A Labour councillor and former health worker has been awarded an MBE for her role in bringing to the light a child sex abuse ring in Rochdale.
Sara Rowbotham, a Labour Councillor for North Middleton Ward, played an integral role in exposing the abuse of young girls in the area between 2005-11.
As a front line sexual health worker who led the NHS crisis team, she made 181 referrals detailing the abuse and sexual grooming of young people during this period.
She subsequently had a BBC film made about her involvement in the case, called Three Girls, whichfirst aired back in 2017 and saw Maxine Peake play her.
Following the screening of the film, a petition was launched online calling for her to be formally recognized for her services to the Rochdale community.
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Five years later, it’s finally happened.
Sara said that being awarded the MBE shows she ‘did the right thing’.
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She added that the award gives validation not just to her but to her whole team and that it was ‘quite emotional to think things have come so far, and to receive this honour is really important’.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Sara was appointed MBE for services to young people by the Princess Royal in a ceremony at Windsor Castle, after making hundreds of referrals detailing the sexual grooming and abuse whilst working for the NHS over a period of six years.
Girls as young as thirteen, reported Sara at the time, were being plied with drink and drugs and ‘passed around’ by older men who used them for sex.
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Initially, her reports were not taken seriously but over time, thanks to her persistence, the perpetrators were brought to justice.
As part of this, she presented her findings to the Home Affairs Select Committee in 2012, telling them that her bosses had ignored repeated warnings about the grooming of young girls.
Sara was made redundant in 2014 – two years after presenting to the Rochdale inquiry and blowing the whistle on those senior to her.
Having been made an MBE, Ms Rowbotham told the PA News Agency it was “quite emotional to think things have come so far, and to receive this honour is really important”.
“It really reminds me of those times and it’s almost a bit of a trigger after coming to the end of such a horrible situation,” she said.
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“To be recognised for the hard work and energy and effort of not only myself, but the rest of my team is really important.”
She said it was “really important that people understand the complexities of exploitation”, adding: “It is a really difficult phenomena.”
“I did feel as though I was kind of being pushed aside – for then everybody else to recognise that I did the right thing is validation really,” she said.
“The energy and effort that was put in, the anger and the frustration that I felt is acknowledged.”
Feature image – Twitter
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University fees set to increase in line with inflation but Government promises ‘better outcomes’ for students
Emily Sergeant
University tuition fees are set to increase in line with forecasted inflation for the next two academic years, the Government has announced.
Last year was the first year, since 2017, that tuition fees were increased in line with inflation, and now that the Office for Students is forecasting that 43% of institutions will be in deficit without further action to ‘shore up’ their finances, the Government has announced in its ‘landmark’ Post-16 Education and Skills White Paper – published this week – that fees will need to rise again.
To support universities in continuing to deliver world-class teaching and research, tuition fees will rise in line with forecast inflation for the next two academic years.
According to the Department for Education, legislation will then be brought forward, when parliamentary time allows, to enable automatic increases to fee caps in future years in line with inflation – but this will only be institutions that meet tough new quality thresholds set by the Office for Students.
Where standards are deemed to ‘fall short’, the Office for Students will then act quickly to stop the expansion of low-quality courses and will aim to hold providers to account.
University fees are set to increase in line with inflation for the next two years / Credit: PickPik
Universities that underperform could face financial and regulatory consequences, the Government has confirmed, as a way of ensuring public money is spent only on courses that deliver for students and the economy overall.
“Young people from all backgrounds feel they have been let down by a system that talks about opportunity but too often fails to deliver it,” commented Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, as the White Paper was published this week.
“Universities charge significant fees for their courses, but if they are going to charge the maximum, it is right that they deliver the world-class education students expect.
“These reforms will ensure value for money, higher standards across our universities and colleges and a renewed focus on the skills our economy needs.”
The Government has also said it will also work with universities and local authorities to ensure they offer ‘adequate accommodation’ for their students.
It will also support efforts to drive down the cost of living going forward.
Featured Image – StockCake
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More than £2 million in compensation received by underpaid workers in the North West
Danny Jones
More than £2 million is said to have been dished out in compensation to workers in the North West alone, as the UK government is continuing to crack down on employers underpaying their staff.
Employees from nearly 500 different companies across the region have received the money they owed following a raft of fines in excess of £2.7 million.
Covering the likes of Greater Manchester and beyond, the companies responsible have been revealed by the government as part of the new Fair Work Agency (FWA), which is tasked with shoring up workers’ rights moving forward.
The FWA is part of Labour’s wider ‘Plan For Change’, and hopes not only to correctly reimburse those short-changed but also, with the clear threat of swift action, deter others from trying to do the same in the future.
Matthew Taylor CBE has been appointed Chair of the Fair Work Agency, a new body that will transform how employment rights are enforced across the UK.
How? By tackling exploitation, supporting businesses doing the right thing, and helping to build a fairer labour market. pic.twitter.com/duEeNlwDHr
— Department for Business and Trade (@biztradegovuk) October 14, 2025
Released publicly last Friday, 17 October, 80 companies that failed to properly pay approximately 19,000 workers in and around the North West have now been repaid by their employers.
Perhaps most concerningly is that the fines sweep across multiple sectors and sizes, from local independents and SME to well-known high street brands.
From April 2026 onwards, the updated Employment Rights Bill (which also includes the FWA) grants more powers to tackle employers underpaying workers and failing to fulfil both holiday and sick pay.
This announcement also comes after the National Minimum Wage rate was increased earlier this year, with millions getting a pay rise and those working full-time on the National Living Wage seeing their families supported by an extra £1,400 per year.
Under the ‘Make Work Pay’ initiative set out by the Labour Party, more than 15 million Brits are expected to benefit from the new measures.
Overall, roughly £6 million has been put back into the pockets of underpaid workers up and down the country following these fines, which are said to have totalled roughly £10.2m. The full list of companies in question can be seen HERE.
Speaking on the news, Employment Rights Minister Kate Dearden said: “This government is taking direct action to ensure workers get every penny they’ve earned, and to put an end to bad businesses undercutting good ones.
“We’re proud to have delivered a strong minimum wage, and enforcing it thoroughly is crucial in our mission to put pounds back in your pocket. I know this news will be welcomed by brilliant businesses across the country, those who know that happy, well-paid staff are at the heart of building a successful company.
“With our new Fair Work Agency and the coming Employment Rights Bill, this government is keeping our promise to Britain to make work pay again.”
If you fear you might be suffering from underpayment by your employer, you can check that your wages are correct online; alternatively, you can call the Acas helpline on 0300 123 1100 or contact their website for more information right HERE.
Georgina Pellant -
16th March 2022 
