19.01.18
Council apologises for historical child sex abuse that left ‘dreadful stain’ on authority
Nottinghamshire County Council’s leader has today apologised for historical sex abuse that took place in the authority’s children’s homes, admitting that the organisation had “failed” some of the children entrusted into its care.
It follows a case in 2016 where Andris Logins, who worked in Nottinghamshire, became the first carer to be convicted of child abuse that happened in the 1980s.
Recently, Nottinghamshire County Council has also committed to the national inquiry into sex abuse.
In the apology, Nottinghamshire leader Kay Cutts said that the authority was now doing great work to keep children safe, but admitted that the historical abuse had left a “dreadful stain” on the history of the council.
“We now know that they were subjected to horrible and heinous abuse that has left many damaged and scarred for life. They suffered at the hands of devious people who had malice in mind,” she wrote.
“The fact that this happened is something that leaves me personally feeling deeply saddened and ashamed.
“On behalf of this council, as its leader, I now want to express my deep and heartfelt apology to all of the survivors from this dark period in our history.”
Cutts also stated that although the authority will never be able to make good what was so wrong at that time, it now was working to do everything to protect children in its care today.
“In so doing we will tirelessly work to lay bare the mistakes of the past and ensure that they are never repeated,” she stated.
“The survivors are rightly demanding truth and justice – we will do everything in our power to make sure that this is delivered.”