In total, Bris, Children's Rights in Society, had contact with 10,988 children during the summer vacation. This is an increase of six percent compared to the previous year, according to the non-profit organization's own statistics.
Conversations about physical violence increased by 52 percent.
It's hard to draw any conclusions about why it has increased so much. Presumably, it's not about the violence increasing this summer, the violence has probably been going on for a longer time. But we see it as something positive that children dare to tell, says Jennifer Pettersson, curator at Bris.
"Never okay"
Most conversations about violence concerned children who had been exposed to violence by an adult in their vicinity, often a parent or step-parent.
One of the first things we investigate is what the home situation looks like. What kind of violence is the child describing, it's also important to clarify what is okay or not. Some children who have grown up with violence may have difficulty knowing that. There, we as adults need to be clear that violence is never okay, says Pettersson.
It's also important that we inform about what kind of help is available from society, for example from the social services. Children should never have to feel that they are alone in this, she continues.
Follow up
Besides the physical violence, conversations about family relationships (35 percent increase) and online-related issues (58 percent increase) also increased
We will follow up on this. If nothing else, it's a sign that adults in children's vicinity need to be more aware of how the children are doing, says Jennifer Pettersson.
Bris has had 10,988 contacts with children during the summer vacation 2025, compared to 10,330 the previous year. An increase of six percent.
Almost half of the conversations, 46 percent, have been about mental illness. A fifth, 24 percent, have concerned family and family conflicts, while 16 percent have concerned violence, abuse, and violations.
Compared to previous years, conversations about physical violence increased by 52 percent, family relationships by 35 percent, and online-related issues by 58 percent.
Source: Bris
