EXCLUSIVE: More than 5000 recorded incidents of child sex abuse in Norfolk since 2020
The NSPCC tell us that figure is most likely higher due to the amount of cases that are not reported
We can exclusively reveal more than 5000 children have been recorded as victims of indecent images in Norfolk since 2020.
Figures we've seen also show just over 900 of those incidents were dismissed, due to a lack of evidence.
The data shows no dramatic rise or fall in recorded incidents - with the lowest in 2024 with 919, and the highest in 2022 with 1107 recorded child sex offences.
Chris Sargisson from Norwich was a victim of John Foxley, who was jailed in 2021 for historic child sex offences dating back to the 1980's. Chris waived his right to anonymity to encourage other victim survivors to reach out for support. The 57-year-old is now an ambassador for Brave Futures, which supports young people across the county.
Chris gave us his reaction to the figures: " One of the things that I pulled out quite quickly is in 4 years of data and it's hard to see anything that would qualify as a significant downward trend. It underscores this urgency and need for must stronger safeguarding measures and better support that really helps children speak out."
Chris added: "When the abuse finishes, the mental trauma continues, for others it was more devastating. It carries through your life and it can be catastrophic.
"This is happening and it's real and it happens every single day and it's increasing. Unless we have the mechanisms to stop this, pick it up and resolve it, we then have alot of people going into adulthood with very traumatic experiences.
"Unless it's resolved and picked up in a very specialist, timed, caring and guilt free way it can be devastating.
"If you can stop it then you'll start to see those numbers trending back down again. Society has a problem with it and society has to deal with it. But, the legal system needs to have means to shut things down and act as much as a preventive measure as well as a prosecutor."
Andrew Skea, assistant director for the NSPCC in the East of England said the figures we've gathered are are most likely higher:
"The data we've got in terms of modelling does suggest that there's more than 7000 children estimated to be sexually abused every year in Norfolk alone. It's underreported, we know that not all suspected cases of child sexual abuse are recorded.
"It's really important that children have safe relationships and people they can tell. We do know that children and young people find it incredibly difficult to tell, it can be something they find stigmatising and it's a very hard thing to disclose. They're often most likely tot tell a friend, a peer or a parent."
A Freedom of Information Request from Norfolk Police has also revealed there were also more than 3000 recorded incidents of child sex offences in the county rose by around 33% during the same time period.
Andrew added: " The unfortunate danger at the moment is that's exploding, because of AI generated images of taken faces of real children and using that to generate indecent images.
"We (The NSPCC) are still pushing for change and enforcement in that area, and a couple of things we're focusing on is age verification and end to end encryption, which would help incredibly in that space."
If you are an adult with concerns about a child, you can call the NSPCC on 0808 800 5000 - or if you are a young person or child who wants to reach out for support, you can call the charity on 0800 1111.
For more information and advice on how to report child abuse and neglect, or if you are worried about a child and not sure what to, there is support and guidance on the NSPCC website.