Telford’s MP has written to Cllr Lee Carter, Cabinet Member with special responsibility for Finance, Commercial Services & Economic Development to express her concerns about ongoing delays to starting the Telford inquiry into Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE).
In April 2018 the Council agreed to commission an independent inquiry. An advisory group was set up to appoint an independent commissioning body, who would then appoint an independent inquiry chair. To date no such commissioning body has been appointed. The Council has announced they will extend the deadline for bids from organisations wishing to be the commissioning body by a further two months making the appointment of an independent Chair unlikely until 2019.
It had originally been envisaged that a Chair would be appointed by the end of the summer. Telford & Wrekin Council have decided to allow more time to appoint a commissioning body suggesting the delays were to accommodate a two person survivor group.
Lucy Allan said:
“To anyone not involved in the process, it is quite astonishing that the authorities could imagine that a significant further delay in appointing a Chair, until 2019 at the earliest, could be acceptable in any circumstances.
“These horrific crimes are still going on. This is a matter of urgency. The Council appears not to understand this. They are conducting this process as if they had all the time and money in the world. It’s incredible that after almost 6 months they have made no progress. They have created a complex bureaucratic structure but are no nearer the appointment of an independent Chair. There has been no person specification produced, no applications have been invited and no short list of candidates drawn up. Their hearts aren’t in it.
“On the day that the Home Secretary makes tackling Child Sexual Abuse his person mission, I call on the Council to remove the obstacles and allow an independent Chair to begin work as a matter of urgency.”