Islington Council faces more than 20 fresh child abuse lawsuits from people who say they were mistreated while in its care.

Law firm Leigh Day said it has received instructions from 16 complainants and is communicating with a further six.

Andrew Lord, a senior associate solicitor, said this is on top of £267,800 in compensation already secured by the firm for 10 prior claimants.

Islington Council, whose former children's homes have been mired in one of the UK's worst child abuse scandals since the 1990s, did not dispute the figures.

The homes were reportedly infiltrated by paedophiles, some of whom fled the country when they came under investigation.

Leigh Day is working closely with the Islington Survivors Network (ISN), founded by Dr Liz Davies, a former social worker who blew the whistle on widespread abuse in the homes in 1990.

After decades of campaigning, ISN persuaded Islington Council to open a Support Payment Scheme last year, offering £10,000 to victims.

The council said that as of May 31, it had paid more than £1.5 million to 155 claimants in the first year of the two-year scheme.

The majority were referred by ISN, which has been approached over the years by more than 600 complainants.

Catch up on our investigation into the Islington abuse scandal:

“The support scheme is not a compensation or redress scheme,” the council said.

“It sits alongside the existing civil compensation route and does not replace it.”

That means people paid through the scheme can still sue the council, but £10,000 will be subtracted from their damages if successful.

ISN refers survivors with strong corroborating evidence to Mr Lord to discuss potential civil suits.

Meanwhile, Dr Davies urged more people to apply to the support scheme, which closes in May 2024.

“The scheme was designed for up to 2,000 (people) and only about 200 have made use of it so far,” she said.

“ISN offers survivors advice and support in making the application. We will assist in evidencing abuse allegations through photographs, press reports, evidence from former staff, police investigations and inquiries.”

Council leader Cllr Kaya Comer-Schwartz said: “We particularly welcome more applications from people from Black and Asian communities who experienced abuse.”

She added: “Islington Council today is a very different organisation from the past and protecting children from harm is our top priority.”

  • For more information about the council’s Support Payment Scheme, call 0207 527 3254 or email supportpayment@islington.gov.uk.
  • ISN can be reached on 0300 302 0930 or at islingtonsn@gmail.com.