Official Report: "At Least" 1,400 Child Rape Victims in British Town Ignored By All (LIBERAL PC) Authorities
More than 1,400 children abused in Rotherham sex abuse scandal
Rotherham council leader steps down as damning report describes 'blatant' collective failures to stop 16 years of child abuse in the town
The Telegraph reports:
Around 1,400 children were sexually exploited in one town over a 16-year period, a damning report has said.
The report on events in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, between 1997 and 2013 found that in more than a third of these cases the youngsters were already known to agencies.
It said there had been "blatant" collective failures by Rotherham council's leadership.
Council leader Roger Stone said: "Having considered the report, I believe it is only right that I, as leader, take responsibility on behalf of the council for the historic failings that are described so clearly in the report and it is my intention to do so.
"For this reason, I have today agreed with my Labour group colleagues that I will be stepping down as leader with immediate effect."
Prof Jay (independent investigator) said: "They were raped by multiple perpetrators, trafficked to other towns and cities in the north of England, abducted, beaten and intimidated."
She said she found that girls as young as 11 had been raped by large numbers of men.
The report said failures of the political and officer leadership of Rotherham Council over the first 12 years she looked at were "blatant" as the seriousness of the problem was underplayed by senior managers and was not seen as a priority by South Yorkshire Police.
Prof Jay (independent investigator) said police "regarded many child victims with contempt".
These failures happened despite three reports between 2002 and 2006 "which could not have been clearer in the description of the situation in Rotherham.
The report (by Prof. Jay) concluded: "No one knows the true scale of the child sexual exploitation (CSE) in Rotherham over the years. "Our conservative estimate is that approximately 1,400 children were sexually exploited over the full inquiry period, from 1997 to 2013."
(Chief Executive of the Town Council) Mr Kimber said: "The report does not make comfortable reading in its account of the horrific experiences of some young people in the past and I would like to reiterate our sincere apology to those who were let down when they needed help.