Number of grooming victims in Rotherham wanting help has tripled
Staff at a Rotherham support service say they've seen a rise in the number of victims and families asking for help.
A support service in Rotherham for victims of child sexual exploitation has told us it's had an "influx" of survivors and their families wanting help.
Staff at Swinton Lock have told Hallam FM they normally have two or three people get in touch each week and that's almost tripled over the last few weeks.
They've also seen a steady increase over the last year and a half.
The recent surge is being put down to recent convictions in the town which saw members of a grooming ring jailed.
Jessica, which isn't her real name, was groomed when she was fourteen and has only just seen her abuser put behind bars.
She's been getting support for the last 18 months and says she can see why there's been a rise in people asking for help:
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"When everything's been exposed in Rotherham there's going to be so many people at home having memories and flashbacks and thinking 'God I was abused as well'. There are a lot of people out there who need support. It doesn't just affect the victim but sisters, brothers, mums, dads, aunties and grandparents as well. It's affected my own family including my kids."
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Jessica also thinks some victims and survivors are being put off asking for support in case they have to go to police.
She added:
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"There's some people out there who want to come foward for support, but they feel that if they do they have to make a statement to police. Some people will never go to police and they don't want to make a statement. For me support is about building yourself up and making sure you can move forward in day to day life."
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Jessica will be sharing her experience along with other survivors and professionals at the national conference Coming out of the Darkness in Leeds.