Lessons learned

Yet the apparent glibness of Tim Hollis – he says the IPCC investigation refers "to a period of time in the history of Humberside Police when things were very different" – is unlikely to placate those who were abused at St William's Children's Home, Market Weighton, in one the scandals that has caused so much embarrassment to the Roman Catholic Church.

As his own report to Humberside Police Authority reveals, it has taken nine years from the start of the original police investigation for the Force to acknowledge its complacent handling of this inquiry, and to put in place measures to prevent the mistakes of the past from being repeated.

By their very nature, any allegation of abuse require the greatest of sensitivity – and the police have, on too many occasions, been insensitive to the seriousness of the complaints made by victims of abuse. It can only be hoped that officers will be far more enlightened in the future.