January 27 / 2025 / Reading Time: 2 minutes
Huw Edwards case far from isolated, says Childlight
Responding to the conviction of former BBC News presenter Huw Edwards, Childlight, the global child safety institute based at the University of Edinburgh, called for a new approach to curb sexual exploitation and abuse.
Childlight COO Zoe Lambourne said: “Tragically for children, the Huw Edwards case is far from unusual. We’re in the grip of a hidden pandemic, with an estimated 1.8 million UK people involved in sexually abusing and exploiting children online.
"This public health emergency is too big for law enforcement to counter alone but crucially, it is preventable through joint action to ensure child safety is always paramount.”
Childlight recently produced the first global estimate of the extent of online child sexual exploitation and abuse, indicating that more than 300 million children annually fall victim, equivalent to around 10 children every second.
Contact Information
Jason Allardyce
jason.allardyce@ed.ac.uk
Notes to editors
Notes to editors
Childlight's recent report on the global extent of child sexual exploitation and abuse can be found here Childlight | Into the Light Index Overview
It estimates that 7% of men in the UK report that they have engaged in online behaviours at some point in their lifetime that could be classed as online child sexual abuse offending
Photo of Childlight COO Zoe Lambourne attached
For media enquiries please contact Childlight Interim Head of Communications jason.allardyce@ed.ac.uk
Childlight is a global child safety data institute, hosted by the University of Edinburgh and established by the Human Dignity Foundation. Its vision is to utilise academic research expertise to better understand the nature and prevalence of child sexual exploitation and abuse to help inform policy responses to tackling it. Childlight also draws on decades of law enforcement experience at a senior level. Its multi-disciplinary approach ensures not only the production of high-quality data insights but enables Childlight to help authorities around the world turn data into action to pinpoint and arrest perpetrators and safeguard children. Childlight also offers the world’s first Masters of Science Degree in Child Protection Data Futures.