MP Sarah Champion: Rotherham abuse scandal reports "a missed opportunity"

ROTHERHAM MP Sarah Champion (pictured) has branded six reports published today into Rotherham’s child sex abuse scandal a “wasted opportunity” to allow the town to move forward as they did not hold any individuals to account.

The reports, being discussed at Rotherham Town Hall this afternoon, include one saying no former officer should face disciplinary action over how the council let down hundreds of children who were groomed and abused, mainly by men of Pakistani backgrounds, between 1997 and 2013.

Ms Champion said: “I had hoped that today’s publication of the reports into Rotherham Borough Council (RMBC) preventing child sexual exploitation would draw a line under the catalogue of errors that led to our children being let down so badly by those supposed to protect them. 

“However, despite these huge failures, leading to at least 1,400 victims being let down, it appears that no individual at RMBC has yet been held to account for their role.  

“How are the survivors meant to rebuild their lives without the closure these reports could have brought?  

“How is Rotherham meant to have confidence that this will never happen again unless we know exactly what went wrong? 

“This feels like a completely wasted opportunity to allow the town to move forward. 

“I am also frustrated by the repeated delay of reports from the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) into the conduct of officers at South Yorkshire Police (SYP). 

“While I appreciate that these inquiries are complex, we must understand what went wrong if we are to be able to prevent it in the future.”