Full Breakdown
Birmingham and Wales Added to National Inquiry into Grooming Gangs
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Development: New Investigation Sites
The statutory Independent Inquiry into Grooming Gangs in England and Wales has announced that Birmingham and Wales will be the next focus areas for local investigations. The inquiry, chaired by former children’s commissioner Baroness Anne Longfield, will examine the sexual abuse and exploitation of children in these regions and assess how organisations tasked with protection responded.
Background & Context
The inquiry was announced by former Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer in June 2025 and began work in April 2025 with a £65 million budget. It follows earlier investigations in Oldham, Bradford, Keighley and London. Areas are selected based on victim and survivor experience, indications of prevalence, harm and risk, and public concern.
Official Statements & Responses
Baroness Longfield said victims and survivors in Wales had waited too long for answers and that the inquiry would help the panel understand “why children were not protected” and what must change in the future. Panel member Zoë Billingham added that the inquiry will scrutinise what organisations knew, how decisions were made, how agencies worked together, and why opportunities to protect children were missed.
Data & Statistics
Verbatim Quotes
- “We will look carefully at what organisations knew, how decisions were made, how agencies worked together, and why opportunities to protect children were missed” — Zoë Billingham