POLICE have urged parents to talk to their children about sex after a 15-year-old West Cumbria boy pleaded guilty to having sex with a 12-year-old girl.
A 15-year-old male has been sentenced today for child sex offences in west Cumbria. He pleaded guilty this morning following an appearance at court.
The offences were:
• Engaging in sexual activity with girl under 13 - offender under 18
• Inciting a girl under 13 to engage in sexual activity - penetration
• Inciting a girl under 13 to engage in sexual activity - penetration
The offences relate to an incident that occurred in April 2016. Whereby the 15-year-old male had engaged in sexual intercourse with a 12-year-old girl.
He was sentenced to a 12 month referral order, a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) for 5 years, sex offenders register for 5 years, and his parents also received a parenting order for 6 months.
Detective Inspector Dan St Quintin said: “Today, I want to jolt parents and get a very clear message out. Please ensure you know what your children are doing - talk to your kids about sex. A 15 year old boy having sex with a 12 year old girl is not acceptable, it is criminal. Children under 16 by law cannot consent to sex.
“The offender has pleaded guilty to some very serious sexual offences. This has led to a grade A pupil being placed on the sex offenders register for 5 years. This will have a catastrophic effect on his career chances.
“His parents were aware of what was going on and deemed it as ‘teenagers doing what teenagers do’. As a result, they have been issued with a parenting order for 6 months for failing to prevent his behaviour from happening repeatedly.”
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