Greenwich Council has paid damages to a former resident of one of its children’s homes who was raped and physically assaulted by staff in the 1980s.
But the council was accused of prolonging the abuse by missing a deadline to pay the victim.
Rebecca (not her real name) has now been paid, but only after her solicitors contacted The Greenwich Wire with details of how the council had not paid up.
One care worker was sentenced in 2011 for two counts of rape and 13 indecent assaults on female residents at Frant Court, a home in East Sussex owned by the council.
Andrew Grove and Co, a firm of solicitors based in Cambridge, says it has found that other members of staff were also abusing residents.
Rebecca was at Frant Court for two years from 1982, but kept her abuse a secret for many years. After contacting Andrew Grove & Co, the firm negotiated a settlement with the council in May, which was due to be paid by June 21.
However, the deadline came and went without payment. The council only paid up on Thursday, after the firm issued a press release about the issue.
Katherine Yates of Andrew Grove & Co said the delay was “unacceptable and displays a contempt not just for basic contract law but also for my client who suffered a great deal of abuse while at Frant Court and feels that she is still being abused as a result of this delay”.
Rebecca said she was waiting for the money so she could purchase a mobility scooter to improve the quality of her life. “I don’t understand why they are doing this to me. I wanted to put the abuse and memories behind me and move on,” she said.
“I feel that I still don’t count for anything in the eyes of the council just as I did not count for anything when I was at Frant Court.”
Greenwich Council confirmed on Monday that the money had been paid. A spokesperson said: “We take our responsibilities to children in our care past and present extremely seriously. The damages have been paid and we apologise for the delay and any further suffering and distress caused to the survivor as a result.”
Andrew Grove & Co is continuing to encourage survivors of abuse at Frant Court to come forward, promising it will deal with claims on a no win, no fee basis. Survivors can contact katherine[at]andrewgroveandco.com or charlotte[at}andrewgroveandco.com, or call 01223 367133 or 07810 224545.