Are victims of grooming gangs being failed by the CICA?

The grooming gang victims denied criminal injury compensation

There has been a resurgence of interest in the systematic failures across the UK relating to how public bodies and organisations dealt with grooming gangs and child sexual exploitation cases over the last 20 years.

Following a campaign on 'X' by Elon Musk the British government has been put under immense pressure to conduct a national inquiry into the so called grooming gangs and the large-scale cover-up that has allegedly taken place. The focus of the campaign seems to be on child sexual exploitation by adult males of Pakistani origin acting in groups or networks within small towns and cities across England, Wales and Scotland. We know from our experience that such criminal behaviour is not limited to religious demographic boundaries but in fact is widespread across communities of all colour religion or creed. Musk's campaign has however highlighted major failures in the handling of such cases and an inquiry now seems inevitable.

We have pursued criminal injury compensation for many abuse victims who have suffered at the hands of such gangs. We have seen significant numbers of cases where victims are failed not just by the organisations that exist to protect them but also by other bodies such as the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) who manage the government compensation scheme for victims of violent or sexual crime. We discuss these failures here on our grooming compensation page.

If you or a loved one have suffered abuse through grooming and sexual assault - call us to discuss your criminal injuries compensation case today - 01423 593002 or complete our enquiry form

Support and resources for grooming victims can be found here.

This service is managed by the Criminal Claims Bureau who represent victims of crime seeking assault compensation in the UK. On this page we provide more advice on how to claim for grooming and abuse through the government "criminal injury" scheme.

One of the key topics discussed by Elon Musk is the leniency of some of the sentences handed down to offenders. Many of whom plead consent within their defence which has the impact of reducing the sentence from say a rape charge to one of sexual activity with a minor. A sentence for rape could lead to a minimum of 7 years imprisonment whereas lesser charges can result in only 2-4 years being handed down. We come across the argument of consent very often in our cases against the CICA and have to draw attention to the key legislation that applies to the subject.

The Sexual Offences Act 2003 stipulates that any sexual activity with children under 16 is unlawful and consent is for the purpose of the law deemed irrelevant.

We believe that victims of grooming gangs are being let down by the CICA and we invite any former applicants to the scheme who have had their case declined, or any new applicants to contact us for representation.

If you or a loved one have suffered abuse through grooming and sexual assault - call us to discuss your criminal injury compensation case today - 01423 593002 or complete our enquiry form

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