Adolescent sex crime or criminalising adolescent sex?

Simon and Kate will present from research they are conducting which examines the range of cases referred to the police involving children and young people under the age of 18 who are ‘suspects’ of sex crime. They will use Hackett’s notion of the continuum of sexual behaviour to describe the range of children being referred, their sexual behaviours, the responses to them, and outcomes. The data raises questions about children’s agency, gendered identities, risk and vulnerability. They shall discuss the extent to which children and young people are being referred for ‘normative’ or ‘harmful’ behaviours and what this suggests for the practice responses.