‘We want justice’: Woman gang raped in Oldham aged 12 demands grooming inquiry but tells far right to stay out
Samantha Walker-Roberts, 31, wants Keir Starmer to ‘do right for survivors’ but warns ‘we don’t want Tommy Robinson involved’
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A woman who was raped in Oldham aged 12 has implored Sir Keir Starmer to launch a government inquiry into child sexual abuse in the town – but hit out at the far right for hijacking the cause.
Samantha Walker-Roberts, who has bravely waived her right to anonymity, was gang raped in a house in Chadderton, northwest England, in 2006. Shakil Chowdhury was jailed for six years for the brutal attack but released on licence after three. Three other attackers were never caught.
The survivor, now 31, has called for the prime minister to launch a government review into the scandal after Home Office minister Jess Phillips declined a request for a nationally led inquiry into abuse in Oldham, Greater Manchester, in favour of a locally led review.
“We want justice and we want our voices to be heard so they need to now start taking that on and listening to what we want, which is a government inquiry in Oldham,” Ms Walker-Roberts told The Independent.
The government’s refusal sparked a furore as billionaire Elon Musk launched a series of attacks on his social media site X (formerly Twitter), calling Ms Phillips a “rape genocide apologist” and accusing Sir Keir of “hiding terrible things”.
The Tories have piled pressure on the government by joining Mr Musk’s calls for a national inquiry into grooming gangs across the country, tabling an amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. On Wednesday, ahead of a vote on the amendment, Downing Street indicated the prime minister was open to a U-turn for the first time.
Ms Walker-Roberts, who is campaigning for a government probe into crimes in Oldham with two other survivors, believes a local inquiry led by Oldham Council will not see professionals held accountable for their failings in handling the abuse.
However, her demands fall short of the full national inquiry demanded by the Tories, amid fears Oldham would “get lost” in a nationwide probe.
She told The Independent: “I would like a government-led inquiry, not a national inquiry because Oldham will get lost in it.
“He [Sir Keir] has to listen. He has to listen or he’s going to be called into question. If he can’t do right for survivors, then what can he do for the country?”
Although the campaigner welcomes the spotlight being shone on the issue by Mr Musk’s intervention, she said she was frustrated with far-right groups for “jumping on the bandwagon”.
She said she believed some people, including jailed far-right political activist Tommy Robinson, who has styled himself as a campaigner exposing Asian grooming gangs, were misrepresenting the issue as a problem with Pakistani grooming gangs. Her abuser was from Bangladesh.
“It infuriates me,” she said. “The only views that matter are the survivors, not family members, not members of the public.
“Tommy Robinson needs to take no involvement in this. We don’t want him. It is not about race or the colour of your skin and he makes it that kind of problem.
“It infuriates me that they like to put everybody under the same umbrella of Pakistani grooming gangs. That is not the case here, because mine were predominantly Bengalis.”
The survivor hopes a government review into Oldham would lead to proper accountability for officials in the police, Oldham Council and social services.
“I have still not had any justice against any professional that has been involved in my case at all,” she said.
Greater Manchester Police assistant chief constable Steph Parker said: “We wholeheartedly apologise to all victims of child sexual exploitation who we badly let down, including Sam, for the hurt and ongoing trauma caused by what happened. We have accepted that our actions fell far short of the help that they had every right to expect from us.”
She said child protection was the priority of police, as was listening to survivors of abuse to ensure they were believed.
“The abuse Sam suffered is subject to one of a number of ongoing victim-focused investigations by our specialist unit investigating non-recent CSE, which has 100 dedicated detectives working at a pace survivors are comfortable with when the time is right for them. This has seen more than 100 arrests, with suspects continuing to be taken to court to face justice,” she added.
Ms Walker-Roberts said a local review, similar to one already held into grooming gangs in Telford, would not effect real change, although she acknowledged some other survivors would rather see the investigation carried out locally.
Ms Walker-Roberts also questioned whether Oldham Council had all the resources needed for a local inquiry. In September, the council’s deputy leader promised they would “manage the finances of Oldham so we don’t go bankrupt” as he was grilled on a £21m budget hole.
She called for survivors to be central to every stage of any inquiry, including setting the terms of reference, which are expected to be agreed in the coming months.
Professor Alexis Jay, who led the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse which reported in 2022, has said “the time has passed” for another lengthy examination of grooming gangs.
This week, home secretary Yvette Cooper announced the government would begin to implement Prof Jay’s call for mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse.
Councillor Arooj Shah, leader of Oldham Council, said “no stone will be left unturned” in their work to hold perpetrators to account and work is underway to establish a Telford-style local inquiry.
“Since October, when the government confirmed we should carry out a local inquiry, we have been working on setting up that independent inquiry,” she said. “That work has included liaising with Oldham survivors and Telford Council which conducted a similar inquiry.
“Child sexual exploitation is a vile form of child abuse, and the failings of the past are shameful. We have a duty not to repeat them and this inquiry will help strengthen local safeguarding and – most importantly – protect Oldham’s children.”
A Home Office spokesperson said: “No child should ever suffer sexual abuse or exploitation and it is paramount we do more to protect vulnerable children – which is why we are working at pace to implement the recommendations of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse.
“We fully support an independent inquiry or investigation by Oldham Council. This is entirely in line with the approach of the previous government and follows the example of local reviews in Telford and Rotherham.”