More than a decade on, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said the Rochdale child grooming scandal 'remains one of the greatest failures of our society'.
In August 2008, police were called to a report of a teenage girl smashing the windows of a fast-food takeaway. From that lone incident, clearly sparked by a sense of desperation and anger, a chilling picture of child grooming and sexual abuse on a scale never before seen, and uncovered, in Greater Manchester slowly began to unravel in Rochdale.
The girl told police of the abuse she had suffered but, as other victims began to emerge, they faced a battle to be believed and for justice to be served.
A nine-strong gang of Asian men were convicted of sex offences against girls in 2012. For two years from early 2008, girls as young as 12 were plied with alcohol and drugs and gang-raped in rooms above takeaway shops and ferried to different flats in taxis, where cash was paid to abuse them. Police said as many as 47 girls were groomed.
It took the courage of a former health worker, now a councillor, in Rochdale who catalogued the abuse over years and blew the whistle, together with detective turned campaigner Maggie Oliver, who resigned from the force over the issue, for the full picture to emerge.
Stephen Watson, Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police, admitted last year the force had been 'borderline incompetent' in its handling of the Rochdale grooming gang as GMP agreed to pay substantial damages to three victims.
PM Mr Sunak was in Rochdale today to launch a 'grooming gangs taskforce'. He pledged 'political correctness' would not get in the way of a crackdown, as ministers promised tougher sentences and new support for local forces to protect children from abuse.
Part of the plan will see specialist officers assist local police forces to solve child sexual exploitation investigations as part of the new grooming gangs taskforce, as Mr Sunak warned that for too long 'political correctness has stopped us from weeding out vile criminals who prey on children and young women'.
The victims of the gang, he said, were let down by those who should have protected them.
The PM told the Manchester Evening News: "It has been over ten years since the first evil predators were found guilty of inflicting appalling abuse on young girls in Rochdale.
"A decade later, this remains one of the greatest failures of our society. These vulnerable girls were let down time again and again by the very people who were meant to protect them.
"I have been in Rochdale today speaking with victims and campaigners who have fought for justice, as well as police forces who share my unwavering commitment to make sure this never happens again.
"Today, I’m announcing the most robust action any Government has ever taken to stamp out vile grooming gangs - a new police taskforce, tougher sentencing and a legal requirement for people to speak out if they are concerned a child is being abused.
"I want to make clear to every child, young girl and parent, we not rest until everyone, in every part of our country, is able to grow up in a safe environment."
Led by the police and supported by the National Crime Agency, the taskforce will be made up of officers with extensive experience of undertaking grooming gang investigations.
Data analysts will work alongside the taskforce using cutting edge data and intelligence to identify the types of criminals who carry out these offences, helping police forces across the country catch offenders who might otherwise be missed. This will also include police recorded ethnicity data to make sure suspects cannot evade justice because of cultural sensitivities.
Legislation will also be introduced, Mr Sunak said, to make being the leader of or involved in a grooming gang a statutory aggravating factor during sentencing and mandatory reporting for adults working with children if they suspect or identify that child is being abused will also be brought in.
What are Greater Manchester Police saying?
GMP welcomed the announcement and said the force would continue to 'fight, prevent, and reduce child sexual exploitation and support survivors across Greater Manchester'.
The force revealed that in 2022, 37 more CSE-related crimes were recorded than in the previous year – taking the number of live investigations into recent and non-recent abuse involving multiple victims and multiple suspects up to 62.
A spokesman said: "Since establishment in 2021, the force CSE Unit has charged eight suspects with 82 CSE-related offences and arrested an additional 50 suspects – many of whom currently remain on bail pending further enquiries.
"With the number of employees posted to the unit being increased by 25 per cent, Greater Manchester Police is committed to securing the best possible support and outcomes for survivors, regardless of any time passed."
Chief Constable Stephen Watson said: "Any additional measures to improve capacity and capability to tackle sexually exploitative crime against children are positive and it goes without saying that they are welcomed by myself and, particularly, the officers who are at the forefront of the fight against this type of offending - which so cruelly and dreadfully impacts the lives of survivors.
"With these survivors and communities across Greater Manchester at the forefront of our minds, this police force and our partner agencies will utilise these new measures in striving to continuously improve the response to these incidents, the service provided to those who need help at what are often the most traumatic times of their lives, and the relentless pursuit of predatory offenders."
Detective Superintendent Dave Kehoe, Head of GMP’s Force CSE Unit, said: “With charges on the increase, I am confident that we are making a difference to survivors’ experiences of the criminal justice system. There is, however, always more to be done so the announcement of new measures alongside the ongoing recruitment into the force’s dedicated CSE unit is a promising development.
“We know how hard it can be for survivors to come forward so I would like to use this opportunity to promise them that the force CSE unit will thoroughly investigate abuse, regardless of time passed, and will continue to share best practice with colleagues on districts across Greater Manchester to ensure a consistent multi-agency response which prioritises support and outcomes for survivors.”
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