Hundreds of my abusers are still out there, says victim as grooming inquiry launched

Penny was only 12 years old when she became a victim of grooming by several men of Pakistani descent.

In an interview with the BBC, she recounted how these men initially captured her affection through lavish gifts. However, their behavior quickly escalated into violence and abuse.

"I was covered in very deep cigarette burns, which actually burned through my skin into my flesh. By the time I was 13 and a half, I weighed six stone. I was abused every day," she shared, using a pseudonym for her protection.

"They were selling me and other girls for sex to men who came from all over the country, to various houses, different locations, and to numerous strangers. You would be given drugs and alcohol so you wouldn't be aware of what day it was."

Though some of her abusers were convicted of crimes such as rape and trafficking, Penny expressed that "hundreds of men" who participated in her exploitation remain at large, free to act on their predatory behaviors.

"There are lots and lots of men who were involved with us who have never been brought to justice. I imagine that if they had those sexual tendencies then, they'll still have those tendencies now and they'll find a way to fulfil those tendencies," she stated.

Penny's harrowing account emerges as the terms of reference for the statutory independent inquiry into grooming gangs have been released.

The inquiry aims to investigate the magnitude of abuse suffered by young girls who were sexually exploited by groups predominantly composed of men in England and Wales. The inquiry will focus on several key areas, including:

• Investigating how grooming gangs operated and managed to operate without detection for an extended period.
• Assessing the knowledge levels of police forces regarding these activities and their subsequent actions or inactions.
• Exploring the cultural and institutional factors that led to children often being disbelieved, dismissed, or inappropriately blamed for their own abuse.

The investigation will scrutinize cases dating back over the past 30 years to identify patterns of abuse.

The inquiry is committed to addressing all relevant factors that contributed to the abuse and exploitation of victims, including aspects of culture, ethnicity, and religion, and promises accountability where warranted.

Local investigations will be initiated, with Oldham confirmed as a primary area of focus. A framework to identify additional locations for investigation will be released within three months.

Baroness Longfield, who chairs the Statutory Independent Inquiry into Grooming Gangs, stated: "Children across England and Wales were and are sexually abused and exploited. When they asked for help, they were too often disbelieved, dismissed, or blamed. That is the reality this inquiry exists to address.

"Victims and survivors have every right to question whether this inquiry will differ from previous ones. My response is this: where we can, we will publish our findings as we progress, not just in a singular report years later. There will be no chance for institutions to quietly address our findings.

"We will follow the evidence wherever it leads. We will not shy away from uncomfortable truths."

The inquiry is set to commence formally after the terms of reference are presented to Parliament on April 13. It has a budget of £65 million.

The aim is to complete the investigation by March 2029, with continual updates provided throughout the process.

However, like many survivors interviewed by the BBC, Penny remains skeptical about accountability for those who failed to protect vulnerable children like herself.

"I want there to be accountability for the failings that led to this mass grooming and exploitation of children across the country," she remarked. "They were systematically allowing this to happen for reasons that haven’t been adequately explored."

She urged the inquiry to concede what she believes is an undeniable truth—that sexual grooming is widespread and has persisted for an extensive period.

"I believe we need to recognize that these issues are very real and occurring, and this inquiry must take every possible action to ensure that such atrocities do not continue."

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood commented, "The grooming gangs scandal represents one of the darkest periods in our nation's history—where the most vulnerable individuals were subjected to abuse and exploitation by heinous child rapists.

"The independent national inquiry is now beginning its essential task to uncover how these crimes were allowed to occur and rectify failures wherever they are identified.

"The chair and I have agreed that the inquiry will maintain a strong emphasis on grooming gangs and will explicitly evaluate the roles of ethnicity, religion, and culture of both offenders and institutions' responses."

The inquiry was established following recommendations from Baroness Casey's national audit on group-based child sexual exploitation and abuse, published in June 2025.

It possesses full powers to compel witnesses to provide testimony and to mandate organizations to surrender pertinent documents.