Grooming gang victim accused of ‘running brothel as abuse ring leader at 16’ Fiona Goddard has said she was forced to ‘fight tooth and nail and expose people in the media’ before an investigation was launched

A victim of a Bradford grooming gang has said she she had to “fight tooth and nail” and go public before any action was taken by authorities.

Fiona Goddard, who endured rape, abuse, and exploitation by a grooming gang while in a Bradford children’s home, has condemned the “systematic failures” in public services that failed to safeguard children. She also criticised the attitudes of officials who labelled her as “the ring leader of abuse” and accused her of “running a brothel” during her teenage years, reports the Mirror.

Ms Goddard, who courageously waived her anonymity, disclosed that she was raped by over 50 men in Bradford. At just 14 years old, she became a victim of grooming, where men used alcohol, drugs, and violence to sexually exploit her. In 2019, nine men were jailed for raping and abusing two teenage girls, including Ms Goddard.

She is now urging other victims to step forward and provide evidence for the upcoming national inquiry into the grooming gangs scandal. “We can’t make a difference without people speaking up and suffering in silence,” she said.

It comes in the wake of Baroness Louise Casey’s comprehensive report on the scandal, which revealed a series of appalling failures leading to the betrayal of victims. The crossbench peer’s investigation found that too often, perpetrators faced lesser charges while the blame was wrongfully placed on the children they abused.

According to her findings, the girls were mischaracterised as “wayward teenagers” or “collaborators in their abuse” instead of recognising them as raped children. The review has strongly urged the government to overturn convictions of individuals who were wrongly prosecuted for crimes, including those labelled as child prostitution.

During a press conference in central London, Ms Goddard shared her own troubling experience, revealing: “When I was 15, I was described as being the ring leader of the abuse when I was in the house with adults aged between 22 and 44 and I was 15 years old.”

She continued by highlighting how she had been mischaracterised, stating: “I was constantly referred to with stuff like that, and I was referred to as running a brothel at 16 or 17 year old. The focus has constantly been on these victims and the stigma then attached with that has impacted lives. Where damage has been done, people now have a responsibility to fix that damage. It cannot be forgotten and it cannot be moved on from because people’s lives have been severely impacted by this, and they deserve to have the damage fixed.”

Ms Goddard also expressed her struggles in seeking justice, mentioning the hurdles she faced with law enforcement. “I had to fight tooth and nail and expose people in the media just to get an investigation started,” she disclosed.

At a press conference hosted by Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, who has faced criticism for politicising the grooming gangs issue, Ms Goddard expressed her views. Badenoch had earlier lambasted Labour in the Commons for their sluggish response to calling for a national inquiry, despite the Conservatives’ own 14-year delay in doing so.

She argued that it was consistently up to the Tories to “force” action on grooming gangs “time and time again”.

Lib Dem MP Josh Babarinde, himself a victim of child sexual abuse, voiced his revulsion at Ms Badenoch’s partisan approach to such a delicate matter. “Victims and survivors deserve more than a smug ‘I told you so’, diatribe,” he remarked. Baroness Casey also shared her “disappointment” with the Opposition’s strategy.

Ms Badenoch stood firm, asserting she is not engaging in politics while participating in a panel discussion alongside campaigners and survivors. She condemned those attempting to “tone police those who are pointing out when something has gone wrong”.

Ms Goddard urged for a cessation of “all the political stuff” and called for efforts to mend relationships “broken through systematic failures for years and years”. She emphasised the importance of focusing on survivors and the necessity for the government to work hard to regain trust for services.

For victims to feel confident enough to come forward, engage with an inquiry, and open up, trust must be restored, she added, because without their engagement, progress cannot be made.

In an emotional appeal to fellow survivors, she urged: “I would encourage victims to come forward, because even though we have been failed so majorly for so long, together, we can do this. We can’t make a difference without people speaking up and suffering in silence. Things will never change, and people, hopefully can have the courage to start speaking up and coming forward and fighting.”

She also demanded that ministers consider implementing “survival-led education within schools and services, so we can start tackling and preventing this crime from happening while the inquiry is ongoing.”

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