Beyond Rotherham: scale of child sex exploitation revealed

The scale of abuse in Rotherham shocked many, but depressingly few of those working at the frontline of child sexual exploitation (CSE). As one support worker told me: "Rotherham is not the exception, it is more likely to be the norm."

But what was different about Rotherham, was a number – 1,400. That is 1,400 childhoods stolen and families broken. It is hard to conceive in a town of around 250,000 people.

Victims and parents were ignored and at times, treated with contempt by the authorities. It rightly prompted questions about who knew what and why they did not act.

But while the victims, now young women, wait to see if their cases will make it to court, grooming continues.

Channel 4 News has obtained figures that show high levels of children at risk of CSE in England in the first six months of this year – in fact, thousands of children are at risk, including in some cases, babies. What we found surprising was the admission by some councils that they only started recording CSE referrals last year.  (more...)

Beyond Rotherham: scale of child sex exploitation revealed