Decades of young men being abused at detention centre 'ignored and dismissed' by prison service

The report named catering officer Neville Husband as one of the main protagonists in the historic abuse, abusing hundreds in the centre's kitchens, with Mr Usher describing him as "possibly the most prolific sex offender in British history".

Husband was said to have abused his power to commit "extreme violence and acts of a sadistic nature", remaining "unchallenged" during the centre's 26 years of operations.

“The illegitimate power imbalance that existed between Husband and the trainees and other staff further flourished within a culture of collusion and silence from other employees," Mr Usher said.

“Husband used this power with devastating effect.”

The officer was originally jailed in 2003 after being convicted of sexual assault before being detained for a second time in 2005. He died in 2010.

Husband was one of several members of staff who were convicted after investigations by Durham Constabulary in 2001 and 2003, which found abuse of more than 2,000 men, and led to five further convictions of abuse in 2019.

The centre's inmates were made up of young males, all of whom were first-time offenders, who had been found guilty of committing crimes ranging from shoplifting to robbery. It also included some cases of unpaid fines.

The report claims the men were physically abused from the minute they arrived at the centre, including when they were bathed, strip-searched and while working; even during medical exams.

Baths could be boiling hot or freezing cold, while some victims said that if they reported ill, a painkiller would be taped to their forehead and made to run around until the pill had dissolved in sweat.

The victims were also targeted for being perceived as gay or weak, while inmates who did not address staff as "Sir" would be struck or punched.

The inquiry found that staff had significant free will to decide how to operate and enforce the law in the centre. There was an attitude of giving the inmates a "short, sharp shock” to deter them from re-offending.

“Such an environment meant that some staff believed, whatever the rule book said, that they could best achieve their aims with violence as a training method,” Mr Usher added.

"Leaders at every level at Medomsley, including the warden, failed in their duty to protect the best interests of those under their charge.

"Either staff in leadership roles were aware of the abuse, in which case they were complicit, or they lacked dedication and professional curiosity to such an extent as to not be professionally competent.

"The knowledge of abuse by the Prison Service, the police, the Home Office and other organisations of authority was ignored and dismissed. The authorities failed in their duty to keep detainees safe."

The Ombudsman then explained that victims never received a public apology.

"I leave it to all of the bodies in this investigation to examine their organisational consciences and determine if there is any action taken today, despite such an extended passage of time, that would diminish, even fractionally, the trauma that is still being felt by victims to this day," he said.

The Government and Durham Constabulary have since publicly apologised for the "horrifying" abuse. Chief Constable Rachel Bacon said: "This report makes for extremely difficult reading. It exposes shameful failings by police at that time: both to recognise that the physical violence meted out by staff at Medomsley amounted to abuse or to adequately investigate allegations by those victims who did have the bravery to come forward and report what happened to them."

Minister for Youth Justice Jake Richards also said sorry to the victims and confirmed the government has initiated plans to introduce a Youth Custody Safeguarding Panel.

"To the men who suffered such horrific abuse at Medomsley, I want to say again - I am truly sorry. The failings set out in today's report by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman are truly harrowing, and we must ensure nothing like this ever happens again," he said in a written statement.

"This government is establishing a Youth Custody Safeguarding Panel to review how we protect children in custody today. It will ensure their voices are heard, that complaints are taken seriously, and that every child is kept safe from harm."

Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter