A BOLTON man who says he was the victim of years of sexual abuse in care homes as a child is furious after being turned down for compensation because he has a police record. The man, who wants to be identified by his first name - Terry - says he was abused after being referred to Clywd Hall in the 1970s by house parent, Noel Ryan. Ryan, 66, was sentenced to 12 years in jail after admitting 14 charges of sex abuse on boys in his care at the residential special school in North Wales.

Terry was one of dozens of former residents interviewed as part of a police investigation before the case came to court.

After the case, Terry applied to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board, but received a reply saying it would not be in the public interest to grant him an award because of his previous criminal convictions.

Terry says the abuse destroyed his life and led to him hitting the bottle.

He admits he has committed a number of petty offences but says many were while he was drunk and can be attributed to the effects of the abuse he suffered.

He said: "Whatever I have done, it can never compare to what I have suffered in the past as a result of the abuse I have endured."

Terry came to Britain as child in the 1970s when his family fled sectarian violence in Northern Ireland. He was referred to various homes across the country because of behavioural problems and says he was abused in Bolton, North Wales and Shropshire. He says he was raped and subjected to physical and mental torture. He is now calling for a detailed national inquiry into care homes.

A spokesman for the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board said he could not comment on individual cases but said there were strict guidelines governing compensation awards.

He said: "In the case of victims of sexual abuse we can take account of the impact of the abuse on the convictions.

"If anyone feels unhappy about a decision made by the board he can go through the official appeals procedure."

Bolton South East MP Brian Iddon has written to the Home Office to highlight Terry's plight.

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