24% of child physical abuse committed by parent or guardian in Northamptonshire

A staggering 24% of child physical abuse crimes in Northamptonshire are committed by the parent or guardian of the child.

An investigation by Legal Expert has revealed that an average of 9 instances of child physical abuse have been recorded by Northamptonshire Police every day in the last three years.

Of these, 2,222 instances of violence towards a child (under 18) were at the hands of the parent or guardian.

The figures obtained via Freedom of Information Request include offences of; assault with injury and assault with intent to cause serious harm.

"No child should ever have to suffer physical abuse at the hands of their parents or guardian,” says Legal Expert solicitor, Jane Davies.

Earlier this year, April 2024, The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health released a report setting out why England and Northern Ireland should change the law to make physical punishment of a child illegal.

The report included studies by RCPCH which found smacking can be damaging to children’s behaviour, health and well-being.

It said for example, children who experience physical punishment are nearly three times more likely to develop poor mental health and twice as likely to be on the receiving end of serious physical assault and abuse.

According to the Office for National Statistics, the best available indicator of child physical abuse recorded by the police is offences of violence against the person involving “non-accidental infliction of physical force” where the victim was under the age of 18 years.

Legal Expert revealed that in Northamptonshire a total of 9,380 physical abuse crimes towards children were recorded by police since 2021.

“If an adult hits another adult because they don’t approve of how they’re behaving, it’s described as physical assault. But when a parent takes the same action against their child, the law considers it acceptable. This is not right,” says NSPCC CEO, Sir Peter Wanless.

A total of 3,224 physical abuse crimes were committed towards children in Northamptonshire between 2021/22. Of those, 842 were perpetrated by the child’s parent or carer according to police figures - that’s 26%.

The following year, 2022/23, a total of 3,151 physical abuse offences were recorded towards a child. Of those, 715 were at the hands of the parent or guardian.

In 2023/24, Northamptonshire Police recorded a total of 3,005 such offences, 665 of which were logged as having the parent or carer as the perpetrator of the violence towards a child.

Smacking was banned in Scotland in 2020 and was followed by Wales in 2022, prompting new calls for the UK government to follow suit in outlawing the practice in England and Northern Ireland.

In England, it is currently unlawful for a parent or carer to smack their child, except where this amounts to ‘reasonable punishment,’ according to section 58 of the Children Act 2004.

But whether a ‘smack’ amounts to reasonable punishment usually depends on the circumstances of each case, taking into consideration factors such as the age of the child and the nature of the smack.

The UK government said there were no plans to change the law on smacking in England and said it would monitor the impact of law changes in Scotland and Wales.

Legal Expert Solicitor, Jane Davies adds: “Even though there is no outright ban on smacking in England and Northern Ireland yet, there are clear laws in place to protect a child from experiencing any form of violence.

“There are options available to victims of child physical abuse including claiming compensation for physical and emotional harm."