A University of Wollongong research team has received $1 million in funding from the NSW Government to improve responses to problematic and harmful sexual behaviour (PHSB) amongst children and young people.
The project will establish Australia’s first digital clearinghouse dedicated to PHSB, providing practice ready guidance for teachers, health workers, youth workers and carers.
University of Wollongong senior lecturer, Dr Kenny Kor, who is leading the initiative, said the scale of the issue is far greater than most Australians realise.
“The Australian Child Maltreatment Study showed that young people were responsible for nearly half of all child sexual abuse incidents,” Dr Kor said.
“In our own research here at UOW, my colleagues and I looked at statutory child protection reports from 2018 to 2019. Across that period, we identified over 5,000 reports involving PHSB.”
Dr Kor said PHSB is often misunderstood because it sits on a spectrum and has no single cause.
He said trauma, exposure to domestic violence, pornography and developmental challenges can intersect, making early identification difficult.
“No single service or professional sees the whole picture,” Dr Kor said.
“That’s why a multi-agency approach is so important.”
AIHW’s Recorded Crime-Victims data for 2024 has shown that 56 per cent of all sexual assault victims were under 18.
The harmful experiences often occur alongside other forms of violence.
The ABS Personal Safety Survey (2021-22) found that 13 per cent of adults witnessed partner violence against a parent before turning 15.
The Australian Child Maltreatment Study (2021) has estimated that three in ten Australians experienced sexual abuse in childhood.
The same study found that two in five Australians were exposed to domestic violence before age 18.
AIHW’s National Hospital Morbidity Database (2023-24) has shown that family and domestic violence is most likely to affect children aged 0-14, with parents identified as the primary perpetrators in FDV‑related assault hospitalisations.
DCJ out-of-home care caseworker, Natasha Tesoriero said children often enter the system with complex and compounding trauma.
“Children arrive with layered trauma, and the system isn’t fast enough to meet them where they are,” Ms Tesoriero said.
She said delays in assessment and referral can leave young people without the specialist support they need.
“Too many children fall through the cracks because services aren’t coordinated or resourced to respond early,” Ms Tesoriero said.
The new clearinghouse is intended to address the gap identified between growing research and frontline practice.
It will consolidate accessible, sector-specific guidance so teachers, health workers, youth workers and child protection practitioners know what to look for, how to respond and where to seek support.
The aim is to ensure concerning behaviour is recognised earlier and that responses across schools, health services and child protection systems are consistent and informed by evidence.
Additional reporting:David Camplin
Feature Image; iStock
