Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
THREE GIRLS
They are three women from very different backgrounds, one a TV presenter, one a former detective, the other a Rotherham abuse victim but they are all united by one thing – a determination to share their stories of child sexual exploitation and help keep youngsters safe in future.
Sammy Woodhouse, 32, who was groomed by a man 10 years her senior at 14, speaks for all three women when she says: “Abuse can happen to anyone. It doesn’t matter who you are, where you’re from or what your background is.
“We need to educate everyone – children, parents, teachers – to recognise abuse and we need this education to start from an early age.”
Former Rochdale detective Maggie Oliver knows where ignorance can lead. She quit Greater Manchester Police in disgust at officers who saw vulnerable young girls as “madams” and prostitutes.
And Loose Women panellist Saira Khan knows how hard it can be to speak out about abuse.
She broke down on TV telling how she was molested by an uncle at 13, a secret she had kept until she was married and finally confided in her husband.
The trio have teamed up as part of Loose Women’s Never Too Late To Tell campaign and on today’s show will reveal their plans to ensure people have someone to talk to in confidence.
Now a mum of two, Sammy came from a stable home but was groomed by Arshid Hussain, who subjected her to brutal beatings even when she was pregnant with his child at 15.
In 2016, he was jailed for 35 years for abusing girls in Rotherham.
Sammy, whose story triggered a police investigation that this week put the number of Rotherham abuse victims at 1,510, says: “I ask myself if what happened to me would have happened if I had been educated properly at school.”
Maggie, 62, nods in agreement, saying: “I would say all kids are at risk.
“Knowledge is power and you only get knowledge through education. It needs to be done at school, when kids are in their peer groups.
“Abusers come from everywhere. I have travelled a very
LOOSE WOMEN STAR GROOMING VICTIM