expressed grave concern over the prevalence of such incidents, calling the situation “appalling” and highlighting the distress it causes among education professionals.

A government spokesperson also condemned the figures, characterizing them as “appalling” and reaffirming schools’ statutory responsibility to address sexual violence and harassment. The government stressed the importance of safeguarding measures and the legal obligations schools have to protect pupils from abuse.

While the true scale of the problem may be higher due to some police forces not providing data, the available figures underscore ongoing challenges in ensuring child safety within schools and the need for continued vigilance and intervention.