Children to be taught about abuse

Children as young as five could learn about sex abuse

Children as young as five could be taught how to protect themselves from sex offenders.

The proposal, outlined on Tuesday, would impact Scotland's schools.

It was one of 73 put forward by an expert group, headed by Scotland's first woman judge, aimed at closing gaps in the present system and addressing concerns about sex offending.

The group has called for personal safety programmes to be run in primary, secondary and special schools to warn pupils of the risks they might face from sex offenders.

Jim Wallace put the report out to consultation

Although some schools and local authorities already have personal safety programmes in place which address the risk from sex offenders, the level of effective advice and education is said to be patchy.

The programmes provided by one third of authorities were related to general safety issues and did not include specific elements aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse.

Lady Cosgrove, who chaired the Expert Panel on Sex Offending, said many children were scared to speak out and often did not know that what the abuser was doing was wrong.

She said: "Children need to understand the risks they face as they grow up.

"It is important that effective and not alarmist advice or education is provided for every child."

The report, Reducing the Risk: Improving the Response to Sex Offending, is a result of three years' work.

The report also lists recommendations dealing with community safety aspects, education and preventative measures, risk assessment procedures, as well as the monitoring and housing of sex offenders.

Justice Minister Jim Wallace welcomed the report, saying: "I have decided to put the report out to public consultation to assist in this policy making process and our future action will be informed by these responses."