Strategy call over online grooming
CRIME: A national strategy is needed to tackle an “overwhelming” picture of online grooming, independent investigators have claimed, as police and children’s services in Bradford came under fire for failing to protect a young boy.
The teenager was raped, abducted and abused by paedophiles he had met online.
A NATIONAL strategy is needed to tackle an “overwhelming” picture of online grooming, independent investigators have claimed, as police and children’s services in Bradford came under fire for failing to protect a young boy.
The teenager, named only as Jack in a serious case review, was raped, abducted and abused by predatory paedophiles he had met online from the age of just 13. Twenty men from across the country were convicted over his abuse in recent years, 16 of them handed prison sentences totalling more than 34 years.
But despite warnings from his parents, school and GP, the report found, there were “lost opportunities” from police to protect Jack, while children’s services had at times been “negligent” in keeping him safe.
“The police investigation was at times inept, lacked management, oversight and was poorly resourced,” the report by the Bradford Safeguarding Children Board (BSCB) said.
“Children’s social care should have taken a lead. Instead they allowed Jack’s case to drift and as a result he remained at risk of significant harm for over three years. Ultimately, the police and children’s social care should have done more to protect Jack.”
The report centred on how Jack ensured such sustained abuse when it had repeatedly been brought to the attention of authorities. A
bright and popular boy, he had come from a stable and loving home before his abuse began, the report revealed, but teachers had said they could pinpoint a change in him “almost to the day”.
It emerged Jack had turned to the internet at the age of 13 in 2010, but was preyed on by men from across the country. When Childline raised concerns with West Yorkshire Police that he was meeting older men, it was deemed an issue of “parental control” and while an officer visited his family, no action was taken.
When his parents and school contacted authorities to report that Jack was intending to travel to Portsmouth to meet a 23-yearold man, there was no “meaningful” response and procedures were not followed. Police and children’s services have both apologised for the way the case was handled.
“We accept all the findings and apologise unreservedly to the victim and to his entire family,” said Chief Supt Scott Bissett, of West Yorkshire Police, adding that tackling child sexual exploitation was the force’s prime priority. “It’s clear this had a devastating impact, not just on him but on all those around him. There were significant failings on behalf of the police. I acknowledge that we got things badly wrong.”
Bradford Council’s strategic director of children’s services, Michael Jameson, said: “I accept the report unequivocally. My thoughts are with Jack and his family. No child should endure what he has had to go through.”
The report made recommendations including considering a local response to online abuse, seeking assurances around child protection policies, and a review into this case. But independent investigators say a wider strategy is needed nationwide.
David Niven, the BSCB’s chairman, said: “I do believe all authorities – police forces, social services, probation, schools - are nearly overwhelmed at times with the volumes of work they are dealing with. There’s been a stratospheric shift in recent years.”
And Prity Patel, independent review chair, added: “We need to do something about this and we need to do it together. We need to have a national debate around social media to ease the impact on young people and keep them safe.”
We need a national debate to keep young people safe. Prity Patel, independent review chair.