Sarafina suffered neglect and physical abuse in her family home, and she was placed in care when she was 11
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Sarafina describes a succession of very unhappy and unsuitable foster placements, with people who had no interest in her.
At the age of 12, Sarafina had been placed with an elderly couple. They went to stay on a caravan park at weekends, and here she met a man called Tom, who was in his 60s. She says he ‘tricked’ her into meeting him, took her to a forest, and plied her with alcohol.
He indecently assaulted her and raped her. Sarafina tried to scream but she could not move or breathe. After, she ran back to her foster carers and told them what had happened. They did not show her any compassion, but complained this would mean the police getting involved.
She was medically examined, which she remembers as a terrible ordeal so soon after being violently raped. She had bruises on her breasts and thighs. She was terrified when the doctor tried to take swabs and he became angry and impatient with her.
Sarafina says that no one seemed to believe she had been raped, and no one from social services gave her any support. The foster carers still took her to the same caravan park every weekend where she saw Tom, who was out on bail.
The criminal proceedings were a further ordeal for her; again she received little support. Tom claimed that Sarafina had told him that she was 18 years old.
When she was in her early teens, Sarafina was sent to a residential school for young people with behavioural difficulties. Here she says she became known as the ‘tough girl’ of the school.
One of the male care workers, Phil, groomed her, buying her gifts and making it clear that he wanted to have a sexual relationship with her.
She moved to another home for older teenagers, where she became pregnant. Phil continued to pester her and make sexual advances towards her.
By her late teens, Sarafina was dependent on alcohol and drugs. She lived in a hostel and became involved with an older man, Stan. He sexually exploited her by putting ‘compromising’ photos of her on a paying website, and then manipulated her into prostitution. She describes harrowing experiences of being abused as a prostitute.
Sarafina regularly self-harmed and attempted suicide, and this led to the police and an ambulance being called for her. She told the police she had been forced into prostitution but they did not act on this.
As well as substance abuse and self-harm, Sarafina suffers with mental health problems and PTSD. She says she was always told she was ‘bad’ and has extremely low self-esteem.
She hopes to take legal action against the organisations that let her down, including a private foster agency and social services.
She is now receiving support from her community mental health team and is studying. She also finds comfort in her faith, and she writes about her experiences because she would like to help others in similar situations.