The police said that messages on Serena’s phone showed she had not been sexually assaulted
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Participants have given us permission to share their experiences.
Serena was sexually abused as a young child, and again as a teenager.
Her experiences with the police have caused her to lose faith in them.
Serena was a toddler when her parents divorced. She spent time with her father, but lived with her mother, who began a relationship with a man called Darius when Serena was about five or six.
Darius had a daughter of his own who was a few years younger than Serena. They spent a lot of time at home with Serena and her mum, and Serena says she liked having a little sister.
Darius began to take over bathing the girls from Serena’s mother, and he used this as an opportunity to sexually abuse Serena. She says at the time she didn’t understand what was happening. She knew it was painful but she thought Darius was an adult and a parent ‘so it must be right’.
Serena tried to tell her father something was wrong but at that age she didn't have the words to explain. She says he realised ‘something was amiss’ and she now knows he spoke to her school but she does not think they took any action.
The sexual abuse by Darius went on for about a year. He was abusing his own daughter too, and Serena would try to protect the younger girl. Sometimes her arms got bruised by Darius, and she used to rub talcum powder on them to try and hide the injuries when she went to school.
A member of staff did once ask Serena’s mum about the bruises, but her mum said it was from her falling over. Serena says that part of her wonders if her mother knew about the abuse, but she finds it very difficult to think about that.
It was only when Serena went to secondary school and had sex education lessons that she realised what Darius had done to her. This had a major effect on her – she was often upset and angry and would lash out at people.
Eventually Serena told her social worker what had happened to her, and her social worker got the police involved. Serena spoke to two officers, but Darius denied any wrongdoing and they did not take any further action. The police told her that messages on her phone showed she had not been sexually assaulted
During her teenage years, Serena suffered a rape and a sexual assault by two different perpetrators at college. Serena also had to have a medical examination that she found very distressing. She is still waiting for the police to get in touch with her as they promised.
Serena’s experiences of sexual abuse have left her with several lasting impacts. She finds it hard to trust people and have relationships. She suffers from anxiety, flashbacks and nightmares. She worries that she will be judged for what she wears.
She struggles to understand the attitude of the police and says ‘I would never go to the police again’.
Serena would like there to be better education and support to help children recognise when things are wrong. She wants the police to take into consideration all the evidence, rather than making a judgement based on parts of it, like the way women dress.