A HOME Office minister has admitted that social services and police officers should have been co-operating “for years” to stamp out child sexual exploitation.

Crime Prevention Minister Norman Baker spoke out during a visit to Cowley Police Station in Oxford to see the work of the Kingfisher team, which brings together officers from Thames Valley Police and Oxfordshire County Council.

The unit was set up in the wake of Operation Bullfinch, which saw seven men jailed for a minimum of 95 years, to investigate cases of suspected child sexual exploitation and to support its victims.

Mr Baker said: “We probably should have been doing it for years, but the reality is that up and down the country it hasn’t been happening.

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“We have had organisations operating in their own silos and I am sure in most cases they were motivated and determined, but often it is information sharing that enables the full picture to be painted.

“That’s why I, as a minister, have been quite keen to encourage joint working. The Kingfisher team is a good example of progress being made and I want to see more of it.”

The serious case review into Operation Bullfinch is due to be published by the end of the year, but Mr Baker declined to say whether he thought it could lead to heads rolling.

South Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner Shaun Wright have resigned over the Rotheram sex abuse scandal.

Mr Baker said: “Until I see what the report says it is not possible to say. What we need to concentrate on is making sure the systems are in place to protect children. That is the most important aspect.”

Set up in late 2012, the Kingfisher team was singled out for praise by Ofsted earlier this year as part of a report that followed an inspection of all the county council’s children’s social care services.

The Kingfisher team is made up of about 20 staff from police, social services and the health sector.

Lucy Butler, the county council’s deputy director for children’s social care, said: “We have had interest from local authorities and police forces all over the country in terms of the work of the Kingfisher team, as others seek to replicate what we have done in Oxfordshire.

“We welcomed the visit from the minister so that we were able to share with central Government how Kingfisher works and what has been achieved.”

  • Anyone who is a victim of child sex exploitation, or know anyone who is, can call the Kingfisher team on 101.


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