WILLIAM WESTHEAD: BOOTLE PAEDOPHILE SENTENCED FOR DECADES OF ABUSE AT CAMPSITES IN RHYL, LLANGOLLEN, AND TAWD VALE

In a case that has spanned several decades and shocked the local community of Bootle, William Westhead, a former YMCA worker, has been sentenced to four years in prison for the sexual abuse of young boys at various campsites across North Wales and near Ormskirk. The lengthy legal proceedings revealed disturbing details of Westhead’s misconduct, which took place from the 1960s through the 1980s, involving multiple victims and locations.

Westhead, aged 65 at the time of sentencing, was found guilty of six counts of indecent assault against three children, with the crimes dating back to the 1960s and 1970s. Despite the conviction, Westhead maintained his innocence and did not accept responsibility for his actions. The court heard how he, of Derwent Drive, Bootle, had engaged in inappropriate conduct at campsites in Rhyl, Llangollen, Heswall, and Tawd Vale, near Ormskirk, when he was between 17 and 20 years old.

During the trial, Westhead, who served as an assistant at the YMCA based at Breeze Hill and later at Trinity Road, admitted to “snuggling up” with the boys while they all slept in tents with sleeping bags. However, he insisted that he had done nothing wrong and claimed that the allegations were fabricated. The court was told that he molested one boy on multiple occasions at a North Wales farm between 1966 and 1970, when the boy was aged between eight and eleven. Additionally, he was accused of abusing the same boy at a campsite in Rhyl during the same period, when the boy was aged nine to eleven.

One victim, in a personal statement read to the court, described the lasting impact of Westhead’s abuse: “What he did to me has affected my whole life. I kept this horrible secret from my wife for 30 years. There is not a day that goes by that I don’t think about what he did to me.” The court also heard that Westhead molested a second victim between 1967 and 1970 at Tawd Vale and Heswall, and a third boy, aged 12, in Heswall between 1967 and 1968.

In a separate trial, Westhead was convicted of indecently assaulting a 14-year-old boy at a flat in Liverpool between 1980 and 1981, when he was approximately 31 years old. The prosecution revealed that Westhead paid the boy for sexual favors, further highlighting the pattern of his misconduct over the years.

Peter Roach, QC, defending Westhead, stated that his client had not committed any offences for the past 30 years. He expressed concern for Westhead’s well-being, mentioning his visits twice daily to see his 87-year-old mother, who suffers from dementia. The judge, Recorder David Turner, QC, acknowledged Westhead’s denial of guilt and noted that while he may no longer pose a risk to young people, his past actions have left indelible scars on his victims. The court emphasized that the crimes committed in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s have had a lifelong impact on those affected.

As part of his sentence, Westhead was ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely. The judge remarked, “There can be no doubt that it may be easy for us to say ‘it was in the 60s, 70s or 80s,’ but for your first victim and the others, it has been with them forever.” The case has brought to light the disturbing history of abuse linked to Westhead’s time working with youth at campsites in North Wales and the surrounding areas, casting a long shadow over his reputation and the community of Bootle.