Almost 260 sex attacks in NI schools reported to police in three years

Unlike other police forces, the PSNI did not provide a breakdown of the type of sexual offences reported in Northern Ireland schools

A total of 259 sexual offences, that allegedly took place on school premises across Northern Ireland, were reported to police over the past three years.

The figures were revealed as part of a UK-wide investigation by BBC Radio 5 Live into sex crimes in schools.

It discovered that more than 5,500 alleged sex crimes in UK schools were reported to police from 2012 to 2015.

Unlike other police forces, the PSNI did not provide a breakdown of the type of sexual offences reported in schools.

The PSNI declined to give details of all the ages of the alleged perpetrators, but did confirm that in 237 of the reported sex attacks, the victims were under 18.

Officers in Northern Ireland recorded 66 school sex attacks between 2012/2013, 79 attacks in 2314/2014 and 114 assaults in the latest academic year, 2014/2015.

Some reports may relate to historical allegations for previous years only now being reported.

'Child protection'

BBC Radio 5 Live obtained the data through Freedom of Information requests sent to all police forces in the UK.

In Great Britain, there were nearly 4,000 alleged physical sexual assaults and more than 600 rapes in schools, but in Northern Ireland the category of sex assaults was not released.

The investigation also found out that in England, 60 pupils were permanently excluded for sexual misconduct in 2013/14, while there were no exclusions in Scotland or Wales.

The Department of Education in Northern Ireland (DENI) was unable to provide figures on pupils' exclusions.

A DENI spokeswoman said that on disciplinary action forms, it is "left up to the discretion of the school to specify the nature of the expulsion/suspension".

"Child protection in schools is a very important issue which the department takes very seriously," a DENI statement added.

It said "every school must have a child protection policy which outlines the procedures to be followed in the event of a child protection concern".

The statement added DENI has already issued detailed advice to schools on child protection and said the "needs and safety of the children and young people concerned must always be paramount".

A spokesman for the Westminster government said schools had a duty to report child welfare concerns.

"Our statutory guidance is crystal clear that anyone who has concerns about pupils' welfare should refer to local authorities or the police if a crime is committed, and all schools must act swiftly on allegations."