The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) has set up a presence in the teenage community world of Habbo.co.uk.

The charity set up the Childline outpost in order to help teenagers report bullying and abuse anonymously. It is to remain there for two months, during which time it will hold a series of activities and events.

The NSPCC hopes that the move will help boost its visibility and encourage children to talk about matters that concern them.

Habbo is a community website aimed at kids, something like The Sims meets MySpace, and is set in a virtual hotel where users can wander through communal areas, create their own 'rooms' complete with furniture, chat to other users and play games.

Stephanie Hughes, media communications manager at the NSPCC, said: "Websites like Habbo are so much a part of teenagers' lives that it is vital we as an organisation communicate our campaign messages to youngsters in their natural browsing environments and through brands and websites they trust."

Habbo.co.uk gets about 42 million hits a month from 650,000 unique users aged between 11 and 18. Along with its UK site, Habbo is also available in 29 other countries around the world.

This effort continues the NSPCC'S Don't Hide It campaign and coincides with similar ventures including the Frank anti-drugs campaign, and the R U Thinking sexual awareness campaign. 

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