Harmful Sexual Behaviour (HSB)

Children’s sexual knowledge and behaviour can be influenced by:

• their age.
• what the child observes (including the sexual behaviours of family and friends, and what they may have accessed through technology).
• what the child is taught (including cultural and religious beliefs concerning sexuality and physical boundaries).

Some childhood sexual behaviours indicate more than harmless curiosity, and are considered sexual behaviour problems. Sexual behaviour problems may pose a risk to the safety and wellbeing of the child and other children (adapted from NCTSN & NCSBY, 2009).

When children and young people (under 18 years) engage in sexual discussions or activities that are inappropriate for their age or stage of development, often with other individuals who they have power over by virtue of age, emotional maturity, gender, physical strength, or intellect and where the victim in this relationship has suffered a betrayal of trust. These activities can range from using sexually explicit words and phrases, to full penetrative sex with other children or adults (adaptation of definition used by the NSPCC and NICE (Calder, 1999, 2002) from Barnardos, 2016, “Now I know it was wrong”).

The difference between sexual behaviour and PSB/HSB
The NSPCC (2019) makes a helpful distinction between problematic and abusive sexual behaviours which is included in a definition of harmful sexual behaviour. 
The Hackett continuum provides a framework to understand the spectrum (range) of sexualised behaviour in children and young people.

Technology-assisted harmful sexual behaviour 
Harmful sexual behaviour can also take place through digital platforms or online. This is known as ‘technology-assisted harmful sexual behaviour’ (TA-HSB). 

Sibling sexual abuse
Sometimes we use the term ‘sibling sexual abuse’ if harmful sexual behaviour happens between siblings and needs assessment and intervention.

There are a variety of factors that may contribute to a child or young person engaging in harmful sexual behaviour, and often a combination of factors.  A number of factors have been highlighted, including:

• difficulties with their family or home environment.
• experience of trauma or abuse and/or disrupted care.
• struggling in relationships with peers (those around their age) and poor social skills (how you relate and get along with others).
• poor self-regulation and coping skills, meaning they struggle to look after themselves emotionally and deal with emotions safely and appropriately.
• experience of social anxiety and a sense of social inadequacy, that makes it difficult to get on with other people and creates a sense of not “fitting in”.
• poorly internalised rules for social behaviour, meaning they may behave in an inappropriate way in social situations.
• a poor sense of acceptable personal boundaries like getting too close to people, not understanding social rules, not understanding what to say or to someone in a particular situation.
• difficulties forming secure and confident emotional attachments to other people, which means they struggling to connect with and get on with others. 
• lack of self-control, acting out their emotional experiences through negative or otherwise inappropriate behaviour.
• little insight into the feelings and needs of other people, and other people’s own mental state.
• placing their own needs and feelings ahead of the needs and feelings of others.
• other factors at school and in the community may also come into play.

Harmful sexual behaviour can have a huge impact on the lives of a young person and their family, within their family and the wider community. 

This can include lasting shame about what has happened, as well as the young person’s family blaming the young person or not supporting their recovery.

If you have been affected by HSB or PSB or other kinds of trauma, please see our trauma page.

• Centre for Expertise on CSA/CSE - useful evidence based paper on sibling sexual abuse in children and young people.
• Parents Protect - has useful resources and information for parents about harmful sexual behaviour, and includes details of a parent helpline.
• NSPCC - link to the HSB section of the NSPCC website, with details of everything parents of children who’ve displayed HSB need to know.
• Think u know - Thinkuknow is the education programme from NCA-CEOP (Short for National Crime Agency Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre), a UK organisation which protects children, both online and offline. Contains resources for childrenm and young people, parents and professionals.
• NICE guidelines - this information aims to ensure that early problems with harmful sexual behaviour don’t get worse and lead to a young person being charged with a sexual offence.
• Keeping Bristol Safe Partnership Bristol Harmful Sexual Behaviour Protocol - this contains useful information and guidance for professionals in addressing and supporting young people who display harmful sexual behaviour.
• National Child Traumatic Stress Network - a helpful US site about working with trauma.
• National Centre on the Sexual Abuse of Youth - a US website with useful information for parents, children, young people and professionals.
• Beacon House - an organisation providing free resources about the repair of trauma and adversity to anyone who needs it. 
• Somerset and Avon Rape and sexual abuse support - organisation supporting anyone who’s experienced rape or sexual abuse of any kind, based in Bristol, South Gloucestershire, Bath and North-East Somerset and Somerset. 

There are different services in our three areas, your area is determined by which GP practive you are registered with. If you are unsure where to go please speak to your family doctor (GP), school health nurse or your school. 

Bristol:

CAMHS - Be Safe Service - 0-18 yrs old

North Somerset:

Youth Inclusion Support Project (YISP) 

South Gloucestershire:

CAMHS - Be Safe Service - 0-11 yrs old

Core Assets - 12-18 yrs old