Grooming gangs inquiry to investigate child sexual abuse in Birmingham and Wales as scope of £65million probe widens

Published: 09:29 EDT, 30 September 2026 | Updated: 09:34 EDT, 30 September 2026 The grooming gangs inquiry has launched investigations in Wales and Birmingham.Announcing the news today, the inquiry said both probes will 'examine the sexual abuse and exploitation of children by grooming gangs and the response of organisations responsible for protecting children'.The inquiry said in June that London, Oldham, Bradford and Keighley would be the first towns and cities it would focus on as it looks at areas of the country where serious failures have been identified in the response to child sexual exploitation by grooming gangs.'Each investigation will help the inquiry establish why institutions and organisations failed to protect victims and survivors of abuse, and feed directly into its national findings and recommendations,' the inquiry said in a statement.More investigations are expected to be announced in future.The £65million inquiry will look into how grooming gangs operated and how institutions, including the police, local authorities, health services, social care services and schools, responded. Baroness Anne Longfield is chairing the national inquiry into grooming gangsLocal investigations will be carried out in areas where serious failures have been identified in response to child sexual exploitation by grooming gangs.The inquiry will hold public hearings, which will be livestreamed, and transcripts will be published after each hearing.Findings will be published progressively rather than being held until a final report.The inquiry has a maximum duration of three years, to conclude no later than March 2029.More to follow