Responding to Rape: Speech by Alan Campbell / Home Office, 7 November 2008
http://press.homeoffice.gov.uk/Speeches/alan-campbell-speech-resonding
"This is a transcript of the speech by Home Office Minister Alan Campbell to the Lancashire and Cumbria Constabularies Joint Conference on 7 November 2008. He talks about the Government's role in ensuring that police have the support needed to deliver a first-class service to all victims of rape and sexual violence."

Youngsters want more internet protection, says new report / Ofsted, 24 October 2008
http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/Ofsted-home/News/Press-and-media/2008/October/Youngsters-want-more-internet-protection-says-new-report

"Children living away from home, or using social care services, want to feel safer online, be protected from unsuitable sites and have adult supervision, highlights a new report published today by the Children’s Rights Director for England, Dr Roger Morgan. The report, ‘Future care: Children’s advice on future care standards’, follows consultation with 686 children and young people - aged between four and 20 - who attended the 2008 national children’s conference. These youngsters discussed the key issues that they would like to see considered for future inclusion in the National Minimum Standards. “One of these is the need for all children to know about how to stay safe on the internet,” explains Dr Roger Morgan."

UK children 'at risk on internet' / BBC, 26 September 2008
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7638533.stm
"UK children are more at risk from web dangers than those from other European countries, a study has found. Almost one in four British youngsters has received unwanted sexual comments online compared to one in 10 in Ireland and Germany, the report said."


London School of Economics study of 7,393 children - The full report is available at www.eukidsonline.net in the section ‘EU kids Online reports’
http://www.eukidsonline.net/

Paedophiles use internet blackmail to claim victims, says CEOP / The Times 12 September 2008
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article4735360.ece
"Paedophiles are publishing an increasing number of sadistic and violent images of younger children on the internet and are abandoning the slow grooming of victims, instead using threats to force them into commiting indecent acts, an intelligence review has found. The review, published today by the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP), also found evidence that individual paedophiles are running multiple e-mail accounts, sending out hundreds of messages a day to children."

Schemes for giving public information on paedophiles add to risk, says Barnardo’s / The Times, September 15 2008
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article4753637.ece
"A pilot scheme that will allow the public to seek information about paedophiles may put youngsters at greater risk of attack, a leading children’s charity has cautioned. The Home Office scheme will give parents, carers and guardians the right to seek information from the police about whether a person with unrestricted contact with their children has a record for child sex offences or domestic violence."

Sexual Assault Referral Centres: 2008 funding round / Home Office, 7 October 2008
http://www.crimereduction.homeoffice.gov.uk/sexual/sexual028.htm
"This page gives information on the funding available for sexual assault referral centres and how to apply."

Are children safer? The government claims UK legislation against sex offenders is effective, but it has failed to effectively implement the law / Guardian August 22 2008
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/aug/22/ukcrime.childprotection?gusrc=rss&feed=society
"We have probably all had our fill of witnessing the excruciating spectacle of Paul Gadd/Gary Glitter playing musical planes to avoid returning to London for a life of running from tabloid newshounds. Many of us have certainly stomached enough of the home secretary, Jacqui Smith's "tough talking" in her carefully planned press interviews announcing yet more clampdowns on sex offenders. The Home Office has legislated almost every year of the last 11 on sex offenders. But government failure to effectively implement the changes in law means children can only be considered marginally safer. It is high time the home secretary stopped congratulating herself –agreeing press releases announcing tough new laws is one thing: making the laws work is the hard part."

Sex offenders to face lie tests / BBC, 19 September 2008
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7625186.stm
"Sex offenders in some parts of England and Wales could be made to take compulsory lie detector tests to see if they are still a danger to the public. The Ministry of Justice said a pilot scheme would test the use of polygraphs for offenders living in the community."

Lie detector 'will protect public' from paedophiles / Independent.co.uk, Saturday, 20September 2008
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/lie-detector-will-protect-public-from-paedophiles-936366.html
"Sex offenders will be forced to take lie detector tests to assess what danger they pose to the public under a pilot scheme announced yesterday by the Ministry of Justice. Children's and crime reduction charities welcomed testing of paedophiles and sex offenders. They said it would increase confidence in the probation system. The pilot scheme will begin in April and run for three years."

Really lifting the lid? The Poppy Project's report on London's sex workers is shocking reading, but it leaves some vital questions unanswered / guardian.co.uk, September 08 2008
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/sep/08/ukcrime.gender?gusrc=rss&feed=society
"The new research by the Poppy Project, Big Brothel, a survey of the off-street sex industry in Lodon, has generated shock and headlines that sex can be purchased in London for as little as £15 and highlighted the fact that sex without condoms is available. However, closer inspection of the data reveals that only 2% of brothels contacted by phone by researchers offer sex without condoms. This leaves a very impressive 98% of establishments insisting on condom use."

link to Big Brothel report http://www.eaves4women.co.uk/News/News.php

Revealed: the truth about brothels A survey into London's off-street sex industry has exposed just how widespread it is - and documents in disturbing detail the plight of the women trapped in it. /The Guardian, September 10 2008
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2008/sep/10/women.socialexclusion?gusrc=rss&feed=society
"When Frank rang a brothel in Enfield, he could hear a baby crying in the background. When Alan called one in Southwark, he could make out the sound of a child asking for his tea. And when Mick called another to inquire about their services, he was told that he could have a "dirty Oriental bitch who will do stag nights, anal, and the rest." The men were undertaking research for Big Brothel: a Survey of the Off-Street Sex Industry in London, the most comprehensive study ever conducted into brothels in the UK. The project, which gathered information from 921 brothels in the capital, was commissioned by the Poppy Project, the only British organisation that offers support for women trafficked into prostitution."

