The once-silent children who suffered abuse at the hands of the Roman Catholic church are finally finding the courage to speak out.

During the past six months, numerous allegations of abuse have been made against people working within the church in Sussex.

While some of the allegations have been made by children, others have been made by adults, haunted by abuse endured during their young lives.

In the Diocese of Brighton and Arundel, it has been Shirley Hosgood's job to help those victims find a voice.

Child protection officer Shirley has been in post since July last year, during one of the most eventful periods in the church's recent history.

She has helped appoint child protection representatives in 94 of the region's 116 parishes, to act as the first point of contact for a child or adult who may have suffered abuse.

It is her job to look into allegations made against anyone within the Catholic church - be it a priest or a parishioner.

The mother-of-two is reviewing past abuse allegations, to ensure the correct procedures were followed, as specified by the Catholic Office for the Protection of Children and Vulnerable Adults (COPCA).

Shirley, a former social worker in child care assessment, is not a catholic. She took on the post because she saw it as a challenge.

She said: "We are breaking new ground here. As a social worker, much of my work was reactive but here I have the opportunity to prevent abuse."

Since taking up her post, Shirley has been contacted by several people who allege they have been abused.

Accusations tend to increase whenever Press reports are published about former Sussex priest Michael Hill, who was jailed last year for sexually abusing young boys.

Details of every allegation are passed on to the police for investigation.

But Shirley is not taking any chances.

Even if criminal charges are not made against an individual she will still order an independent risk assessment to be carried out, often by The Lucy Faithful Foundation, which runs clinics for paedophiles.

She said: "Whether abuse is alleged to have happened recently or 30 years ago, I will always inform the police because there is always a chance of a child being put in danger.

"Even when the alleged offender has died, it is important we know about it so we can look into how it was allowed to happen in the first place.

"Whenever there is even the slightest risk of abuse, we will look into it."

Every adult volunteer in a position of trust within the church has to fill out a confidential declaration form compiled by COPCA.

This asks questions about a person's criminal record and asks that two references be provided. From this month, anyone who occupies such a post will also be checked by the Criminal Records Bureau.

Shirley said: "Most of our volunteers tend to be people who already work with children, such as teachers or social workers, so the checks have already been done.

"We are moving as fast as we can to get the checks done but with 30 or 40 volunteers in each parish, it's going to take time."

Following the publication of the Nolan Report into child protection within the Catholic church in September 2001, it became incumbent on bishops to adopt policies to prevent abuse.

Thanks to the Nolan Report, child protection co-ordinators have been appointed in dioceses across the country - a post held in Brighton and Arundel by the Reverend Tom Murray.

The diocese is among less than a dozen to employ a full-time child protection officer. Both Rev Murray and Shirley sit alongside representatives from the police and social services on the diocesan child protection management committee.

The appointment of parish representatives was also recommended by Lord Nolan and Shirley is piling the pressure on those priests who have not yet found one.

She said: "We have been quietly persistent, like a dripping tap. The majority of priests have been very supportive of what we are doing. We have to understand it has been a hard time for the priesthood and many of them feel thoroughly demoralised."

Shirley hopes to eliminate the awkwardness in discussing sexual abuse by providing training for volunteers and priests.

She said: "It is about getting a balance.

"Sometimes a child may need physical contact, like an arm around their shoulder, if they are upset. What we need to do is make people aware of what guidelines exist to make sure the child is protected."

But one of the biggest barriers to overcome in the fight against paedophilia - at home or in a church - is public awareness.

She said: "The majority of abuse still occurs in the home and although the church cannot police the family, it needs to be aware of the symptoms of abuse.

"The real responsibility for child protection lies within the community."