Just A Child: Britain's Biggest Child Abuse Scandal Exposed

This account of a childhood in Rotherham, England, is both raw and admirable. It is also very clever. I tried to expunge the newspaper accounts of child abuse cases I had seen while reading it, and found myself wondering when the story would reveal itself. Yes, it is written in an authentic South Yorkshire vernacular, yes it is a story of childish precocity and wilfulness, underage sex, neglect by family, friends, schools, the police, and almost everyone who is involved in social services. Sammy Woodhouse was, it has to be said, a real handful, and nothing anyone said to her seemed to dissuade her from getting what she wanted. But then, three-quarters of the way through the book, I suddenly realised the reader is, in a sense, as 'duped' as Sammy was. Everything in those earlier chapters is within the context of her skilful grooming by the ghastly "Ash" and his family. She was trapped by her childish emotions, the fact that she grew up too soon, and the dreadful consequences of her existence. This is not a clichéd account. Sammy was not 'in care' - on the whole, her family were kind and there for her. She was not 'handed around' dozens of paedophiles - "Ash" seemed to keep her very much for himself. But it is a harrowing and startling story which should be read by anyone with an opinion, or even a view, on Child Sexual Exploitation. What does come out of it is Sammy Woodhouse's concern, intelligence, courage, forgiveness, and determination to devote her life to the exposure of this veritable 'crime against humanity'. A remarkable achievement. One is left (and I read it in three days, having a cannot-put-it-down experience) hoping she will have the happiest of lives from now on. Many, in the same situation as Sammy, will have reason to thank her for the positive outcome of her revelations. Roderick Craig Low - Author

Good Books Some *of The Books I Read Are About Sensitive Subjects And I Believe We Need *To Know* About It. So Something Gets Done But It's Still Happening People. We Need To Make A Change Rapidly

I’m not a reader, but wanted to try and get me of social media, I looked this book up and thought I would give it a try. Fantastic read, had me gripped from the start, which is unusual for me, I normally get bored, I would recommend absolutely recommend this book, people need to be more aware of what’s going on. Sammy your such a stronge young lady, I really hope your future years are happier times.

Excellent but scary account of how easily a young person can be groomed. This happens on a daily occasion whereby young girls fall for older guys who buy them gifts and lovebomb them but that doesn't last long until the possessive and controlling behaviours start . I have worked with young women who were sexually exploited and I truly believe that this book needs to be in schools to educate them young so they can look out for the warning signs .

An incredibly honest, thought-provoking account of the author's teenage years and the harrowing and sustained abuse she suffered at the hands of a local paedophile. I feel that Sammy Woodhouse has lifted a lid on the Rotherham child abuse ring with her gripping and in-depth portrayal in a way that will hopefully cause many to reassess their own perspectives on this topic. The fact that our author writes so consistently and so compellingly of her feelings towards her abuser gives the reader an insight into the mindset of many young girls. It is so very easy to read headlines and think 'this would never happen to me' or 'this could never happen to my children' but this honest portrayal shows nobody is immune. The author captures the essence of a teenage girl so well that I found it easy to imagine myself in many of the scenarios she describes and, when faced with such skilled and articulate grooming by an adult, it is easy to see why she remained 'complicit' in her own ordeal. Our author shows the stark horror and reality behind the Rotherham ring and the unbelievable control a predatory adult can have over a child. We are conditioned to think of a victim running away, screaming, crying, begging for help. Quite the contrary, Sammy Woodhouse, more so than any other author on this topic I have come across, illustrates just how complicit and agreeable grooming can make a child. Only the most chilling of predators can fool a victim into thinking there is no need to run. I would like to praise the author on her bravery in putting pen to paper and also for waiving her right to anonymity in order to further this fight, help other victims and change the way we do things. I can only hope and pray that others will listen with an open-mind and utilise the incredible resources she is providing in order to help prevent this from happening to others. In particular I feel she has done an outstanding job of capturing the essence of a curious and lively teenage girl who, much like the rest of us, was curious, desperate to grow up and eager for adventure. In addition, Sammy Woodhouse provides a particularly terrifying glimpse into the way an ordeal like hers can impact upon someone for many years to come afterwards. There really is so much more I could say but I think I've blathered on quite enough already. I have awarded this book a firm 5 stars from a possible 5 and would highly recommend it to others readers, particularly those with an interest in CSE. This was purchased and read from start to finish within 24 hours. I honestly couldn't put it down. If this review has been helpful to you please take the time to rate it by clicking 'yes' below. Many thanks

A powerful story of a lady who holds so much courage & strength who never gave up and fought for justice to the end🤍 Would highly reccomend this book!

This is such an important book. Each story of abuse and grooming is the same, and each is different. Similar patterns of evil and manipulation, but the details always vary, because these are real people who are being targeted. Some of the issues which leapt to the forefront for me with Sammy's story are how her abuser, 'Mad Ash' Hussain, managed so thoroughly to convince her she was his 'boyfriend' and that certain abusive and violent behaviours were to be expected. It also shows how any child could be vulnerable to this sort of malevolent and cunning crime. There was nothing particular about Sammy that made her more susceptible - she came from a stable home, had loving parents, parents indeed who right from the get go tried like mad to stop the abuse; she, just like any other child was flattered by the attention of someone who seemed more mature (oh how ironic of course!) and just like most other girls of her age, loved the idea of having a boyfriend. That's it, that's all it takes - although of course, had the police and the social services taken any notice of her dad, or had the police arrested Ash years before, this would never have happened. It's also insightful that her grooming began even before Ash, with two of his associates normalising underage sex. This has often struck me before - often it looks as if the groomers are targeting girls who are 'up for it' or already in trouble in some way - but in reality it's often just that the grooming process started even earlier. Well done Sammy for this book and for all the work you continue to do, I salute you.

Having read a number of books on the whole UK child grooming/abuse/rape scandals and Rotherham in particular I was curious at the description on this one which refers to the young lady in question as the 'whistleblower' of the whole Rotherham scandal. Jayne Senior was the whistleblower as noted in her book 'Broken and Betrayed' it wa Jayne collating/collecting/passing on info and talking to the journalist Andrew Norfolk. It was Jaynes dossier that Keith Vaz held up when interviewing the council leader and Joyce Thacker at the Home Affairs Select Committee challenging them on their cover up and lack of action to Jaynes constant warnings, it was Jaynes records that were stolen from Risky Business, and it was Jayne whom passed info onto Rotherham Police whom did nothing with it but told her they were collating it in something called box 5. Only when Jayne spoke to Sheffiled Police did she realise that Box 5 did not exists and it really meand the bin. This is an interesting book and no doubt the young lassie was grooomed to an extent but this particular story is just one small part of the whle Rotherham thing and I dont seek to belittle the whole story but just to reiterate who the real whistleblower was. Even the book confirms that Mr Norfolk was already looking into the child grooming in Rotherham when she first spoke to him. Yes he was talking with Jayne whom was passing info to him. Read 'Broken and Betrayed' it will absolutely shock you at the scale of police/council cover ups.

Looks like a used book as it has yellow spots

This girl did nothing to expose anything or anyone. She fully enabled the entire gang by refusing to acknowledge her abuse and by ignoring that this guy was a criminal by protecting him throughout while fully knowing that he was one, with proof and evidence. She could have saved many girls from abuse - and she chose not to. Disgusted.

The story in itself was good it just goes on and on and on

Excellent story but very sad