Start date confirmed for Scottish grooming gangs inquiry

Education secretary Mairi McAllan has said child abusers have “nowhere to hide” as an inquiry into grooming gangs prepares to start work.

The independent public inquiry is to begin next week.

Led by Professor Alexis Jay, who headed similar work in England, the inquiry will look into the scale, extent and prevalence of group-based child sexual abuse and exploitation over the past 30 years.

In a statement to parliament education secretary Mairi McAllan said: “I want survivors to know that your voice will be heard. This inquiry will investigate what you went through, without fear or favour, and action will be taken as a result. And to those who would seek to perpetrate harm to our children in Scotland, I say directly that there will be nowhere to hide from justice.”

In September, a national review of group-based child sexual abuse in Scotland found that inconsistencies in records and the lack of an agreed definition means there is no reliable national picture of the scale of the problem.

A statutory inquiry began in England and Wales in April. The Scottish Government had announced it would hold its own in February, having previously faced calls to do so.

Beginning work on 11 November, Scotland’s version will cover the period from January 1996 to now, scrutinising any failures by “responsible organisations”, including the deliberate concealment of harms.

It will look into the characteristics of perpetrators to help understand risk factors and develop stronger protections, and will work to identify the changes needed in practice, policy and the law for better safeguarding.

However, it will avoid “unnecessary duplication” of matters already covered by the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry and other processes.

Meanwhile, a pilot of the Truth Project, which will collect input from survivors of abuse, will also launch this month. Full national rollout is expected in 2027.

McAllan said: “Sexual abuse and exploitation are among the most serious harms that can be inflicted on a child. Our responsibility is to ensure that children are protected, perpetrators are pursued and survivors are listened to, supported and believed.

“This inquiry will undertake a thorough examination of Scotland’s response to group-based child sexual abuse and exploitation. Its purpose is not only to understand what has happened, but to ensure it cannot happen again. To ensure accountability is strengthened, and that we do everything possible to better protect children and young people in the future.

“However, we are not waiting for the inquiry to conclude before acting – due to the pressing nature of the issue work is already underway to strengthen Scotland’s collective response to child sexual abuse and exploitation, including by accepting the recommendations from our National Review and providing additional funding for Police Scotland’s Operation Decerno.”

Jay, the former chief social work inspector for Scotland, previously led the independent inquiry into the abuse of girls in Rotherham and another into crimes in England and Wales.

She said: “I welcome today’s announcement of the Inquiry’s terms of reference. This marks the beginning of our work, and I am clear that the focus of the inquiry will be on making practical recommendations that improve policy, practice and, where necessary, legislation to better protect children in Scotland.”

Responding to the announcement, Tory MSP Meghan Gallacher asked McAllan: “Why is this taking so long?

“It's not just me who is baffled by the lack of urgency. Survivors of grooming gangs have also criticised the Scottish Government for taking too long. Some have waited decades for justice.

“We knew – and I think we all knew – that there was a significant issue the moment the inquiry south of the border began to uncover the true extent of grooming gangs. So, can I ask the cabinet secretary how confident is she that this inquiry will finally deliver the answers and justice that the families and survivors deserve, and most importantly, when will they see it happen?”

McAllan responded: “I am confident, and one of the things that gives me confidence most of all is that we have the unrivalled experience of Professor Alexis Jay chairing this inquiry, and that this inquiry has the strongest possible powers to investigate the extent and prevalence, the impact on victims and survivors, the characteristics of perpetrators, any failures in practice of institutions, and to do that in every setting in which group-based abuse may have occurred.”