Tan said it was not uncommon for children and their parents to feel ashamed, considering how society stigmatised sexual abuse.

“This hinders them from disclosing their experience to others and from getting the help needed,” the American-certified trauma practitioner told FMT.

Tan pointed out that children and parents might also blame themselves for the abuse, largely due to manipulation and grooming by the perpetrator and victim-blaming by society.

Huckle was reported to have been a “constant groomer”, having groomed the children to the point where he was certain that they would not tell their parents about the abuse they were suffering from him.

“Richard Huckle is a predatory paedophile. He based his whole life around the sexual abuse of children, around the grooming of adults in order to gain access to their children,” British National Crime Agency senior officer James Traynor had said in a previous report.

Tan told FMT that it would not help parents or other adults to deny the child’s experiences, or to ask them to ‘forget about it’ and ‘pretend it never happened’ in their attempt to avoid dealing with the abuse.

“Unfortunately as a result, the abused children as well as their parents suffer in silence without receiving the professional help and support needed to recover from the traumatic experience,” Tan said.

“Affected families are strongly advised to seek help from mental health professionals such as a counsellor or psychologist to feel supported while processing their trauma, to cope emotionally and psychologically, as well as to prevent the development of other mental health issues.”

Tan said affected children especially needed help in dealing with a wide range of emotions that result from sexual abuse.

“There’s typically a range of emotions such as sadness, anger, guilt, shame, anxiety, and fear which can be confusing and overwhelming for any child to bear on their own,” Tan said.

“Children often need the assurance of a trusted adult (e.g. mother and father) to allow them to express their feelings without judgment and with an empathetic presence.”