Description
The most notorious and disturbing cases of child sexual abuse have included abuse by men entrusted to work directly with children. Matthew Colton and Maurice Vanstone carried out in-depth interviews with men serving prison sentences for sexually abusing children in their trust. All the men participated voluntarily, gave permission for publication, and expressed a wish to contribute to child protection. Betrayal of Trust provides a detailed record of the men’s stories – largely told in their own words – including their early life experiences; their sexual development, education and employment careers; how they perpetrated their abuse; and their experience of the prison-based treatment programme. The implications of the men’s accounts for the treatment of offenders, and the protection of potential victims of abuse, are also considered.