Prosecutors told Leicester Crown Court he encouraged children to eat sweets laced with sedatives, leaving some hospitalised. Parents had long reported that children often felt unwell after attending the camp, but these concerns were often dismissed.
Speaking exclusively to LBC Sharon Birch, from Safeguarding Network, highlighted how perpetrators can exploit trust over long periods. She said: “They build confidence in the adults around the children, they build a reputation, they build credibility, they have a mask and they try not to let that fall or to crack. And because they’re usually somebody that other people do trust, they trust the children with them.”
She warned that formal safeguarding checks, such as DBS disclosures, are not enough to prevent abuse. “Ultimately, you can’t know what you don’t know. Very often people might have a feeling for something, or somebody might have said something previously and it’s been dismissed. And this is where we need to unpick it and tighten it,” Ms Birch told LBC.
Ms Birch also stressed the need for independent oversight in voluntary settings such as holiday camps: “We need to be tightening up any loophole that we absolutely can… We need to tighten it so much to leave less room, or no room at all, for these people to offend and hurt children."
She added that organisations need to understand their responsibilities and ensure safeguarding procedures are at the forefront: “Anybody and everybody can need safeguarding at different points, but we need to be getting it right.”
Ms Birch says a serious case review into the camp’s operations may help identify some of the gaps: “For the length of time he’s been abusing, absolutely, yes. There are always lessons to be learned in every single case.”
She also emphasised the importance of vigilance across society: “It’s only when we know further information about someone and how they’ve been allowed to abuse for so long that we can start to put it right… As a society, we need to be vigilant. It’s not just down to the agencies, it’s everybody.”
A spokesperson for The Department for Education said: "The safety and wellbeing of children is our utmost priority, and we have worked closely with the police throughout their investigation into this very disturbing case.
"We are pleased that many of the victims have been spared the ordeal of a trial as a result of the defendant’s guilty pleas, but our thoughts remain with them and their families as they continue to receive the support they need.”
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George Icke is a Reporter for LBC.
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