Newlove said the authorities are failing young people that come forward with stories of abuse, making them feel like criminals themselves.

In some cases, children said they were simply not believed or told that they were wasting the police's time.

"They didn't care because we were three teenage girls," a young woman said in describing how the police reacted to her call about an assault.

"It's like we were wasting their time. They couldn't be bothered with us."

Twelve female victims aged between nine and 17, and some of their parents, were interviewed about their experiences reporting sexual or violent crimes.

Many told the commissioner that they were not treated with the "dignity and respect" they expected, and some girls said they had felt as if they had to "prove themselves" or like "a test subject – a monkey in a cage to be prodded."