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A SPECIAL meeting of Hertfordshire County Council's social services committee is being held on Friday to discuss the South Oxhey assaults.

It was called by the Labour group, which is concerned at the way the case has been handled.

The council's assistant director of social services Mr Chris Burgon, the council's chief executive Mr Bill Ogley and Hertfordshire Constabulary's acting superintendent Mr Iain McVie have been asked to attend the meeting at 3pm in County Hall so councillors can question them on the case.

County councillor Roma Mills, Labour's social services spokeswoman and South Oxhey county councillor Jane Hobday (Labour), on Monday, reiterated their concerns that police had known for nine months before informing the community.

Councillor Mills said: 'It is quite common for residents to be warned in these circumstances and we will be asking why this did not happen.'

Councillor Hobday added: 'Local parents simply do not believe that there was no danger to other girls and young women in the area.'

But while Mrs Julia Price, chairman of the social services committee, was adamant social services and police have acted appropriately.

She said: 'We believed specific girls were being targeted, we can't say why, and there was a real risk if we went public with this too early they would not cooperate. I was appalled when I first heard what was happening and our priority was to look after the girls.

'At the meeting tomorrow we will do everything we can to make it clear why we acted in the way we did, as much as we can in the public domain.'

Three weeks ago Hertfordshire police and social services held a press conference appealing for information and issued a leaflet about a series of incidents it said had been 'occurring in South Oxhey in recent months'.

They said they had received reports from 20 girls aged 12 to 16 who alleged that they had been befriended by groups of men aged from their late teens to mid-50s, who persuaded them into their cars before sexually abusing them.

Last week they said the men, who they believe are linked, are travellers and that they decided not to tell the public until now because they believed no one else was at risk because they had received no new referrals.

When asked this week by The Watford Observer how long they believed the gang had been operating in the area, Detective Inspector Keith Tilley, of the child protection team, said: 'It is apparent that women over the age of legal consent have formed consensual relationships over the years with men who come in and out of the area.

'Unless people report to us they have been assaulted, these claims do not form part of our investigation.

'No one has reported to us that sex assaults have been 'going on for years'.

'There has been a lot of rumour and innuendo, none of which has been backed up with evidence or reports made to police or social services.

'We were first made aware of this pattern last autumn and no one that we (police, social services, NSPCC) have interviewed has said they were assaulted or abused over a number of years.'

He also said now that of the 20 girls interviewed or spoken to by social services, his unit and children's charity, the NSCPCC, '...a small number have claimed they were assaulted or abused (including one who claims she was raped).'

'The others will not talk about what has happened and none of the girls has made or appears willing to make formal statements to police.

'We need facts and we need statements in order to act on any reports and that is what we are encouraging people to do.'

A spokeswoman for the police said there had been no new leads on the case yet and, once again, urged the public to call any of the helplines listed for further information.

ccooley@london.newsquest.co.uk