Welcome help for abuse victims

THE news that more help is to be given to survivors of sexual violence is welcome and overdue Revelations in recent years of historical child sexual abuse amount to a national scandal. In addition to pursuing the abusers, we should to do whatever we can to give closure to those who have felt ignored, disbelieved or unable to come forward, and strive to change the culture that made such a state of affairs possible.

Police investigations are continuing to unearth the guilty and the national Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse will make for uncomfortable reading when it begins to assess the scale of institutional abuse in Nottinghamshire, later this year

Alongside abuse going back decades, recent crimes are reported to the police and care agencies daily.

The overall result is one of thousands of damaged lives, and the least a civilised society can do is offer help to the victims. Simply telling their story is agony enough, without the burden of giving evidence in court or ensuring that they do not face long-term health problems as a result of being sexually assaulted.

The new services being launched in Nottinghamshire will mean much more practical and emotional support for victims of sexual abuse. The benefits should pale into insignificance beside the £800,000 cost over two years. BY contrast, setting up a crematorium for pets may not appear to be the best use of tax payers’ money in these times of austerity.

Gedling Borough Council has now approved plans for a service that will collect pets from people’s homes, take them away and return the ashes.

But, with half of East Midlands households owning a dog or a cat, demand clearly exists. And if, as predicted, the service brings in £88,000 in its first year, it could prove an innovative money-spinner against set-up costs of £89,000.