Police Scotland have recently produced an information booklet for Adult Survivors of Childhood Abuse. This provides information for survivors regarding how to report abuse to police, court processes and links to support organisations.
Child abuse is any action by another person – adult or child – that causes harm to a child and is a criminal offence.
A child is anyone under the age of 16 years and in some circumstances under the age of 18 years. Abusers can be any person of any gender and can come from all walks of life. Children may be abused within a family or institutional setting by those known to them or by a stranger. Abusers very often instil a belief in the child that the child is at fault for the abuse and frequently use threats of harm to force or encourage a child’s silence.
It is important to highlight that survivors are not to blame for the abuse they experienced during childhood.
