Former detective releases book about Rochdale grooming gang

Former detective constable Margaret ‘Maggie’ Oliver, who played an integral role in bringing about the prosecution of a Rochdale grooming gang, has published a book telling how she helped secure the convictions of nine men who were found guilty of child sex charges after targeting vulnerable girls in Rochdale and Heywood.

In 'Survivors: One Brave Detective's Battle to Expose the Rochdale Child Abuse Scandal' Maggie talks about how she felt like a 'lone voice' calling for people to act when she discovered that children as young as 10 were being groomed, abused and trafficked for sex by gangs of men. 

Maggie turned whistleblower after she resigned from Greater Manchester Police in 2012. Her book is an account from a police insider on the problem of child sexual exploitation and how this case was handled by the authorities.

Maggie said: “When I joined Greater Manchester Police, I swore my oath and I took it seriously from my first day in the job to my last day as a serving officer. But perhaps I was meant to join the police, perhaps it was written in the stars all along, just so that I could expose the terrible scandal I witnessed as a serving police officer and give these forgotten children a voice.”

Speaking to Capital FM, Maggie added: “This fills in many of the gaps many people have never heard about. This is my story of my life. It’s a very honest account; it goes to the next chapter of my journey to help survivors of abuse move forward with their lives.”

Gail Hopper, the director of children’s services at Rochdale Borough Council, said: “People should be assured that since these terrible crimes were committed a decade ago there have been radical changes to the way children are protected by the police, courts and councils.

“Along with Greater Manchester Police, we have worked with victims to bring many other offenders to justice and we still provide support to a number of survivors. If anyone has information about current or historic crimes they should contact the authorities immediately.”

 

 

Maggie worked in the Serious Crime Division of GMP for many years and was commended for her work on countless gangland murders, shootings, kidnappings, rapes and witness protection jobs.

Her experiences on the Rochdale child sexual exploitation case were portrayed by Lesley Sharp in the BBC award-winning drama Three Girls, for which she acted as the programme consultant. The show was watched by over nine million people in 2017.

More recently, Maggie has made appearances on Celebrity Big Brother - Year of the Woman and Loose Women as a part of their Never Too Late To Tell campaign. She is now an established broadcast commentator and speaker on current affairs and human rights.

Maggie’s relationship with the victims of child grooming continues to this day, leading her to set up The Maggie Oliver Foundation, aiming to help survivors to 'transform pain into power'.

The foundation will start its life in Rochdale where it will open a 'The Maggie Oliver Centre' for women, run by volunteers and survivors who will be able to provide much-needed and support to those who have been affected by sexual abuse, and help them access support, legal advice therapy as well as training and education.

The centre will be open to all faiths and backgrounds, a hub for women to integrate and build relationships with mum and toddler groups, coffee mornings, art classes, workshops and access to support networks and services.

'Survivors: One Brave Detective's Battle to Expose the Rochdale Child Abuse Scandal' is her first book and is published by John Blake.