Former Rotherham detective cleared of failing to investigate child sexual exploitation

Mr Walker was cleared by the panel of failing to properly investigate intelligence passed to him.

A former South Yorkshire Police sergeant has been cleared of failing to act on information supplied to him about alleged child sexual exploitation (CSE) in Rotherham.

Jayne Senior, who ran the Risky Business youth project and who was a key whistleblower in the CSE scandal which engulfed the town, told a police misconduct hearing that former detective sergeant David Walker ignored important key information she supplied to him.

But Mr Walker, who ran the Rotherham Child Abuse Investigation Unit from 2008 to 2012, denied he had not acted on nor properly recorded intelligence Ms Senior supplied.

He told the hearing how he was dedicated to protecting children and even led one of the most successful operations against grooming gangs operating in the area.

On Thursday, a three-strong panel chaired by an independent lawyer cleared the former detective of all the allegations he faced.