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Charity says 'insufficient action' taken over Aylesbury abuse concerns

Concerns about one of two schoolgirls repeatedly abused by a gang of men in Aylesbury were raised several years before they were arrested, a children’s charity has said.

Barnados told the BBC they worked with the victims in 2008 and referred the case of one to appropriate agencies but 'insufficient action" was taken.

Six members of a child sex ring in Aylesbury were found guilty at the Old Bailey of their part in the horrifying abuse of two schoolgirls which went on for years on a massive scale

A total of 11 men went on trial for 51 offences between 2006 and 2012. Four defendants were cleared, while the jury could not decide on one of them.

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Aylesbury abuse: Council apology for letting victims down

Buckinghamshire County Council has apologised to the victims of a child abuse ring for "letting them down", and admits that it "probably" missed signals about the crimes.

Speaking outside the Old Bailey, David Johnston, the council's director for children's services, gave the apology on behalf of the council over the abuse committed against two girls between 2006 and 2012.

He said: "We know a great deal more about child sexual exploitation than we did back then and I hope that young people who are worried about themselves or someone they know will have the same courage to come forward. We will do everything in our power to help them."

Johnston added that a serious case review had been launched by the council's safeguarding board.

Asked whether any signs of the abuse had been missed, he said: "There were probably indications that may have been there that our staff were not as aware of at that point.

"So I'm not saying the indications weren't there, but the knowledge around dealing with this type of phenomenon wasn't there at the time."

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Charity says 'insufficient action' taken over Aylesbury abuse concerns

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