A CHILD sexual abuse prevention campaign has been contacted by 26 men in Surrey seeking help to stop looking at indecent images of children between April and August of this year.

The calls made up 5.3 per cent of the 491 calls received from adults concerned about their online behaviour from across the UK over the same period.

In addition to the 26 men from Surrey who rang the “Stop it Now!” helpline to get help to stop looking at indecent images of children, a further eight adults living in the county rang to express their concerns about the online behaviour of another adult.

The figures point to a broader national trend of significantly increased online viewing and sharing of child abuse images.

Latest estimates from the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre indicate 50,000 individuals in the UK were involved in downloading or sharing indecent images of children in 2013.

In the face of a growing demand, Stop it Now! has launched a new campaign which aims to tackle the growing problem of child pornography head on.

As part of the campaign, Stop it Now! has produced a series of films which will deter would-be offenders by making clear:–

• There are no grey areas – viewing or sharing a sexual image of someone under 18 is illegal

• It isn’t a victimless crime – the experience is extremely harmful to the children involved

• The consequences can be devastating to the family, partners and friends of people who access sexual images of children, and may include: loss of job, arrest, prosecution and becoming a registered sex offender.

• There is help to stop.

The films can be watched on the Stop it Now! Youtube channel.

Welcoming the launch of the campaign, director of research and development at the Lucy Faithfull Foundation, which is behind the Stop it Now! campaign, Donald Findlater, said: “However many benefits digital technology offers, we know it is also used to cause great harm.

“While we have tough laws concerning child sexual abuse, as well as the viewing, sharing and making of indecent images of children, we know tens of thousands of people – mostly men – go online to access this material regularly.

“This campaign is designed to stop as many of them as possible, by clarifying what the law says – by telling them of the harm done to children by making and viewing this material; by bluntly showing them some of the likely consequences of their behaviour on their families and themselves; and by directing those who are struggling to stop to anonymous, free, confidential resources that can help.

“But the campaign needs the public to play their part – by talking about child sexual abuse and how to prevent it.

“And by being alert to the signs that a loved one may be viewing sexual images of children online and knowing how to respond.”

Since 2002, Stop it Now! has helped thousands of people to change their behaviour towards children, both directly as well as online.

It has also provided support, advice and information to families and friends concerned about a loved one’s behaviour.

The campaign has enhanced its confidential and anonymous website offering an even wider range of online resources, designed to help those troubled by their online behaviour to stop.

The website – www.get- help.stopitnow.org.uk – also provides support and information to friends and families with concerns.

It enhances the anonymous and confidential support already available via the group’s helpline, which has received more than 48,000 calls since it was set up in 2002.

Of those calls, 19,522 have come from adult internet offenders and 6,241 have come from adults concerned about the online behaviour of another adult.

• To see the films go to  www.youtube.com/user/stopitnowukireland