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FROM GROOMING GANGS TO CHILD PROTECTION: A SCANDAL IN PLAIN SIGHT?
https://archives.battleofideas.org.uk/2022/session/from-grooming-gangs-to-child-protection-a-scandal-in-plain-sight/

The Telford Inquiry, published in July of this year, is the latest in a number of reports that have highlighted the ongoing issue of sexually exploited children by so-called ‘grooming gangs’.  This independent inquiry found that more than 1,000 children in Telford were sexually exploited over decades.

Similar reviews of child sexual exploitation (CSE) paint an alarming picture, from more well-documented cases – such as in Oldham, Rotherham and Bradford – to a range of cases across the country, from Glasgow to Brighton, which have been less well-documented. Yet, despite these inquiries and reports, what real progress has been made in detecting the grooming gangs and preventing CSE?

A major concern raised in the Telford Inquiry was evidence showing that ‘the majority of CSE suspects in Telford…were men of southern Asian heritage’ and this included all the men convicted in Operations Chalice, Delta and Epsilon. However, the report found that when victims, or teachers with management responsibility, raised this issue they were accused of ‘racism’ as well as being met with a failure to investigate further and a general ‘reluctance to act’.  This has led to concerns that political sensitives were valued over and above the duty of care to children and the prosecution of violent acts of child rape.

In addition, this year also saw the release of the government’s Care Review, which highlighted the rise in killed and injured children during the lockdown periods between April and September 2020, and some agencies have predicted that, within the decade, 100,000 children could be in care. The former education secretary, Nadhim Zahawi, promised ‘system change on a national scale’ – but will it make any difference?

Do we need to address underlying issues such as child poverty, domestic abuse, mental health and problems in the care system? Is there a crisis within the criminal justice system and statutory services, or is a society-wide preoccupation with political correctness and safety culture distracting agencies from protecting those children most at risk from exploitation, abuse and neglect?  Who is best placed to address these concerns – and how?

SPEAKERS
Susie Hawkes
senior lecturer in social work, University of Wolverhampton

Dr Ken McLaughlin
former social worker; academic; author, Social Work Politics and Society: from radicalism to orthodoxy and Stigma, and its discontents

Jordan Tyldesley
journalist and commentator

Wasiq Wasiq
counter terrorism analyst; founding trustee, Muslims Against Antisemitism

CHAIR
Jo Herlihy
change manager and business support consultant; author, Alchemy: a search for truth

Battle of Ideas 2022

From grooming gangs to child protection: a scandal in plain sight?

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