News

Tuesday 19th September 2023

Abused? It's never too late to Speak Up.

Just the mention of the word ‘abuse’ gives most of us a serious shudder. Especially when it involves children.

As times have become more enlightened, past tales of the horrendous abuse of children are being revealed regularly as more and more victims find the strength to come forward. But it takes a huge amount of courage to speak up, even when the abuse took place decades ago.

Abuse takes many different forms. It can be physical, sexual or psychological. Or simply neglect. And it can take place at home, at work, online, at school, in a sports environment, care home, foster home or even a place of worship.
 
‘We admire all those who have the courage to come forward.' Long term effects of abuse particularly in childhood can cause emotional difficulties, mental health problems such as eating disorders, issues with drugs or alcohol, poor physical health and struggles with relationships and parenting.

The scale of child abuse is vastly under reported but a Crime Survey for England and Wales pre lockdown, estimated that one in five adults aged 18 to 74 had experienced at least one form of child abuse before they reached the age of 16. On average, a child contacts Childline every 25 seconds, with many of the issues resulting from domestic abuse.

Roger Henderson, who heads up the Personal Injury Department at Rundlewalker, says there are two perceptions that often prevent someone speaking up.

‘We know from experience that firstly most people feel they won’t be believed,’ he says. ‘And secondly, they think it was too long ago.

‘Fear of not being listened to is often part of the perpetrator’s armoury, grooming their victim into a kind of fearful secrecy. Many of the cases I deal with, kept this terrible secret to themselves for perhaps decades so it’s a very difficult and emotional experience finally putting into words what happened to them.

‘On the timescale of any claim, there’s one very straightforward answer. It’s never, ever too late.’

Roger and his highly experienced team know that providing an empathic and totally confidential environment are crucial to what is one of the most difficult areas of the law to work in. Often people are preparing to accuse members of their family or their community, people whom they trusted and grew up with. The implications can be enormous and complex.

‘It takes immense courage to do this. We find many of our clients not only want to talk about what happened, but as they unburden, they come to realise what impact it has had on their lives. We know how important it is for them to have time and space during this process.

‘Of course some people simply cannot revisit the horror of what happened to them and decide to keep it buried within them. But others often tell us they want to stop their abuser from continuing. There’s a sense of closure too. Many feel taking action will help to draw a line under it, move on and rebuild their lives in a better way.’

Victims are encouraged to report matters to the police who have specialist units to investigate cases. Any conviction can help establish liability and possibly lead to compensation. Roger and his team can advise on whether a claim from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority might be successful and how this would be funded.

The Rundlewalker team have worked with victims of rape, sexual abuse within families, abuse at schools, colleges, churches and youth and sports organisations, abuse of elderly while in care homes, and youngsters in foster homes.

‘We admire all those who have the courage to come forward. We hear many very distressing tales but we pride ourselves on doing the best we can for every individual. Money can never compensate for such matters but it is often enormously beneficial as it serves as recognition and acknowledgement that incidents did take place.

‘We concentrate on helping to produce the best outcome possible for our clients, so that they can move on and rebuild their lives.’

For a sensitive and confidential discussion about how we could help you make a claim, please contact Roger Henderson on 01392 209218 or email roger.henderson@rundlewalker.com

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 "We can't thank you, Roger, enough for all of your hard work during the process of the claim. You have been brilliant and kept us informed throughout which we both really appreciate, you have explained every step in a way that we could understand with ease, having had no experience in such a claim before.” Mrs N.

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This article is for general information only and does not constitute legal or professional advice. Please note that the law may have changed since this article was published.