By Dr. Suruchi Sood
Social Science Director, CHILD USA
Children with disabilities encounter some of the highest risks of sexual abuse worldwide — yet they are often left out of prevention programs designed to protect children.
Our team at CHILD USA recently completed a global overview of efforts over the past 15 years to prevent child sexual abuse (CSA) among children with disabilities (CwD). What we discovered was both hopeful and concerning: the field is growing, but inclusion and sustainability still face obstacles. This isn’t a published study yet; it’s an ongoing research project, part of a larger conversation about how to build truly inclusive prevention systems. But the evidence we’ve gathered already provides a clear picture of where the world currently stands and where it needs to go from here.
The Silent Risk
CwD are two to four times more likely to face sexual abuse than their non-disabled peers. The reasons are complex but well-documented. Many children with disabilities rely on adults for daily care, which can increase the risk of boundary violations and grooming. Some face communication difficulties that prevent them from sharing concerns. Others are viewed through ableist stereotypes — seen as “innocent,” “asexual,” or “unreliable witnesses.”
Even the systems designed to protect them, schools, clinics, and child welfare agencies, are often ill-equipped to identify or respond to abuse involving children with disabilities.
It’s not that these children are inherently more at risk; it’s that our institutions are less prepared to protect them.
Why Prevention Has Lagged Behind
Over the past few decades, there has been a surge in CSA prevention efforts worldwide — from school-based programs to media campaigns. However, our review of the literature shows that children with disabilities are largely absent from these initiatives.
Many interventions assume children can read, speak, and understand complex language. Materials are not adapted for children with intellectual, communication, or sensory disabilities. Since many programs are designed for “typical” classrooms, students with disabilities are often left out entirely.
It’s a heartbreaking irony: the children who need safety education the most are the least likely to get it.
Mapping What’s Been Tried
Our scoping review analyzed 13 interventions across 11 countries, including Egypt, Germany, Turkey, Canada, Indonesia, and Saudi Arabia. These efforts ranged from simple school-based lessons to parent workshops, teacher training, and even technology-supported tools like virtual reality and interactive videos.
We grouped them into four broad types:
- Child-focused prevention education: programs that teach children to recognize unsafe touch, understand body autonomy, and seek help.
- Parent and caregiver education: teaching parents to recognize signs of abuse and communicate with their children about safety.
- Professional development: enhancing skills among teachers, counselors, and social workers to identify and respond to abuse.
- Technology-based innovations: utilizing games, AI, or digital media to make learning more accessible and engaging.
The results? Most interventions were successful, but not always as we expected.
Knowledge Improves, Behavior Less So
Almost every study we examined revealed that participants—whether children, parents, or teachers—learned more about preventing sexual abuse after the intervention. They became better at recognizing unsafe situations, identifying trusted adults, and understanding appropriate boundaries.
However, fewer programs showed sustained behavioral change, meaning children practiced safety behaviors or adults intervened more effectively.
This gap between “knowing” and “doing” is common in public health, and it’s especially difficult in disability settings, where continuous reinforcement and caregiver involvement are crucial.
The strongest results came from programs that used interactive learning, storytelling, visuals, and role-play, rather than lectures or worksheets. Children retained lessons longer when they could see and act out safety situations.
Parents Are the Game-Changers
Across all the studies, one thing was clear: parents and caregivers are important.
Programs in Egypt, Indonesia, and Saudi Arabia trained parents of children with intellectual disabilities to talk about private body parts, safe touch, and boundaries. These parents gained confidence and were more likely to have safety conversations at home. This approach doesn’t need complicated technology or large funding. It relies on compassion, training, and persistence, meeting families where they are, both culturally and emotionally.
The Role of Teachers and Professionals
Teachers, therapists, and other professionals are often the first to notice changes in a child’s behavior. However, few receive proper training in detecting or responding to sexual abuse, especially among children with disabilities.
Several initiatives directly addressed this issue. In Germany, a teacher-preparation program increased educators’ confidence by 45% in recognizing and managing potential abuse cases. In Indonesia, school staff reported that disability-specific examples helped them identify risks they hadn’t noticed before.
When teachers understand both child protection and disability inclusion, schools become much safer, not just for children with disabilities but for everyone.
Innovation Through Technology
One of the most exciting fields of innovation is technology.
From virtual reality simulations in Mexico to tablet-based safety games in Indonesia, digital tools are helping bridge communication gaps. These programs often use visual cues, interactive storytelling, and scenario-based learning, making prevention accessible for children who find abstract instruction difficult.
Although still in early stages, technology-based approaches can revolutionize how we teach body safety, especially for children with intellectual and communication challenges.
The next step is to expand these innovations beyond research pilots and integrate them into public education systems.
What’s Still Missing
Despite growing interest, several gaps persist:
- Short timelines: Many programs last just a few weeks with no long-term follow-up.
- Narrow focus: Most target intellectual disabilities, leaving children with physical or multiple disabilities underserved.
- Few system-wide approaches: Interventions often function as standalone projects instead of integrated components of child protection systems.
- Limited focus on intersectionality: Factors such as gender, poverty, and institutional living are still underexplored.
In short, the field is advancing, but not quickly enough or widely enough.
So, What Works?
Based on the evidence, several strategies reliably enhance prevention:
- Begin early. Age-appropriate safety education should start in early childhood and carry on through adolescence.
- Engage caregivers. When parents and teachers reinforce lessons, children are more likely to remember and use them.
- Use diverse formats. Visual, verbal, and tactile methods reach more learners.
- Make conversations normal. Discussing body safety should be as normal as talking about traffic safety.
- Invest in training to empower educators and caregivers with knowledge and confidence.
- Focus on building systems instead of just projects. Include CSA prevention for children with disabilities within current education and protection frameworks.
A Path Forward
The main point from our review is not that the world lacks solutions; it’s that we haven’t scaled or maintained them.
We know that including children with disabilities makes prevention more effective. They can learn body safety, recognize grooming, and speak up when something feels wrong. But this only happens when adults intentionally include them — in classrooms, in policies, and in protection systems.
Disability inclusion isn’t just an extra step; it’s essential if we truly want to protect every child.
Why This Matters Now
Child sexual abuse prevention has made huge progress over the past twenty years. However, if children with disabilities stay unseen, that progress is not finished.
Inclusion is not only about access — it’s about equity. It’s about affirming that every child, regardless of ability, has the right to be safe, to be heard, and to be believed.
As our team refines this research for publication, one truth has become crystal clear: protecting children with disabilities isn’t just good practice. It’s a test of how seriously we take protecting every child.
Because until every child is safe, none of us can genuinely claim we’ve done enough.