The sorry saga of how four lovely children came to lose their lives while supposedly under the protective gaze of Southampton City Council is a drama that seems unending.

Today this paper reports how our approaches to the man in charge of the city’s department charged with protecting the boys have been thwarted by a wall of silence.

A Serious Case Review into the case of one of the dead boys, seven-year-old Blake Fowler, revealed deep problems at the heart of the city’s social services department when it was reported last week.

The man then in charge, Clive Webster, has moved on with a hefty payout.

He tells us he cannot explain what went wrong in his opinion because of confidentiality clauses in his pay-off arrangements.

This is not acceptable. The city council should wave those clauses immediately and allow the truth to be told.

Four young boys are dead. This is no time for the council to hide behind a wall of silence.

This paper will continue to push for answers.