Alan Laws (1949-2010) lived on the Marquis Estate and was the councillor for Thornhill Ward. Between 1982 and 2002 he had been the Director of South Islington Law Centre. He told Islington Survivors Network that he had worked as an Education Social Worker and also with disabled children. He came forward to ISN with Councillor Richard Greening, after the White Report in 1995, to offer his support for survivors.
He urged the council to set up an NSPCC helpline to take follow up calls (See posters below). However, very few people called this helpline.
Laws resigned the party whip in 1995 and was cited (Islington Gazette 04.10.96) as saying at a Press Conference that paedophiles had preyed on children in Islington’s care and had been allowed to walk away from their crimes. He said council employees who abused their position to molest children in care have never been prosecuted or even properly investigated. He called for the publication of the confidential annexe to the White Report which had named more than 40 people suspected of involvement in the abuse. This is a confidential list which remains unknown to Islington Survivors Network to this day. He asked for a copy because he feared that some still might be working with children and that senior people in the council had been involved.
He also wrote on 20.05.97 to Jeremy Corbyn MP, copying in Islington Survivors Network, to claim that the council suggested solutions to the abuse scandal, ‘do not go anywhere near far enough to address this dreadful situation’ and said he had ‘information concerning just how widespread this evil abuse is, what evil practices are being carried out – including that which involved children being murdered ..’. He also said that three different sources had told him of, ‘heavy ritual abuse of children within Islington’.
In 2005, he emailed ISN to inform us of his new address and phone number as he had moved out of London to Broadstairs in Kent. One survivor remembers him being involved in a campaign called ‘ Justice4Children’ in the mid 90s. This organisation was not known to ISN.
04.10.96. Islington Gazette
30.01.98. Highbury and Islington Express
In later years, there were various reports of Alan Laws flat, during the mid-90s, being full to the brim of council files, boxes and boxes of cardboard folders. ISN has made numerous efforts in asking for this to be investigated by Islington council but we have failed to clarify anything further about what these observations could possibly be about.
Islington Survivors Network 