Thousands of violent sexual assaults in NHS hospitals – there are dozens every week, the report reveals

THOUSANDS of violent sexual assaults have been committed in NHS hospitals – with dozens of offenses happening every week, a new report reveals today.

More than 6,500 rapes and sexual assaults, including against children under the age of 13, have been reported in hospitals across England and Wales in the last four years.

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Between January 2019 and October 2022, at least 2,088 rapes and 4,451 sexual assaults in hospitals were reported to police.

Every seventh offense occurred in what were supposed to be secured infirmaries.

And figures uncovered by the Women’s Rights Network show that just 265 people – less than 5 percent of the alleged perpetrators – have been charged with their crimes.

This means dozens of brutal attacks are taking place in hospitals every week, with WRN founder Heather Binning claiming the stats are “just the tip of the iceberg”.

She said: “Hospitals are places where everyone – patients, staff and visitors – should feel absolutely safe.

“But rapes and violent assaults happen in hospitals every week. To add to the horror, the men who commit the crimes get away with it.”

Ms Binning compared the revelations to the widespread abuse of patients by pedophile Jimmy Saville at Stoke Mandeville Hospital, calling the statistics “absolutely appalling”.

She added: “A fee rate of 4.1 percent is appalling – the hospitals and police are once again failing women and children.

“No one should have the added concern that they or a loved one are at risk of being raped or sexually assaulted while in the hospital.”

The statistics, released as part of a Freedom of Information request, revealed at least 10 rapes of underage girls in hospitals across Cambridgeshire, Lancashire and the West Midlands.

The WRN says the true figure is likely higher as only 35 of the UK’s 43 police forces provided data to the charity’s investigation.