Child sex abuse missed in Rochdale grooming cases

A report has revealed that children being sexually abused were not flagged up by official bodies...

17:48 27 September 2012

A report published on Thursday has revealed that there were flaws in the workings of certain agencies linked to cases of grooming in Rochdale. It claims that authorities such as the police and social workers failed to stop a gang from sexually abusing young girls.

 

It is understood that some child sex abuse cases were not acted on by officials as the targeted girls were thought to have been “making their own choices”, as reported by The Telegraph, and the BBC explains that social workers presumed the females were capable of deciding their own actions.

 

A review on child exploitation came after a group of Asian men, reportedly aged between 22 and 69, were jailed following a trial in Rochdale for grooming girls. As reported by The Telegraph, Rochdale council is expected to use the findings from the review to make improvements.

 

Former chair of the British Association of Social Workers, Janet Foulds, is quoted by the BBC explaining that grooming often means the victims can appear to coincide with the perpetrators plans. She said:  “The way that the children and young people are groomed may give people the impression that it is consensual, but it absolutely isn't.”

 

The Chief Executive of Rochdale Borough council, Jim Taylor, in light of this news is quoted by the BBC adding: “I need to be confident improvements have gone far enough, that we really are doing everything we can do to ensure young people are protected - and also, let's not forget that abusers need to be brought to justice quickly.”