THERE was a time when allegations of child abuse were not taken seriously enough. Now we know, if not the full extent, at least enough to know that there have been dark decades for our most trusted institutions.

The Church of England is one of them, where a failure to ask awkward questions allowed shameful acts perpetrated on young people by members of the clergy to go unnoticed.

Now the Archbishop of York says he is deeply ashamed that the church was not vigilant enough to ensure such things didn't happen. Dr Sentamu added that any act of abuse committed by someone in a position of authority in the church is a matter of shame and requires deep repentance.

It is right and proper that the Archbishop should make this public announcement, because acknowledging a problem is the starting point for any attempt to address the issues and ensure such things can never happen again.

The Archbishop's comments were made in response to the latest report on the Church of England’s handling of historical child abuse allegations. In it, new recommendations for future handling of such cases have been suggested and we hope they will be implemented without delay to provide a more solid framework.

Without trust the Church is redundant. Dr Sentamu's words should go a long way towards reassuring worshippers.