One in five girls say they first experienced physical or sexual harassment before age 12
Research from Plan International UK reveals that one in five girls experience physical or sexual harassment before the age of 12. The study highlights that 87% of young women aged 16 to 24 have received unwanted comments about their appearance, indicating a normalization of such harassment. The charity calls for urgent action to address the issue, especially as harassment increasingly occurs online.
- ▪One in five girls in the UK experience harassment before age 12.
- ▪87% of girls and young women aged 16 to 24 have received unwanted comments about their appearance.
- ▪Nearly three in five young women change how they dress to feel safe in public.
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NewsUKHome NewsOne in five girls say they first experienced physical or sexual harassment before age 12Girls’ rights charity Plan International UK warned harassment towards girls has become ‘normalised’ Nicole Wootton-Cane Thursday 28 May 2026 00:02 BSTBookmarkCommentsGo to commentsBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popover{"translations":{"comments":"Go to comments","share":"Share","copyLink":"Copy link","bookmark":"Bookmark","removeBookmark":"Remove bookmark"},"showComments":true,"showBookmark":true,"articleId":"b2984713","articleMeta":{"url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/girls-women-harassment-age-plan-international-uk-b2984713.html","title":"One in five girls say they experienced harassment before age 12"}}Catcalling: Women write in chalk to stop street…
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