Children and adults have anonymously reported testimonies of sexual abuse and harassment at 1,664 primary schools in the UK through a website for survivors, which has called for age-appropriate sex education to be taught to children under the age of nine.
Experiences of sexual harassment, groping, inappropriate touching and even forced penetration have been anonymously reported on the site everyonesinvited.uk, with at least one testimonial relating to an incident that took place when the victim was as young as five.
One 12-year-old wrote on the site: “I was 10 years old and walking to school when a car pulled up and three teenage boys asked me to come inside. I wasn’t stupid. I said no, but one of them came out and grabbed my wrist. I would love to say I was brave and started screaming or fighting back but I was too scared.
“At this point, I was crying and trying do something. I was raped in that car by two of them, the third one watched and recorded. At school I was quiet the whole day my friends assumed it was nothing and it was over just like normal. I’m 12 years old now … and I am [a] survivor.”
The website said the schools included on the Everyone’s Invited primary school list, which it has decided to name, were there because of both past and recent reports of abuse.
“A large majority of our testimonies come from individuals looking back on their experiences,” said Sophie Lennox, a spokesperson for the website. “However, we have anecdotal evidence of children as young as five submitting their stories to our website with adult assistance, be that child therapists or parents.”
The website would like relationships and sex education to be taught before the age of nine.
“At Everyone’s Invited, we are not suggesting a specific age at which teachers should deliver specific content,” Lennox said. “Instead, we work with schools to decide on a developmentally appropriate time to teach different aspects of relationships and sex education.”
She added that evidence from the website’s education programme and testimonies suggested that “across the board, this must be delivered at an earlier age than it currently is, which is nine years old. We need to take a building block approach that educates children to have the agency, tools and language to address these topics”.
Daniel Kebede, the general secretary of the National Education Union (NEU), told the Guardian: “Primary school teachers are reporting that sexist behaviour is happening in their schools. It affects the way that children play together and how girls feel about themselves and the place they have in the world.
“Children with siblings in secondary school are also passing on negative attitudes towards women teachers. Sexist and misogynistic behaviour diminishes both boys and girls.
“Age-appropriate health and sex education is key to supporting young people as they navigate how to foster healthy and appropriate relationships.
“All too often, the over-focus on English and maths in primary education is squeezing out time and space for activities and projects which help with social skills, empathy or personal development.
“There also needs to be a debate about the toxic unfiltered access to social media by young children allowed by social media companies.”
A government spokesperson said: “All pupils should feel safe and protected at school and these testimonies highlight a wide range of deeply concerning issues.
“Misogynistic views are not innate, they are learned, so through our review of the relationships, sex and health curriculum we will ensure young people learn about healthy relationships, boundaries and consent from the start of primary school.
“The government is also introducing a new mandatory reporting duty to ensure all professionals and those who work with children are clear on their duty to report.”
