A man kept as a slave for nearly 26 years and forced to work for a family’s driveway business has successfully sued the government for £352,000 for denying him adequate compensation. 

The vulnerable man, referred to as Victim A, was beaten, given scraps of leftover food and forced to live in filthy conditions in a caravan on a travellers’ site in Lincolnshire by his captors, the Rooney family. 

The group exploited a number of victims, who were often homeless people or men with learning disabilities, a 2017 trial at Nottingham Crown Court heard. 

When 11 members of the Rooney family were convicted, it marked the largest modern slavery case in British legal history. 

But Victim A, who was in his fifties, waited so long for compensation that his captors have now been released from prison. 

Fifteen other men held as slaves alongside Victim A passed away before they could also claim adequate compensation. 

One of the householders ended up dying without his family knowing. It was only when contacted by police that they discovered they had missed his funeral. 

Victim A’s sister, who presumed her brother was dead while he was held captive, said he never received ‘adequate compensation’, being awarded just £12,428 by the court. 

Seven years since the case, she has taken action to secure a payout from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA), an agency of the Ministry of Justice. 

The sister said the £352,000 compensation payment will pay for much needed care for her ‘lovely’ brother, the BBC first reported. 

But lawyers claimed the CICA was ‘not fit for purpose’ after 15 other men held captive alongside Victim A died before they could take the same action. 

Victim A’s sister said the lack of initial compensation meant her vulnerable brother could not pay for rehabilitation for injuries inflicted by his captors.

Solicitor Jamila Duncan-Bosu, from the Anti-trafficking and Exploitation Unit charity, said: ‘CICA is not fit for purpose when it comes to victims of modern day slavery, despite it being incredibly common. 

‘Compensation is paramount for victims of trafficking, for rehabilitation and to help them rebuild their lives, to stop that cycle of exploitation.’ 

The gang members from the Rooney family, who were convicted of fraud and slavery charges, enjoyed holidays to Barbados and cosmetic surgery and even shelled out on a Manchester United soccer school, earned off the backs of their workers.

The slaves, aged 18 to 63, were freed after raids by Lincolnshire Police and the National Crime Agency were carried out in 2014. 

Some of the gang also targeted four elderly home-owners, getting them to sign over properties into their names and selling three on for profit – one for £250,000.

enjoyed holidays to Barbados and cosmetic surgery and even shelled out on a Manchester United soccer school, earned off the backs of their workers.

Members of the family would go looking for victims on the streets, hostels and shelters, offering work for food and accommodation.

Labourers were forced to live in shabby run-down caravans, or in stables next to kennels, with little or no access to basics such as heating, water and toilets.

Some were forced to squat in woods behind their living areas, while electricity was ‘dangerously’ tapped from a nearby pylon.

In all, 18 men were forced to work at the sites or for the Rooneys’ businesses, repairing properties and tarmacking drives.

The police said victims were also ‘poorly fed’ and often went hungry – or were given the ‘family’s left-overs’, even though they were worked for hours on hard, manual tasks.

For the convicted gang-members, there were luxurious holidays to Australia, Egypt and Mexico, high-performance BMWs, spa days and cosmetic surgery.

MailOnline has contacted the Ministry of Justice for comment.