Tony Brookes, who served for 30 years, said it is 'bigger than Rotherham'

Former officer claims the 'size of exploitation was massive in Sheffield'

South Yorkshire Police has been accused of ignoring hundreds of reports of sexual abuse against young girls in a widespread cover-up deemed 'bigger than Rotherham'.

Tony Brookes, a former police constable with 30 years' service, claims the force knew that girls as young as 12-years-old were being raped and assaulted but chose to ignore it.

It is understood that more than 200 girls were reported to the force as being potential victims of sexual exploitation in Sheffield, mainly between 2007 and 2010.

Mr Brookes, who has now left the force, said he believes the 'size of the exploitation was massive in Sheffield', adding: 'I think bigger than in Rotherham'.

Tony Brookes, a former police constable with 30 years' service (pictured), claims South Yorkshire Police knew that girls as young as 12-years-old were being raped, abused and assaulted in Sheffield but ignored it

It is understood that more than 200 girls were reported to South Yorkshire Police (pictured) as being potential victims of sexual exploitation in Sheffield between 2007 and 2010. It comes following the Rotherham scandal

South Yorkshire Police came under fire during the inquiry into the Rotherham sex abuse scandal, during which it emerged that 1,400 children were abused in the town over a 16-year period.

The force's former Police and Crime Commissioner Shaun Wright resigned in the wake of Professor Alexis Jay's report into the widespread abuse, which found that authorities had failed to act after hundreds of young girls were forced into prostitution and trafficking.

Now, Mr Brookes and fellow former South Yorkshire Police officers have claimed a similar large-scale sex abuse scandal has been ongoing in Sheffield.

Tonight, Rotherham MP Sarah Champion said on Twitter: 'Very very disappointed to hear that South Yorkshire Police let down the children of Sheffield too, but sadly not surprised.'

Two former officers, Jon House and Paul Broadbent, are currently being investigated by the Independent Police Complaints Commission over their handling of child sexual exploitation allegations in the town, the BBC reported.

The corporation also obtained a document from the force's intelligence base which apparently shows that girls aged as young as 12 to 15 were subjected to abuse including rape, trafficking, physical assaults, abduction and threats to kill.

It is alleged that in many cases there was no evidence of police action being taken.

One victim, remaining anonymous, told the BBC she was surprised with the way the force handled the situation when she reported allegations of abuse.

She said: 'I had one of those video interviews and they took my clothes but I never heard anything back from that. I can't believe they haven't really done anything.'

However, the force did investigate some of the claims – including one probe called Operation Glover, which led to a group of Iraqi-Kurdish men being imprisoned for 10 years.

Sarah Champion, a Rotherham MP, took to Twitter this evening following the reports of Sheffield sex abuse

Mr Brookes, an ex-officer, said he believed the alleged sex abuse in Sheffield (pictured) is 'bigger than Rotherham'. Professor Jay conducted a report into widespread sexual exploitation in Rotherham last year

Mr Brookes said that following the successful prosecution, at least two detectives urged senior officers – including Mr House and Mr Broadbent who are both now under investigation - to continue their inquiries.

However, he said that despite offering to head-up a unit dedicated to supporting victims and gathering evidence, the force seemed to turn a blind eye.

He told BBC News at 10: 'He said to me, 'go and spend an hour or two with each girl and find out what's happened to them and tell them there's not enough evidence to go on.''

The BBC reported that the force launched a new investigation into the sex abuse claims in 2009 after Sheffield City Council raised concerns and pumped £50,000 into a police investigation.

Gary Birchall, a former analyst, said he was asked to report on the operation but was told the whole probe had been shelved after he advised a full investigation should be launched.

The claims echo those of Ann Lucas, who formerly ran the city's sexual exploitation service.

Ms Lucas revealed last October that details of alleged abusers were regularly passed to the force but claims that senior officers failed to act.

She said that more than 660 young people, mainly girls and some as young as 11-years-old, were referred to Sheffield's sexual exploitation service between 2011 and 2013. However, she said none of the reports resulted in prosecutions.

Gary Birchall, a former police officer in South Yorkshire, said he was asked to produce a report on a probe into sex abuse claims several years ago but was later told the operation had been shelved by senior officers

A Sheffield victim, remaining anonymous, told the BBC she was surprised at how police handled her report

Tonight, Dr Alan Billings, the current Police and Crime Commissioner of the force said he had been speaking with abuse victims to 'try to understand their frustrations' and urged others to come forward, insisting: 'They will be listened to and taken seriously.'

He told ITV News: 'I was elected in November to hold the Force to account, but I am not confident that we know everything that should be known about the past – which is the crucial first step for the Force to get itself into a better place.

'Steps are being taken to address these issues and I recently announced an extra 62 officers for the Public Protection Unit where issues of child abuse are investigated.

'Since my appointment in November I have spent time with victims, survivors and their families to try to understand their frustrations. I have been listening to their stories and experiences.

'This is already providing me with information I am communicating to South Yorkshire Police in order to help them address the areas they need to improve.'

Responding to the claims, South Yorkshire Police said in a statement: 'We have developed strong processes to ensure all information and intelligence received about sexual exploitation is collated, shared with partners and reviewed on a very frequent basis to see if any further action can be taken.'

Both Mr House and Mr Broadbent refuted any suggestion that they did not wholly support investigations into sexual exploitation while serving officers, the BBC reported.

A Sheffield City Council spokesperson said: 'We can confirm that £50,000 was paid to South Yorkshire Police to help fund an investigation they ran into child sexual exploitation, called Operation K-Safe.

'It is a horrible and sad fact that child sexual exploitation happens everywhere in the country. We will continue to use every tool at our disposal to prevent it and urge anyone with any knowledge, or suspicion, about child sexual exploitation to come forward and report it.'

A South Yorkshire Police spokesman said: 'Operation Glover resulted in six men being convicted. Two of the men convicted were each jailed for ten years and two others received substantial custodial sentences for sexual offences.

'The operation also led to further offences being uncovered and further prosecutions.

'South Yorkshire Police received a complaint about the closure of Operation Glover and this was referred to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC)'.

MailOnline has contacted the Independent Police Complaints Commission for further comment.