SEX offences by adults in a position of trust are on the rise in Warwickshire – and a children’s charity believes the true extent of abuse is much worse than official data shows.
Thirteen offences have been committed in the county since 2015, with just two occurring during the previous three years – a near seven-fold increase.
But the NSPCC says the true figure is higher because the law does not apply to sports coaches or other youth leaders.
‘Abuse of Position of Trust’ offences are where professionals such as teachers or care staff have sexual contact with 16 or 17-year-olds they work with.
The charity says a legal loophole means youth workers such as sports coaches or leaders of religious groups can ‘groom’ children from a young age before abusing them as soon as they turn 16.
This happened to Lee, who was befriended by youth leader Adam at his church group when he was 15. Adam began texting Lee and asking to spend time together outside of the group.
Lee said: “Adam started by sitting closer to me on the sofa, trailing his finger on to mine. Things which I thought were weird but not big enough to react to.”
It escalated to kissing and sexual contact when Lee turned 16.
He added: “I was so confused but knew what he was doing was wrong. I wanted it to stop but part of me was afraid to speak out because I didn’t want to get him in trouble.”
The NSPCC’s #TrustToLead campaign is calling for laws on Position of Trust to be extended.
The charity’s Head of Policy Almudena Lara said: “Safeguarding in children’s clubs should not end suddenly at 16. The NSPCC has been told of a number of cases where in sports and other youth work settings, leaders have used their position to groom children, and then take advantage of them as soon as they turn 16.
“It is baffling that sports coaches and other youth workers are not deemed to be in a position of trust, given the significant responsibility, influence and authority that adults in these roles have over the children they are there to look after.
“Sadly, we know this trust can be abused and it is therefore vital that this legal definition is widened to include sports coaches and other youth workers, bolstering protection for teenagers at risk of grooming once they pass the age of consent.”
Visit www.nspcc.org.uk/what-we-do/campaigns/trust-to-lead for more information.
Lee’s story (all names have been changed to protect anonymity)
“Quite early on, Adam and I began texting. He then started suggesting we should hang out outside of the group. I didn’t think anything of it, as I thought it was probably not uncommon for Youth Workers to want to spend time with young people like myself.
“I didn’t have a lot of friends, I think because of the Christian thing; people at School weren’t really going that way and I felt slightly isolated.
“I felt like I had a made a close friend in Adam. He was paying me attention and I enjoyed his company; it felt like he was really looking out for me. He allowed me to become an active member of the youth group, which I liked, and at times I would visit three or four times a week; each time with him providing me transport.
“Then, Adam began encouraging me to hang out with him at his house. He started telling me that we had a special friendship.
“It was very gradual and all quite innocent to start with, but I began to feel increasingly uncomfortable.
Adam started by sitting closer to me on the sofa, trailing his finger on to mine. Things which I thought were weird but not big enough to react to.
“Over time, this turned into extended hugs and him kissing my face. He would tell me that I was his best mate and what we had was special. He said it was normal to do these things, even biblical; reading me passages from the Bible.
“As things continued I told him I wasn’t comfortable with what he was doing. He didn’t listen but instead ramped things up by kissing me on the lips. The kissing on the lips then became more regular and I felt helpless to tell anybody about what was happening.
“When I told Adam, that I wasn’t gay, I liked girls and I wanted him to stop, he would turn things round telling me that I must want this, because I’d instigated it. He would threaten to take me off the preaching rota or to stop giving me lifts. Adam made me feel as if I would be ostracised from the group if I put a stop to things with him and told me constantly that I wasn’t to tell anyone.
“Things began to escalate when he made us masturbate in the same room as each other. I began to realise he had this massive thing about masturbation. When we weren’t together, he would text me telling me that he thought about me while he was masturbating. The pressure continued from him, that we were going to spend our lives together and he wanted us to have sex.
“I was so confused but knew what he was doing was wrong. I wanted it to stop but part of me was afraid to speak out because I didn’t want to get him in trouble. Looking back now, I realise the level of grooming and manipulation. He purposely made me feel so reliant on him and not being able to talk to anybody about what was happening was making me feel really depressed.”
