During the entire time Medomsley Detention Centre was open, nothing was done to stop the horrific treatment of young inmates. More than 2,000 men reported that they were either physically or sexually abused while being held at the County Durham centre, during the 1970s and 1980s, after an investigation into the historic crimes was launched by police.

The bravery of the victims who came forward saw a number retired prison officers were prosecuted and, in 2019, jailed for their roles in the vile abuse. Today the appalling treatment of inmates at Medomsley was laid bare in a report, published by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) Adrian Usher, which looks at how it was able to continue for so long without being challenged.

And Mr Usher explained that authorities that knew about the a

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