Commissioning Body for child sexual exploitation inquiry appointed
Telford & Wrekin Council has announced tonight that it has appointed the law firm Eversheds Sutherland as the Commissioning Body for its inquiry into child sexual exploitation.
Eversheds Sutherland will initially be tasked with working closely with victims and survivors, drawing up terms of reference for the inquiry and appointing an independent chair.
They are the successful bidder for this work after a competitive tendering process took place over the past three months.
Eversheds Sutherland is a law firm experienced in conducting high profile statutory and non-statutory inquiries and investigations.
The firm has been involved in many high profile inquiries and investigations including:
• The Independent Jersey Care Inquiry
• The Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust public inquiry
• The Trojan Horse investigation
• The Shipman Inquiry
Telford & Wrekin Council’s Monitoring Officer Jonathan Eatough said: “The successful bidder was able to demonstrate that they have a vast amount of experience of child sexual exploitation investigations, working with survivors and managing inquiries.
“We have carried out a detailed and exhaustive process to get to this point to ensure that we are in a position for the inquiry to progress effectively and efficiently.
“Eversheds Sutherland’s contract starts from December 3 and after initial meetings to get everything set up, the Council will then step away to let them progress the inquiry.”
