Cressida Dick, who became Met commissioner in April, promised to prioritise safeguarding but performance has declined in the past year

The NSPCC has said that it is concerned by “deeply troubling” and “unacceptable” police failures to protect children highlighted by The Times this morning.

The Metropolitan police, Britain’s biggest force, has not improved its safeguarding of children at risk of sexual exploitation and rape since a damning report found systemic failings a year ago.

A spokesman for the NSPCC said: “This report appears to show that attitudes to abused and exploited children are still falling short in our biggest police force. It’s deeply troubling that handling of child protection investigations appears to have got worse, not better, in the space of a year.

“It’s imperative [that] the child’s voice must always come first. The Met has rightly acknowledged it has a problem. But lack of