Few accounts accurately reflect the brutality of perpetrators who deliberately bond children into sexual slavery without any sense of shame, guilt or fear. In Rotherham, perpetrators have acted with impunity for over 20 years.

Just five men in the South Yorkshire town have been convicted of child sexual exploitation (CSE) offences in the past 20 years. Agencies in Rotherham were aware that children were being routinely sold for sex from the mid 1990s, yet seemingly were unable or unwilling to prevent, police or prosecute.

Instead, this vile trade in child sex slaves took hold in the run-down streets and working-class estates, and the trade has flourished until it has become a way of life embedded within the culture of this northern town. Until the Jay report was published.

Less than six months ago, Rotherham council leaders claimed lessons had been learned. Last week, it was apparent that they had not. The Jay report highlighted the extent of child sex exploitation in Rotherham, but an investigation by Louise Casey, director-general for troubled families within the Office for Local Government and Communities, exposed inexcusable institutional failings.

Victims and their families hope that the report will result in criminal prosecutions against key officers and councillors for misconduct in public office.

Casey has condemned Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council (RMBC) as “unfit for purpose.” The inspection revealed past and present failures to accept, understand and combat CSE, resulting in a lack of support for victims and insufficient action against known perpetrators.

Casey said: “I found a council in denial. In particular, it is failing in its duties to protect vulnerable children and young people from harm. They denied that there had been a problem, or if there had been, that it was as big as was said.

“If there was a problem, they certainly were not told — it was someone else’s job. They were no worse than anyone else. They had won awards. The media were out to get them.”

In March 2014, Rotherham triumphantly paraded an award for excellence from the National Working Group (NWG). NWG Network is a charitable organisation formed of over 1,600 practitioners who combat CSE and child trafficking in Britain. The organisation offers support and advice to those working with children and young people who have been affected by sexual exploitation.

Members of the NWG are involved in research, and give advice to the Home Office and other governments.

At the time Rotherham Cllr Paul Lakin, the council’s cabinet member for children and young people’s services said: “This is a remarkable achievement and shows once again that we are working together well as a team with the police and other agencies to give the message that we are serious about tackling CSE in Rotherham.

“This recognition comes as a further example that we are doing everything possible to ensure that Rotherham is at the forefront of an issue that effects every town and city in this country.”

Lakin took over as leader of the council when heads rolled over the Jay report’s findings.

Last week, Lakin and his cabinet resigned en masse when it was announced that Eric Pickles was sending commissioners in to take over the abysmal council.

Lakin’s position was never secure. Even before he took on the role of leader, he was contemplating his resignation over his handling of CSE when he was in charge of children’s services during the critical period between 2010 and August 2014.

NWG Network chief executive Sheila Taylor MBE presented the trophy to the Rotherham CSE team and said at the time: “The Rotherham team has worked tirelessly to improve services and is one of the best national examples of current practice. The major contribution from this team has been to reinstall confidence and credibility locally to help to ensure the safety of young people in Rotherham.”

In Rotherham there was incredulity that the local service was deemed to have either the confidence or credibility of the community. In the days following the Jay report, Rotherham MP Sarah Champion admitted that she did not know who to turn to, or who to trust.

Casey concluded that “the dedicated CSE team is poorly directed, suffers from excessive case loads and an inability to

share information between agencies.” She found that the lack of prosecutions could be blamed on the fact that “perpetrators are identified, but too often little or no action is taken to stop or even disrupt their activities and protect children from harm.” She realised that despite the glowing accolades for the multi-agency practice, “one of the most important partners is South Yorkshire Police, with whom inspectors expected to find a robust and equal relationship. Instead, RMBC demonstrated an excessive deference to police assurances and a failure to recognise their own role in pursuing perpetrators.

“This prevented the use of council powers to tackle perpetrators and (led to) a lack of scrutiny over the police’s actions — actions which inspectors would also call into question. Partnership working is ineffective.”

Perpetrators in Rotherham generated real fear. They were often perceived to be connected to other forms of criminality and violence, and victims and their families were too frightened to speak and did not feel the police could protect them. They were threatened and intimidated into silence.

Casey noted that “inspectors were left

wondering what these ongoing investigations amounted to. Because, from where victims and some organisations working with them stood, there seemed to be lawlessness in relation to CSE in Rotherham. Perpetrators seemed to face no consequences. Nor were their activities disrupted. Where perpetrators are not tackled, they are likely to become emboldened and become more extreme in their behaviour.”

In one victim’s account, a police officer told her: “Nothing good will come of it. I’ve seen your files. You lied about that man all those years ago.” He then pulled the police car over and persuaded her to drop the charges against a perpetrator. After ripping up some paperwork, he dropped her off at a restaurant where girls, including victims of CSE, and suspected perpetrators used to gather.”

In the aftermath of the Jay report, I interviewed a respected imam and asked him why the Muslim community would not come forward. He looked at me quizzically and asked: “Who do we tell?”

Champion has described a similar feeling of helplessness, telling a survivors’ meeting in the House of Commons: “I have a taste of what you might have endured. For three weeks after the inquiry, I didn’t know who to trust. My head was spinning. I had new victims coming forward and I wanted to take them to the police, but how the hell could I trust the police?”

She currently has about 10 new cases a week brought to her and told the Mirror that she “nearly lost her mind” after victims turned to her for help, unable to trust the police or local council.

The Morning Star has asked the NWG if the Casey report had led them to reconsider the prestigious award granted to Rotherham council but we were unable to obtain any response.

For victims like Susie (not her real name), the Casey report has meant that she could finally be believed. She said: “It’s good that Louise Casey believed people like me and acted on it. It was emotional to hear and read but it’s the beginning of the truth. People want justice and we wont get that until the truth comes out.

“There have been too many horrific things that have happened within RMBC and now we need the same investigation into South Yorkshire Police.”

The attention upon Rotherham has had a surprising impact. Victims are not prepared to stay silent and are beginning to work with each other because agencies have failed them.

The girls are older, wiser and stronger and less likely to bow to the intimidation that marred earlier investigations.

Champion is unlikely to retain her seat in the upcoming election, but the relatively inexperienced MP is proving to be a formidable and fearless campaigner.

Susie said: “Even after the Jay report I was called a liar by members of the council. Now I think I will be taken more seriously. I’m not the only person it happened to, we have all been through this pain and it can never be undone. Now we have to make sure other people dont go through the same pain.”

But if Rotherham is deemed to be a beacon of good practice by the experts in CSE, who or what will bring an end to the misery of children bonded into sexual slavery — not just in Rotherham but across Britain?