Telford barrister to lead new Oldham abuse inquiry

The barrister who led the inquiry into widespread sexual abuse in Telford is to lead the forthcoming abuse investigation in Oldham.

Tom Crowther KC presided over the probe into abuse in the Shropshire town, which found up to 1,000 girls were targeted over a period of decades since the 1980s.

He will now lead a local inquiry into child sexual exploitation in Oldham, Greater Manchester.

A report published in 2022, which examined the way the abuse was tackled in Oldham between 2011 and 2014, found children had been failed by Greater Manchester Police and Oldham Council.

The new inquiry was planned after Oldham councillors' demands for a full statutory public inquiry were turned down - with safeguarding minster Jess Phillips arguing that locally-led inquiries, such as the one held in Telford, were more effective at leading to change.

In January, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper announced a new national-level "rapid audit" of grooming gangs, plus up to five new local inquiries - including Oldham.

Mr Crowther said he was "very pleased to have been asked" to chair the inquiry.

"I know from my work in Telford that an inquiry of his sort can bring the answers the community deserves about what has gone wrong in the past and can ensure best practice is in place for the future," he said.

He added that it was "hugely important" that the inquiry "begins with the confidence of Oldham's survivors" and said he was "determined" that they will be involved.

In a statement, Oldham Council said: "Tom is hugely respected by survivors given the excellent work he did in Telford and his appointment reflects the views of the survivors.

"We believe this is an important step in securing justice for our survivors and Oldham residents more generally."

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