A LEADING children's charity today called on Lancashire County Council to make public the findings of its investigation into how a helpline worker was able to groom a teenager.

The NSPCC was backed by Ribble Valley MP Nigel Evans, who urged the authority's leaders to put aside any fears of embarrassment and warned: "If you don't, no-one will trust your service."

The calls follow the conviction of Martin Tibbett, 20, on three counts of indecently assaulting a 13-year-old he first made contact with after she rang Whatnow? the youth support line operated by Lancashire County Council and of which Tibbett was an employee.

Mr Evans also said the county council should review whether it was suitable for a 20-year-old to offer advice to people "not much younger than the people giving the advice out."

The teenager had rung the line several times for support and Tibbett, of Dove Lane, Darwen, arranged to meet her. He is now awaiting sentence after pleading guilty to the charges.

The NSPCC today said it was important that other parents and children trusted the line and said they expected the authority to make the findings of an investigation launched last week public.

A spokesman said: "Our sympathies go out to the child and her family. The abuse of trust involved in a situation like this is extremely serious and may have an impact on public confidence in using these services. We welcome the assurances from Lancashire County Council that they will investigate this matter thoroughly and look forward to hearing their recommendations publicly."

Nigel Evans said: "The county council needs to address how this situation came about. It is horrific.

"They need to make public what went wrong, how it happened, and what they are doing to make sure it never happens again.

"That might end up being embarrassing for the authority, but the safety of children is paramount more than anything else."

"The county council has treated this matter with great seriousness and will continue to work to ensure robust procedures are in place to protect young people in Lancashire."