New research suggests the number of violent deaths among children in England and Wales has fallen by almost 40% since 1974.
A Bournemouth University study says the death rate is the fourth lowest in the Western world.
It says better monitoring by social workers and improved liaison between health visitors, paediatricians, GPs and police had led to the drop.
The BBC news report can be f ound at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8497277.stm
