New see-through confessionals

Roman Catholic churches and cathedrals are introducing glass-fronted confessionals around the country as part of a bid to stamp out sex abuse.

The new confessionals feature glass windows and doors, but are fully soundproofed to sustain the traditional seal of secrecy.

That may be little comfort to anyone spending an embarrassingly long time admitting their sins in full view of the public.

The Church hopes the screens will let others see what is happening, and protect both children and adults from the risk of abuse and priests from false allegations.

Last year an inquiry by former law lord Lord Nolan into child abuse in the Catholic Church recommended children should make confession in the open, and that visible confessions should also be available for adults. Glassfronted booths have been installed in Plymouth Cathedral and churches in Nottingham, Liverpool, Cardiff and Westminster, and are planned for churches across England and Wales. But not everyone is in favour.

Father Kit Cunningham, priest at St Etheldreda's in Ely Place, London, said: "The new ones make people visible when they might not want it known that they are going to confession." Between 1995 and 1999, 21 out of 5,600 Catholic priests in England and Wales were convicted of child abuse.