Supporting grooming gang victim-survivors in London

Grooming gangs have been operating in London for decades, and are still prevalent today. 

This is what the London Assembly Police and Crime Committee heard at a recent meeting with journalists who have reported on grooming gangs in the capital.

They identified three main types of grooming gangs in London: 

• Grooming gangs, including some that are similar to those seen in Rotherham and Rochdale;
• County lines or criminal gangs that also groom and sexually exploit children; 
• A national network of children being groomed and trafficked into and out of London.¹

The Committee will meet tomorrow to continue its investigation into grooming gangs, speaking with academics who specialise in support for victim-survivors of grooming gang abuse. The Committee will also hear from charities who work with and support victim-survivors of child sexual abuse and exploitation.

Guests include: 

• Professor Michelle McManus, Professor in Safeguarding and Violence Prevention, Manchester Metropolitan University
• Professor Helen Beckett, Professor of Social Policy and Social Work, University of Lancashire
• Professor Aisha K Gill, Professor in Criminology, University of Bristol
• Lindsay Dalton, CEO, Ivison Trust
• Christopher D’Aguiar, Head of Safeguarding, Safer London 

The meeting will take place in the Chamber at City Hall on Wednesday 1 July 2026 at 10am.

Media and members of the public are invited to attend.