A UK-wide child protection charity has seen over 550 people from Gloucestershire reach out with help for viewing sexual images of children.
Between January and June this year, 553 callers and web users from the county contacted the helpline, Stop It Now.
Across the South West region, 3,693 people contacted the anonymous helpline in the first half of this year, which is more than double the figure from January to June 2018.
The helpline is run by The Lucy Faithfull Foundation, the only UK-wide child protection charity which is dedicated to preventing child sexual abuse both online and offline.
Detective Inspector Sue Fereday, Gloucestershire Constabulary lead for child sexual exploitation and indecent images of children, said: “These are complex problems that can’t be solved by one agency alone and working together effectively is key.
"Police and law enforcement will continue to do all we can to find offenders and bring them to justice, but other organisations such as Stop It Now are invaluable in preventing offending from happening in the first place and so protect children from harm.
“Last month we hosted a conference on combating child sexual abuse and exploitation and supporting victims. These are major priorities for us, and we’re committed to doing all we can.”
Donald Findlater, director of the Stop It Now helpline, said: “The growing numbers of people contacting us for help to stop viewing sexual images of under 18s sheds light on the scale of the problem, but also shows that many users of material they call ‘child pornography’ are worried about their behaviour and want help to change.
“And they do need to change. Viewing and sharing these illegal images has enormous consequences for them in the form of possible arrest, imprisonment, being on the sex offenders register, and losing friends and family.
“There are also enormous consequences for the people around them, family members in particular. And more important still are the children in the sexual images who are harmed when they are first made and when they are viewed or shared again.
“These consequences and harms can be prevented by getting in touch with the confidential and anonymous Stop It Now helpline or through our self-help website.
“If you’re worried about yourself or anyone around you, help is available. We have already helped tens of thousands address their concerns and behaviour. Our message is simple, get help before it’s too late.”
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