Social workers are out of their depth

Social workers are out of their depth dealing with online grooming and sexual abuse of children, according to a survey by the British Association of Social Workers (BASW).

An online survey of 327 social workers found 74% wanted more support with child protection cases which involved "an aspect of online and complex sexual abuse", while half felt concerned about dealing with online sexual abuse or behaviour.

17% did not know how to "assess the risks" to a child when there was an "online dimension", such as internet grooming, to the case
20% said they did not know the "warning signs" of what online sexual abuse looks like
43% lacked confidence about the language used by young people talking about the internet, and more than a third said they did not know the right questions to ask in order to identify and assess online abuse

"The number of cases in which the internet plays a part in the grooming and abuse of children is rising," said the BASW's Nushra Mansuri.

"Social workers need to be equipped to recognise the warning signs."

One of the social workers said: "We are way out of our depth and training measures are needed without delay."

The NSPCC charity said it had developed an online training guide for child protection professionals - backed by the BASW - to educate them about the risks the internet posed to children.

Chief executive Peter Wanless said paedophiles were using chatrooms and social networks to groom victims, adding that young people were being "coerced into sharing explicit images of themselves via mobile phone messages and apps".