Study reports sharp rise in recorded sexual and family violence against Australian children

A study by University of Sydney researchers reports a sharp rise in recorded sexual and domestic or family violence against children in Australia. Medical Xpress reported the finding. Anadolu Agency also reported a sharp rise in such violence, citing a study, but its headline does not identify which study.

According to Medical Xpress, the study was published in JAMA Network Open on 13 October 2026. It covered 2014 to 2024. It drew on three national databases: the Australian Bureau of Statistics Recorded Crime—Victims collection, and the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare's National Hospital Morbidity Database and Child Protection collection.

Key figures

Medical Xpress reported these changes in police-recorded cases over 2014–2024:

• Sexual assault against girls aged 0–9 rose 2.8% per year, or 32% over 10 years.
• Sexual assault against girls aged 10–17 rose 4.2% per year, or 51%.
• Sexual assault against boys aged 10–17 rose 4.8% per year, or 60%. This included a rise of 15.7% per year from 2021.
• Sexual assault rates for boys aged 0–9 were stable overall but rose by around 17% per year after 2021. Medical Xpress also reported a rise of more than 50% for boys over three years from 2021.
• Family and domestic violence-related assault against boys aged 0–9 rose 4.6% per year, or 57% over 10 years.
• For girls aged 0–9, girls aged 10–17 and boys aged 10–17, these assault rates were relatively stable at first. They rose from about 2020, by approximately 8% to 20% per year through 2024.

Over the same period, the study found no significant change in hospitalisations of children for assault-related injuries. It also found no rise in substantiated child maltreatment cases, according to Medical Xpress.

What each side says

Medical Xpress quoted lead author Dr. Lucy Grummitt of the University of Sydney's Matilda Centre as saying: "We are at a crisis point. Sexual assault and family and domestic violence have increased over the decade, but what's particularly concerning is that the steepest increases were in the last three to five years."

The researchers list possible factors but do not establish them as causes. These include rising income inequality, the COVID-19 pandemic, later cost-of-living pressures, shifting gender norms, online misogynistic cultures, gaps in support services, and possibly more reporting. They note that sharp increases in 2021 coincided with the highest income disparity in 20 years. They present this as a correlation.

The researchers say the decline in substantiated maltreatment cases may reflect limits on child protection system capacity rather than less exposure to violence. They cite Australian Productivity Commission data. According to Medical Xpress, they said: "These differences in trends across administrative systems underscore the need for better data and cross-sector integration to understand what is happening with these different indicators of children's exposure to violence, and to direct support and intervention to the right places."

They call on federal and state governments to invest more in prevention and early detection. Their proposals include integrated surveillance across police, health and child protection systems, and nationally consistent legislation on corporal punishment. Medical Xpress quoted Grummitt as saying: "We need greater investment in prevention and early intervention so that we don't see so many children suffering at the very extreme end of the spectrum."

Medical Xpress also reported that Save the Children launched an open letter with 200 experts last month. The letter calls for greater action to protect Australian children.

What remains unclear

The reports reviewed by Vocemundi give only percentage changes, not absolute numbers or rates. They do not show whether the rise reflects more violence, more reporting, or both. The reports reviewed by Vocemundi include only a headline from Anadolu Agency. The Medical Xpress text breaks off partway. The reports do not include responses from governments, police or independent researchers.

Analysis

The study's central tension is the gap between police data, which rose, and hospital and child protection data, which did not. Several readings are possible. Violence may have increased. Reporting to police may have increased. Or child protection systems may be under strain, as the researchers suggest. These explanations are not mutually exclusive. The study, as described, does not settle which applies. Policymakers may weigh its calls for prevention funding and integrated data systems. Independent review of the paper's methods, and responses from governments and agencies, would help clarify how much weight the figures can bear.

Produced by the Vocemundi newsroom with AI assistance.