Abuse against children remains a national problem in England and Wales, with more historical cases coming to light and staggering data about the prominence of child sexual exploitation (CSE) and abuse across the country.

Estimates from the 2020 Crime Survey for England and Wales indicate that as many as 3.1 million adults may have experienced sexual abuse by the time they turn 16, while a total of 8.5 million adults may have experienced some type of child abuse (including domestic violence, emotional and physical abuse alongside sexual abuse) before they reach adulthood. A further 2021 report by the Centre of expertise on child sexual abuse suggests that this could mean as many as one in six girls and one in 20 boys have been sexually exploited or abused before the age of 16.

While efforts at education and reinforced legislation have aimed to tackle the risk to young girls and boys, revelations about grooming gangs operating in major UK cities over the past decade have shown that there is still significant progress to be made. The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse was established in 2015 to investigate large-scale patterns of CSE, as identified in Rotherham. A second public inquiry has recently been announced by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer following reports of similar grooming gang activity taking place in Bradford. As was the case in Rotherham, evidence points to significant institutional failures by Bradford Council and local leaders to act effectively on reports of sexual offences against children.

The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse published its final report in 2022 and many of its recommendations have yet to be fully enacted. However, there is strong support for a second inquiry, particularly given the scale of the risk to vulnerable children in the Bradford district and the nature of the institutional failures that enabled abuse to continue for many years.

What happened in Rotherham?

Beginning in the early 2010s, reports began arising about widespread abuse of young girls in Rotherham between 1997 and 2013. Evidence suggested that local authorities were aware to some extent that the abuse was taking place, but did not act. In some cases, members of the local council felt unable to act because they were afraid of being accused of racism, given that many victims were young white girls and perpetrators were Asian men.

The Home Office recruited the National Crime Agency to investigate in the wake of public outcry, and the government launched the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse the following year. The investigation is called Operation Stovewood, and resulted in dozens of offenders being identified, prosecuted and convicted.

In 2022, the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse published a report chaired by Professor Alexis Jay and made 20 recommendations for improved safeguarding procedures that could better protect vulnerable children in the future. In 2024, the National Police Chiefs’ Council set up a Grooming Gangs Taskforce to support local police officers to carry out their own investigations in cases where institutional failures may have resulted in grooming gangs escaping justice.

What happened in Bradford?

Even before Operation Stovewood began in Rotherham, Bradford had been identified as another major hotspot for organised sexual exploitation of children. Later, Operation Dalesway was established in the Bradford district to carry forward lessons in evidence gathering established by the earlier operation and bring perpetrators to justice. However, despite the success of this operation, there remained a sense that Bradford's political leadership had failed to effectively safeguard children in circumstances that mirrored those in the Rotherham investigation.

Campaigners have continued to call for an independent review and full inquiry into the conduct of local police and Bradford council in their efforts to tackle widespread abuse and CSE. Keighley and Ilkley MP Robbie Moore previously called for an investigation and inquiry in 2023, but it was not until January 2025 that Keir Starmer’s government commissioned Baroness Louise Casey to conduct a comprehensive audit of group-based child sexual exploitation across England and Wales. She had previously conducted an inspection of Rotherham metropolitan borough council in 2015 to determine whether it was fit for purpose following the grooming gangs scandal.

The report published at the conclusion of the National Audit on Group-based Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse in June 2025 painted a bleak picture. In many cases, ethnicity data on victims and perpetrators was inconsistently recorded or not collected at all, which meant that a pattern of Asian grooming gangs in parts of West Yorkshire was not properly recognised or understood. Again, this may have been an attempt to avoid accusations of racism, but Baroness Casey found that investigators often ignored the question of ethnicity altogether instead of examining how it related to organised offending or whether patterns could be analysed.

Do we need another public inquiry?

Until mid-2025, the government had resisted calls to establish a single nationwide investigation. Ministers initially authorised five local inquiries in January 2025, at the same time as Baroness Casey's audit was launched, on the basis that they would deliver faster answers. However, Baroness Casey's report suggests that, given the widespread nature of the issues identified, a piecemeal investigation built from the evidence of several different police forces and partner agencies would not be enough to fully address concerns. Certainly, the problem of grooming gangs hasn't only been identified in Rotherham and Bradford - seven men were found guilty of similar crimes in Rochdale between 2000 and 2006, and Operation Tourway was set up by West Yorkshire police to investigate grooming gangs in Kirklees.

Baroness Casey's final report specifically recommends the establishment of a full national inquiry into large-scale CSE, not only in Bradford but throughout the UK. It would review any reports of failures or obstruction by statutory services and identify areas where the local investigations previously announced should be focused. The ultimate aim is to determine where local authorities failed to protect children, and what needs to change to minimise future risk.

In the face of mounting public pressure, Starmer announced on 14th June 2025 that a comprehensive statutory inquiry would be launched with the power to compel witnesses, coordinate evidence from across the country and scrutinise police, councils and safeguarding bodies. The inquiry is now being established, with terms of reference expected to cover:

• The conduct of police forces and councils.
• How police records and data about perpetrators were collected and handled.
• The role of cultural and institutional attitudes in allowing exploitation to continue.

Given that this will involve revisiting difficult experiences for victims who are asked to contribute to the public inquiry, Casey's report suggests a charter to help victims to understand what to expect from the process. While this does not yet exist, there are important things that survivors of grooming, rape gangs, sexual assault and other types of abuse should know about the public inquiry process and their legal options.

What role will survivors play?

For survivors of child sexual exploitation or abuse, the public inquiry could represent a new opportunity to seek justice and hold both institutions and perpetrators to account. It's often possible to contribute to a public inquiry as an interested party and give evidence. However, it's worthwhile to work with an experienced public inquiry solicitor who can represent your interests and make sure your questions are answered during the process.

In some cases, survivors may also be entitled to compensation for their experiences. This may be possible even in cases where the time limit to bring a prosecution has expired, and is a way to bring individual abusers or institutions to justice. If you have experienced abuse, whether caused by an individual or an organised gang of perpetrators, you should speak to a solicitor at your earliest opportunity about your options.

Alongside the new public inquiry, the government has introduced a raft of measures from mandatory reporting to stronger sentences that are designed to better protect vulnerable children and women from abuse in these situations. The launch of a national investigation is an important first step, but until institutional failures are recognised and lessons learned, there remains a risk yet to be properly addressed.

If you wish to speak about any of the issues raised in this piece and learn more about your legal rights, call Switalskis on 0800 138 0458 or send a message via the form on this page.