Shocked police found the children, who ranged from a few months old to near-adult teens, wearing soiled clothing and living in a filthy home that they rarely left.
They did not have books or phones and none attended school with only the two eldest allowed out only to pray.
Their siblings had never been beyond the end of the street.
Concerned neighbours decided to mind their own business instead of raising their concerns with authorities, the Telegraph reported.
“We weren’t allowed to speak without permission. No friends, no internet access. No clothing, no jobs, no life, no study,” one of the eldest sisters said.
The older pair revealed that they were tasked with caring for their younger siblings and said their mother, who converted to Islam as an adult, would report any infractions to their father.
His response was often cruel.
“Dad got me a cat. But then he tortured me with that cat,” one sister said.
“It was something that really got to me. I loved cats so he would beat them, then make me parade the dead cats around. He tortured me with cats.”
The sisters said they chose to act when they saw a younger brother begin to struggle with mental illness.
They snuck onto an iPad where they researched child abuse and their legal rights, they also took incriminating photos of their siblings being physically assaulted.
They then reached out for help and word reached police, who came to take the children to safety.
The older girls said that revealing their truth about their parents, who are now before the courts, was the “best part” of the experience.
“Giving a statement to the police was probably the best part of it … I know it sounds strange saying you know doing statements for police was like a fun thing. But it was,” one girl said.
“Just that release to like, tell the truth. To feel safe around them.”
Now the older sisters want to take on the care of their siblings, but police want to balance their desire to help their brothers and sisters with their need for a normal life.
“They have had to become parents when they are 18 and 19 and should be living their life. So it’s definitely hard for them,” an officer told the Telegraph.
“They will have brothers and sisters finishing school soon, they have little ones to care for so they have a lot of years ahead of them where they will have to be parents. But we still want them to have their own life.”
