Disabled children four times more likely to be victim of violence: study They had complained 33 times to Leicestershire Police about harassment. Last month a Freedom of Information request revealed that disability hate crimes have doubled since the financial crisis began in 2008. Some have blamed the Government's 'anti scroungers' rhetoric for the rise which sawa almost 2,000 crimes reported last year. Lead author Prof Mark Bellis said: "The impact of a child's disability on their quality of life is very much dependent on the way other individuals treat them. This research establishes that the risk of violence to children with disabilities is routinely three to four times higher than that of non-disabled children. It is the duty of government and civil society to ensure that such victimisation is exposed and prevented. Dr Etienne Krug, director of World Health Organisation's Department of Violence and Injury Prevention and Disability, said: "The results of this review prove that children with disabilities are disproportionately vulnerable to violence, and their needs have been neglected for far too long. We know that specific strategies exist to prevent violence and mitigate its consequences. We now need to determine if these also work for children with disabilities. An agenda needs to be set for action. Prof Bellis added: "Children with disabilities can end up being the targets of violence for the same reasons as all children, but several factors can increase their risk. They may be picked on because someone considers them different or does not understand their disability. Without enough support and education those caring for disabled children may become neglectful, even abusive. All too often however it can simply be individuals exploiting children who are vulnerable, isolated and unlikely to report them to the authorities. This research exposes just how much more at risk of neglect and abuse children with disabilities are and the importance of ensuring such children are not left vulnerable to violence. We need to ensure that parents and carers of children with disabilities get the support they need and that children understand personal safety issues. Health, social and criminal justice services need to recognise this is a problem, understand how to identify and respond to abuse and ensure they know how to prevent it.