THE number of child sex crimes recorded in Northern Ireland has risen by almost a fifth following the Jimmy Savile scandal, experts said.
Almost 400 offences against youngsters aged under 10 were reported last year as more people came forward after the exposure of the disgraced former DJ, police figures revealed. The NSPCC urged parents to protect their children and revealed the alarming wrongdoing, which may have happened many years ago or more recently.
It comes as a public inquiry into historical child abuse in institutions run by organisations like churches and the state opens in Northern Ireland.
The charity's regional head Neil Anderson said: "Whilst some of the increase will be down to an increase in reporting due to the Savile scandal, sexual abuse continues to be a terrible scar on our society which won't heal by itself."
Many alleged victims of dead broadcaster Savile in Britain emerged following a television programme about his abuse of teenagers. Claims about Savile, who died in 2011, began following an ITV documentary in October 2012 in which several women said they were abused by him when they were younger.
The NSPCC Northern Ireland disclosed a significant increase in the number of reported primary school age victims.
Last year (2012-13) the PSNI recorded 377 child sex crimes against those under 10 - a near 20 per cent rise on the previous year's figure of 316.
Mr Anderson said: "The police figures are disturbing, particularly as many of the victims are so young and therefore less likely to be able to understand they are being abused and be able to speak out. "This highlights the urgent need to tackle this problem from an early age. "And parents and carers have asked us for support in ensuring their children are armed with the knowledge to recognise the wrong kind of behaviour and keep themselves safe." Last year 1,058 sexual offences against under-18s were reported to the PSNI. Most crimes, which included rape, were committed against those of secondary school age.
Mr Anderson said: "It's a startling fact that most children are abused by someone they know so it's vital that we communicate to children that it's not right for anyone to touch the places that are private to them, no matter who they are."
Michael McHugh
An inquiry into the historical abuse of children at Church, state-run institutions will open today but the first evidence will not be heard until the end of the month.
The executive-ordered inquiry is expected to hear from more than 300 witnesses who were resident in 13 institutions between 1922 and 1995 and say they were subjected to abuse and neglect.
The first evidence to be heard will relate to two homes run by the Sisters of Nazareth in Derry - St Joseph's Home in Termonbacca and Nazareth House Children's Home.
Kate Walmsley, who was abused in Nazareth Children's Home, said she hopes the inquiry's out-come will be that no child in care is ever abused again.
She said she wanted to be listened to and believed.
"I've got to the stage where it's harder to deal with the abuse than it was as a child. I thought no-one would believe me as a child. I thought it was only me it was happening to," she said.
"Then you begin to realise there's other girls and things are happening to them but you couldn't talk about it to another child. You had to keep it to yourself but i think our eyes told everything."
Witnesses called will be grouped by institution and the 13 homes being investigated are local-authority homes, juvenile justice institutions, secular voluntary homes and Catholic voluntary homes. The inquiry has said it may, at a later date, decide to investigate more homes.
The local-authority homes are Lissue Children's unit, Lisburn; Kincora Boys' Home, Belfast, and Bawnmore Children's Home, Newtownabbey.
The juvenile justice institutions are St Patrick's Training School, Belfast; Lisnevin Training School, Co Down and rathgael Training School, Bangor.
The secular voluntary homes are Barnardo's Sharonmore Project and Barnardo's Macedon, both Newtownabbey.
Derry's St Joseph's Home, Termonbacca and Nazareth House Children's Home; Nazareth House Children's Home and Nazareth Lodge Children's Home in Belfast and De La Salle Boys' Home, rubane House, Kircubbin, Co Down are the Catholic voluntary homes.
The public hearings are being held in Banbridge courthouse and are expected to continue until June 2015.
The inquiry has to submit its report to the executive by January 18 2016.
To date 434 people have applied to speak to the inquiry and/ or its acknowledgement forum which takes place in private.
Two thirds of those who are giving evidence live in the north while the remainder are in Britain (63), Australia (61) and the republic (20) with eight others in the US, Canada and Sweden.
Documentation has revealed that between 1947 and 1956 more than 120 children were sent from homes in the north to institutions in Australia as part of a British government policy of child migration.
The majority of those children were sent to Western Australia.
The inquiry has the power to compel people resident in Northern Ireland to give evidence.
The acknowledgement forum has already met 263 people and anyone who wishes to speak to the forum can still do so as it will be running alongside the inquiry which is expected to cost between £15 million and £19m.
* VENUE: Banbridge courtroom in Co Down where the inquiry into historical child abuse in Church, state-run institutions will take place PICTURE: Paul Faith/PA
* ROLES: Inquiry panel members, from left - former director of social services in West Yorkshire David Lane, chairman Sir Anthony Hart and former head of the Central Council for Education and Training in Social Work in Scotland Geraldine Doherty
PICTURE: Paul Faith/PA