The Roman Catholic Church in Sussex is taking allegations of abuse made against its clergy and parishioners extremely seriously.

Shirley Hosgood, child protection officer in the Arundel and Brighton diocese, is making sure it is easy for people to make a complaint in any parish.

Her job, in part, will be to make sure all complaints are fully investigated against proven sex offenders such as Father Michael Hill, who has already been jailed for abusing young boys.

But her most important role will be to see whether future cases like that of Father Hill can be prevented in the future.

This includes strict checks on everyone in any position of trust, whether they be parish priests or volunteer.

In the past, the Catholic Church has appeared slow to react to allegations. The appointment of Shirley Hosgood was the best move it could have made to show otherwise.