Sarah's Law gives mothers right to make 'sex checks' on partners / Independent, 15 September 2008
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/sarahs-law-gives-mothers-right-to-make-sex-checks-on-partners-930853.html
"Moves to give single mothers the power to check whether new partners are sex offenders could encourage malicious campaigns against innocent men and drive paedophiles underground, the Home Office has been warned.Thousands of parents and guardians will from today gain the formal right to ask police to look into the background of people who have unsupervised access to their children. The scheme is being launched in four areas initially, with a view to extending it nationwide. Ministers said the initiative would help to protect children, but critics warned they could prompt vigilante attacks."

Keeping Children Safe: Information disclosure about child sexual offenders / Department for Children, Schools and Families; Home Office, 15 September 2008
http://www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/_files/Keeping%20Children%20Safe.pdf
"This document describes a pilot scheme in which parents, carers or guardians of children and young people can ask the police to tell them if a person has a record for child sexual offences. If police checks show that they have a record for child sexual offences or other offences that might put the child at risk, the police will consider sharing this information with the child’s parent, carer or guardian."

Sex assaults: Police accused of adopting 'Life on Mars' attitude/The Guardian, August 16 2008

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/aug/16/rape.alcohol?gusrc=rss&feed=society


"The number of rape allegations recorded as crimes by police has dropped, prompting concerns that detectives are dismissing cases which they fear will fail in court and hit their clear-up rates. A senior adviser to the government has told the Guardian that in some parts of England and Wales cases which did not fall into the classic "stranger rape" category - such as those where the woman was drunk or was attacked by her partner - were being dismissed by officers with a "Life on Mars" attitude mirroring that of the 1970s TV detectives."

Britain 'ignores child sex tourism' - British paedophiles abuse children abroad, and too little is being done to prevent the offences, says report/ Independent, 17 August 2008

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/britain-ignores-child-sex-tourism-899770.html

"Children are being put at risk by the Government's failure to deal with British paedophiles overseas, according to a new report being published today. Sex offenders are able to travel the world abusing children virtually unchecked, according to the report, which accuses Britain of turning a blind eye to the activities of child molesters abroad. While British authorities await the return on Tuesday of convicted paedophile Gary Glitter after his release from prison in Vietnam, the report from Ecpat (End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and the Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes) accuses the Government of ignoring scores of similar offenders who are abusing children in countries that are often unable to police their activities.

UK fails to bar internet access to child porn /The Observer, July 20 2008

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2008/jul/20/childprotection.censorship?gusrc=rss&feed=uknews

"Almost a million UK households could access websites known to host images of child sex abuse despite a government pledge made two years ago to stop access to paedophile sites. Last night a coalition of leading children's charities, including Barnardo's, the NSPCC and National Children's Homes, described the situation as 'completely unacceptable'. They have written to the Home Office minister in charge of crime reduction, Vernon Coaker, urging him to take immediate steps to ensure all telecom companies offering internet access block customers from being able to see images that in some cases show children as young as a year old being sexually abused."

Leading article: The stark truth about rape / Independent, 13 August 2008

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/leading-articles/leading-article-the-stark-truth-about-rape-892816.html
"It is hard to argue with the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority's reversal of its decision to reduce a compensation payment to a rape victim on the grounds that the woman in question had been drinking. In reaching its original decision, the CICA wandered on to the treacherous terrain of identifying "contributory factors" to the crime of rape."

Rape compensation cut for drunk victims / Independent, 12 August 2008
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/rape-compensation-cut-for-drunk-victims-891816.html
"Rape victim campaigners today called for an inquiry into "old and silly prejudices" after it emerged that some women had compensation cut because they had been drinking. In the past year, 14 rape victims - 1 per cent of rape-related applications - were told they would receive lower levels of compensation due to alcohol consumption, the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) told the Guardian newspaper."

The Big Question: Have we taken child protection measures too far in Britain?/ Independent, 12 August 2008

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/the-big-question-have-we-taken-child-protection-measures-too-far-in-britain-891445.html

"Surrey County Council has been criticised by Ofsted over its "unacceptable and dangerous" efforts to vet staff working with children, warning that youngsters are being put at risk as a result. The issue of checking teachers, youth workers and others responsible for youngsters' welfare has steadily risen up the agenda during the last decade, and the Government is preparing to launch an agency that could result in a quarter of the adult population being vetted for any criminal past."

ISPs sign nationwide deal to ban child porn / vnunet.com,
http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2222066/isps-sign-nationwide-deal-ban
"All cable providers in the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) have vowed to block sites listed as carrying child pornography held by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC)."