Council in £425,000 payments to child abuse victims

Nottinghamshire Police’s investigation into abuse across numerous council-run homes, Operation Daybreak, was launched in 2010.

Hundreds of former residents across 12 council-run homes, including Laybrook in Mansfield and Skegby Hall, have come forward to say they were sexually and physically abused as youngsters.

Following a recent request under the Freedom of Information Act, it was revealed that there had been 89 claims alone as part of the Beechwood Litigation Group - former residents of Nottingham’s Beechwood Home who are continuing legal action against Nottinghamshire County Council and Nottingham City Council who ran the homes.

Although £425,000 has been paid out to survivors, there has been no admission of liability in the process.

The single biggest payout to one survivor was £50,000.

But the recently-formed Nottingham Childhood Sexual Abuse (CSA) action group, launched by former Forest Town man and abuse victim, Mickey Summers, is calling for an end to Operation Daybreak in favour of an independent inquiry.

They want an inquiry free from police and council involvement to minimise the risk of a cover-up, in light of the recent revelations about mis-handling of abuse allegations involving Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council.

Mr Summers, who was abused as a boy in care in the 1960s, says the new group is giving people the chance to step forward who may not have wanted to contact police about their experiences.

He said: “We’re making ground with this.

“We’ve had a lot of people who were abused come forward after a recent protest we held in Nottingham.”