Lawyers representing 13 people as part of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) have said today marks an ‘important milestone’ for their clients.
A number of key failings were highlighted as part of the report, which was published at midday, including evidence that police had not pursued all inquiries into allegations of child abuse against a former MP.
Commenting on the findings Liam Goggin, a specialist Abuse Claims Solicitor at Simpson Millar which represented 13 people at the inquiry, said: “The report published today marks an important milestone in the lives of those people that we represented throughout the inquiry.
“Of course, we now need time to review the findings in detail, but what is undisputed is that there were a number of failings in the way that the allegations were dealt with by a number of public bodies, including the police, the CPS, and Leicestershire County Council.
We're rated‘Excellent’While the report makes no recommendations due to the changes that have been made in the law and in practice since these events occurred, it does emphasise the need for institutions to have clear policies and procedures and for victims to be believed.
Liam added: “This inquiry set out to examine the institutional responses to allegations of abuse, and the report is very comprehensive in its findings.
“However, what is absolutely vital is that lessons learned are not only captured in the updated policies and procedures that are now in place, but also in the practice of those tasked with investigations into any allegation of abuse moving forward.”
""Complaints were ignored, investigations were lackluster, and decision making was slow. Our clients were let down by the very people they should have been able to turn to for help.""
Liam Goggin
Partner, Abuse Claims
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