Centre’s abuse victims will be compensated
HUNDREDS of men who say they were victims of abuse by staff at a juvenile detention in County Durham have become eligible for compensation after the Government changed the rules.
Justice Minister Lucy Frazer said compensation would now be offered to people who can prove they were detained at Medomsley Detention Centre and say they were victims of physical abuse, even if the staff involved have not been convicted, named or identified.
Previously, compensation was only available when there had been a conviction. Seven convictions secured so far, but Ms Frazer said it was clear the facility was “inherently unsafe.”
She said: “As recent scrutiny of the regime has shown, some detainees endured abhorrent abuse at the hands of staff members, the impact of which has caused suffering beyond their detention.”
Almost 1,800 men have made allegations of abuse at Medomsley since the police investigation “Operation Seabrook” was launched in 2013.
The commitment was made in a letter to North West Durham MP Richard Holden, who has been campaigning for better access to compensation.
He is chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Medomsley Detention Centre which also includes Labour politicians such as Baroness Armstrong, a previous MP for North West Durham, and Andy McDonald, Labour MP for Middlesbrough.
Mr Holden said: “I am delighted that those who suffered so much at Medomsley will be able to much more easily get access to the compensation they deserve. For victims though, this is not about money – it is instead about getting recognition for what they went through, being able to access much-needed support and ensuring that all those who committed crimes face justice.
“That the Ministry of Justice has acknowledged the regime at Medomsley was unsafe is really important – it is one step closer to ensuring that nothing like this is ever able to take place again.
“I will continue to work with all former victims, their representatives and other MPs to do whatever we can to support those who suffered.”
Medomsley Detention Centre was a prison for young male offenders near Consett in Durham, from 1961 until the late 1980s. It was designed to provide a “short, sharp, shock” treatment to offenders aged between 17 and 21 years, and to prevent them being sent to a mainstream prison.
In 2013, Durham Constabulary this year re-opened an inquiry into allegations of abuse at the centre. Church Minister Neville Husband and store man Leslie Johnson were jailed in 2003 and 2005 respectively for abuse, but hundreds of former detainees have said they were subjected to further sexual, physical and mental abuse from prison officers.
In her letter, Ms Frazer said: “We have a moral obligation to the survivors of abuse to not only bring belated justice, but to also acknowledge their suffering by providing compensation.
“The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has been working hard to compensate those who experienced sexual and physical abuse in a fair and proportionate way.
“The MoJ acknowledges that a regime where seven former staff have been convicted of such crimes was inherently unsafe. To reflect the impact of the totality of the regime on the detainees, the MoJ has expanded the settlement scheme to offer compensation to those who can provide valid proof of detention but allege physical abuse against staff who have not been convicted, named or identified.”