Reports of children sexually assaulting each other have almost doubled in the last four years, figures show as experts blame the rise in the availability of online pornography.

Police have received almost 30,000 reports of children committing sexual offences since 2013, with 2,625 - including 225 alleged rapes - carried out by under-18s on other children on school premises, including primary school playgrounds.

Reports of so-called "peer on peer" abuse rose from 4,603 in 2013 to 7,866 last year, according to the data released by 38 of the 43 police forces across England and Wales in response to freedom of information requests.

Figures from 30 forces show reports of sexual offences by children aged 10 and under have more than doubled from 204 in 2013-14 to 456 in 2016-17.

Experts and charities have long warned of the damaging effect that pornography may be having on childrens' behaviour with David Cameron, then prime minister, once saying that it was "corroding childhood".

Mary Sharpe, Chief Executive of addiction charity The Reward Foundation, has said that unless we face up to the reality of what online material is "covertly teaching" young people the crime rate will continue to rise.

Warning about the "ignorance" surrounding the dangers of internet porn she added: "We teach how internet pornography trains the teen brain to want to carry out such acts. The effect of a criminal conviction is devestating."