Abstract

Harmful sexual behaviour (HSB) in childhood is one of the most complex and sensitive challenges in contemporary safeguarding and child-welfare practice. Once regarded as a peripheral concern within the field of adult sexual offending, it is now recognised as a mainstream child-wellbeing and public-health priority (NICE, 2016).

Recent data underline the scale and urgency of this issue: analysis from 42 police forces across England and Wales shows that just over half (52%) of police-recorded child sexual offences involved children aged 10–17 as alleged perpetrators (VKPP, 2024). Department for Education data (2023) similarly indicate that around 40% of recorded child sexual abuse concerns involve abuse perpetrated by another child. These findings show that sexual behaviour between children is not isolated but a significant, enduring safeguarding concern requiring proportionate, evidence based responses.

There is growing concern that a range of social and cultural forces are contributing to this rise and shaping the character of children's sexual behaviours. Rapid technological change has dramatically increased children's exposure to online sexualised content and contact (Stanley et al, 2018). The exponential growth of online sexual behaviour in childhood, including the sharing of sexual images, online coercion, and peer-to-peer abuse, has transformed the contexts in which sexual behaviours are learned and expressed (Barter et al, 2017).

Harmful sexual behaviour in children and young people encompasses many types of behaviour. In this review we will draw upon Hackett's Continuum of sexual behaviours in childhood (Hackett et al, 2024). This continuum provides a developmentally informed, evidence-based framework that distinguishes between:

• Developmentally expected sexual behaviours: appropriate to a child's age, ability, stage of development, and understanding
• Inappropriate sexual behaviours: behaviours that fall outside the range of typical activity for a child's developmental stage, or expressions of expected behaviours in a way or
context that creates problems
• Harmful sexual behaviours: behaviours that cause harm to the child or others, or may be abusive towards others.

This framework was developed through extensive consultation with practitioners, policymakers and researchers, and is grounded in developmental psychology, safeguarding practice and child welfare principles. It is now embedded in UK policy and international guidance and provides the field's foundational framework.