More than 1,400 children were sexually exploited in Rotherham between 1997 and 2013, a report has concluded.
The abuse of children, some just 11 years old, has been described as "horrific". The report also found it is "not confined to the past but continues to this day".
In the summary of her findings, independent reviewer Alexis Jay writes: "It is hard to describe the appalling nature of the abuse that the victims suffered. They were raped by multiple perpetrators, trafficked to other towns and cities in the north of England, abducted, beaten, and intimidated."
"There were examples of children who had been doused in petrol and threatened with being set alight, threatened with guns, made witness to brutally violent rapes and threatened they would be next if they told anyone."
"Girls as young as 11 were raped by large numbers of male perpetrators."
The report highlights a variety of historical and serious child protection failings and concludes the council and other agencies should have done more to protect those at risk.
In just over a third of cases, victims were previously known to services in the town because of child protection and neglect.
The report says there was a series of failings including poor leadership from senior managers in child protection services and a perceived "lack of interest" in, and understanding of, grooming as a model of child abuse.
Victims were not heard or believed and there was a perception that a 'macho and bullying' culture within the council prevented child sexual exploitation from being properly discussed. Professional jealousies between organisations also prevented effective action.
'Played down' by senior managers
There was 'denial' that such events could happen in Rotherham and issues of ethnicity were 'played down' by senior managers. By far the majority of perpetrators were described by victims as Asian - yet councillors did not engage with the Pakistani community to discuss how to address the issue.
Ms Jay found that a series of reports made available to both the council and police there flagging up serious concerns do not appear to have been used effectively to influence the response of either organisation, and there had been a series of missed opportunities to understand the scale of the problem since 2002.
Responding to the report, Martin Kimber, Chief Executive of Rotherham Council, said "(It) does not make comfortable reading in its account of the horrific experiences of some young people in the past, and I would like to reiterate our sincere apology to those who were let down when they needed help."
"I commissioned the independent review to understand fully what went wrong, why it went wrong and to ensure that the lessons learnt in Rotherham mean these mistakes can never happen again."
"The report confirms our services have improved significantly over the last five years and are stronger today than ever before. This is important because it allows me to reassure young people and families that should anyone raise concerns we will take them seriously and provide them with the support they need."
"However, that must not overshadow - and certainly does not excuse - the finding that for a significant amount of time the council and its partners could and should have done more to protect young people from what must be one of the most horrific forms of abuse imaginable."
