Medomsley Detention Centre to be investigated by Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse
The abuse at County Durham young offenders centre is to come under the spotlight
Hossockfield near Medomsley Detention Centre in County Durham
Medomsley Detention Centre will be one of the first institutions to be examined by an independent inquiry into child sex abuse.
The County Durham
young offenders’ facility was today revealed to be included in the
first phase of investigations into the extent to which institutions have
failed to protect children from sexual abuse, as part of the
long-running Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA).
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The inquiry’s chair Hon Lowell Goddard has announced that 12 investigations will begin immediately and run in tandem.
They
include investigations into abuse linked to Westminster, within the
Anglican and Roman Catholic Church, and within custodial institutions,
the category in which the Medomsley scandal falls.
The chair
said: “I am pleased to launch the Public Hearings Project by announcing
the start of the inquiry’s investigative work. Twelve investigations are
proposed for this first phase. They will all begin with immediate
effect and most, if not all, will culminate in public hearings. They
represent the first phase of the inquiry’s investigations and are by no
means the total of the work we intend to conduct; further investigations
will be announced as the inquiry progresses.
“By adopting both
an institution-specific and a thematic approach, we will ensure that the
inquiry reaches its conclusions on as broad an evidence base as
possible. We will not be limited to considering the particular
institution that is the focus of the investigation, but will address the
range of institutional responsibility for child protection.
“There
is no doubt that the task we have set ourselves in the first phase is
ambitious. To run 12 investigations in parallel represents an
organisational challenge that is unprecedented in a public inquiry in
the UK. We are determined to succeed and expect full cooperation of all
institutions and individuals who can assist us in our work.”
More
than 1,240 former inmates at Medomsley Detention Centre have now
reported being physically or sexually abused while being held at the
facility, near Consett, in the 1960s, 70s and 80s.
The victims came forward after Durham Constabulary launched
Operation Seabrook, following the conviction of former prison worker
the late Neville Husband, who was jailed 10 years ago for abusing
youngsters at the centre.
And Justice Goddard said the facility will form the main focus of investigations into abuse of children in custody.
“We
will examine the case of Medomsley Youth Detention Centre and consider
the extent to which custodial institutions in general have failed to
protect children from sexual abuse. We will investigate the sexual abuse
of children in custodial institutions focusing, in particular, on the
many hundreds of allegations of child sexual abuse at Medomsley Youth
Detention Centre in County Durham,” she said. “The apparent scale of
abuse at Medomsley demands a rigorous inquiry into how such allegations,
if true, could have gone uninvestigated and the offending undetected
for so long. Our inquiry will pose probing questions of the secure
estate for children and young people, the police and the criminal
justice system. In addition to the Medomsley example, we will need to
consider the extent to which other custodial institutions may have
allowed similar abuse to take place.”
Ben Pruchnie/Getty Images
The Honourable Lowell Goddard speaks during an update to The Independent Child Sex Abuse Inquiry The 12 investigations are:
Children in the care of Lambeth Council
Children in the care of Nottinghamshire Councils
Cambridge House, Knowl View and Rochdale Council
Child sexual abuse in the Anglican Church
Child sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Church
The sexual abuse of children in custodial institutions
Child sexual abuse in residential schools
The internet and child sexual abuse
Child exploitation by organised networks
The protection of children outside the United Kingdom
Accountability and reparations for victims and survivors
Allegations of child sexual abuse linked to Westminster
Justice Goddard said it would be impossible to predict how long the investigations would take.
“It
is impossible to put a timescale on the completion of all of this work,
but it is reasonable to assume that while some of the investigations
may be completed within 18 months, others may take several years to
conclude,” she said. “In some cases, overlapping criminal proceedings
may cause substantial delay to the progress of individual
investigations. “Nonetheless, in my opening statement I committed to
completing the work of the Inquiry within five years and my current
assessment is that that timeframe, whilst ambitious, is achievable.”
