I think I had to feel as low as it was possible to feel before I found the strength to fight what was happening to her and other girls. She started to realise what she was doing to herself and I could see for the first time that she needed me. She seemed to turn some sort of corner that day, and so did I. Afterwards, I took my daughter firmly by the shoulders and said to her, "You'll never know how many times I thought I'd be going to your funeral." My daughter and I attended the funeral, and were both extremely upset. My nephew killed himself unexpectedly during this time.
Everything exploded while she was in care, and I had a breakdown.
Seeing her and having to walk away was unbearable. My lowest point was the first time I visited her. She didn't want to go, but I could no longer cope. The worst thing, as a mother, was not being able to prevent my daughter from being abused.Īt the end of 2001, a year after her first disappearance, I put her into care. Because this was happening outside the house, there was nothing I could do. If a girl is over 13, she has to be the complainant in a case of sexual assault. Every time she disappeared, I thought I'd never see her alive again. I couldn't eat, sleep or function properly, and I could see no way back. Every minute of every day became a nightmare. I felt as if my daughter was sliding away from me and I'd never be able to get her back. People ask me why I use the word "grooming" rather than referring to them as paedophiles, but most of these men haven't been convicted.
The men flattered them into believing they loved them as part of a process of grooming them to have sex with lots of different men, some in their 30s and 40s. Money didn't seem to be changing hands, but the girls were getting drink and drugs and mobile phones. "Those boys are my boyfriends."Īs far as she was concerned, she was doing what she wanted to do and I was hindering her.
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