Hate crimes against children rose by a fifth in three years since Brexit vote

Research by the NSPCC showed the number of offences recorded by police against under-18s went from 8,683 in 2015/16 to 9,752 in 2016/17 and then to 10,571 in 2017/18.

It is a rise of 22% across three years.

Babies under the age of one were among victims who had racist abuse shouted at them.

The charity requested data from all UK police forces under the Freedom of Information Act, receiving figures from 38 out of 45.

It also released figures from its helpline Childline, which held 2,617 counselling sessions about race and faith-based bullying between 2015/16 and 2017/18.

Some bullied youngsters told counsellors they had tried to change the colour of their skin using make-up after being subjected to racist insults, and were shunned by other children.

Girls were more likely to contact the helpline and the most common age group was between 12 and 15.

Police chiefs have raised concerns over the heated public debate around Brexit and the “febrile” atmosphere that it has created.

The UK’s head of counter-terrorism policing Neil Basu said in January that a spike in hate crime seen around the 2016 EU referendum had “never really receded”.

Police figures for all hate crime showed sharp rises around the time of the 2016 EU referendum and the 2017 terror attacks in London and Manchester.

Levels decreased again until early 2018, when they again began to rise.

Head of Childline John Cameron said: “Childhood bullying of this nature can cause long-term emotional harm to children and can create further divisions in our society.

“If we see a child bullying another because of their race we need to tackle it head on, by explaining that it’s not OK and how hurtful it is.

“I would urge any child who is being targeted because of their race to contact Childline, and any adult to call the helpline if they are worried about a child.”