Batts says her client is unsuitable for a range of alternative punishments to custody available to the court, including a hospital order and a community order.

She says his "difficulties arise primarily through physical illness", rather than a mental condition.

"The only available disposal in this case is one of absolute discharge," she adds, a comment which draws reaction from some of the victims in court.

Batts tells the court there is no evidence of her client's offending since 1994.

According to the Sentencing Council, external, which issues guidelines on sentencing, an absolute discharge means that "the court has decided not to impose a punishment because the experience of going to court has been punishment enough".

Gillian Batts KC, who represents Malcolm Phillips, says both the defence and prosecution were in agreement that the defendant, who has "various medical conditions" was not fit to stand trial in January.

Batts says a "number of expert medical reports" were obtained before this conclusion was reached.

Phillips, who cuts a frail figure, has been sat in what appears to be an armchair throughout the hearing, with his head resting on a cushion.

Kelly Lees finishes her victim statement by telling the court she feels her abuser, who did not face trial on medical grounds, "has once again played the system and is laughing at me".

"What I struggle to believe is that my abuser, who lives the life of a free man, will never face any consequences of his actions.

"He was the abuser, yet today I feel he's still being protected."

Kelly Lees tells the court: "At every opportunity I was disrespected and denied the opportunity of bringing the perpetrators to justice."

She says police and social services "blamed each other for not taking my honest account seriously".

Lees says her substance abuse began at the age of 11 during her time in care, saying it was the "only way" she knew how to cope with the abuse she faced.

Kelly Lees is now reading her victim impact statement to the court. She too has waived her right to anonymity.

The court hears how she was punched in the face by Linda Brunning and groomed and sexually abused by Malcolm Phillips, who would sometimes commit sexual acts on her in front of another man.

She says basic needs like food and water were "weaponised" at the home.

If you are affected by any of the issues in this story, help and support is available at BBC Action Line.

Karen Bentham says she "shared my journey so others would see they are not alone".

She is wearing a personalised hoodie in tribute to the survivors of the abuse at Skircoat Lodge.

"Using my voice allows me to help others find theirs.

"A children's home should be a place of safety. For me, it became a place where my safety was taken.

"The impact of his actions has shaped every one of the 13,116 days that have followed."

The court is hearing from Karen Bentham, another former resident of Skircoat Lodge who has waived her right to anonymity.

She says she has waited a total of 13,116 days for justice since she was raped twice by Malcolm Phillips in 1990.

"What happened to me has never stayed in the past. It's in your body, in your mind and in the way your experience the world," she says, talking through tears.

"Safety has never felt normal. Trauma shaped my relationships. Sustaining relationships has been complicated."

Like other victims, Bentham also speaks of having suicidal thoughts since the abuse.

Prosecutor Michelle Colborn KC is now discussing the sentencing guidelines for some of the offences.

She submits that these offences should fall into the most serious category for punishment due to the "severe" harm to the victims, who were particularly vulnerable.

Image source, West Yorkshire Police

Linda Brunning, above, told one boy his mother didn't love him and he had to rely on her now, court hears.

In a victim impact statement, the court is told how Skircoat Lodge was a "horrible, cruel environment with sexual predators".

"I had two residences at Skircoat Lodge and nothing had changed. In fact, it was worse," one says.

Another victim uses their statement to tell the court they were "subjected to torture, harm, degradation and trauma".

"I was constantly told: 'Nobody cares, nobody loves you, you are worthless'."

The judge has risen for another short break.

The court hears from another victim who had several stays at Skircoat Lodge up until the age of 13.

He says he was raped by Malcolm Phillips as punishment for running away. He would escape due to the abuse he received at the hands of Phillips and his deputy, Linda Brunning.

Shortly after he arrived at the home, he told Brunning how he missed his mum.

"[Brunning] sat him on her knee and told him his mother didn't love him and told him he had to rely on her now."

He says he would sometimes pass out due to the pressure of Brunning sitting on him.

Together with Phillips, they would punish him by throwing him naked into a cold bath of water.

Another victim says Linda Brunning would wake him and other boys up in the morning by "physically jumping on them".

She would also sexually touch him when he got out of the shower.

The defendant does not react to the testimony, read out by prosecutor Michelle Colborn KC. She is staring downwards.

"I spent six months at Skircoat Lodge and every day I was sexually abused, physically abused, emotionally and mentally abused by Malcolm Phillips and his deputy," says another victim.

Recalling the nightly trauma, which took place when he was 10 years old, he says: "I couldn't do anything, I was a child. But that doesn't stop me feeling guilty and shameful.

"I didn't really have a childhood, it was taken away by abusers."

The victim says the impact of the abuse has also affected his relationships in adult life.

The court is hearing more testimony from victims who lived at Skircoat Lodge.

One of them says Phillips "had a presence about him which was frightening", adding that he "appeared to be deliberately singling children out for punishment".

"At nighttime children would be taken from their beds and not seen again until the following day."

Several people in court wipe away tears as Angela Radford's victim impact statement concludes.

Radford says the trial made her feel "humiliated and shamed" by having to go over the abuse again.

"When I received the verdict I felt like 'Finally I am believed'.

"My life as a teenager, it should have been one of the happiest times of my life. It was taken away from me.

"He [Phillips] should die in prison."

Malcolm Phillips "just did what he wanted and we were powerless to stop him", says Angela Radford.

Through tears, she says her social worker took her back to Skircoat Lodge despite her telling him about the abuse taking place there.

"He called me a liar and battered me [...] adults were to be believed, not children.

"The stigma of being called a liar has stayed with me throughout my life."

The hearing resumes, with Angela Radford reading her victim impact statement to the court.

Tearfully, she tells the room she was taken into care "through no fault of my own".

"Instead of being looked after I was degraded," she says, adding that she felt "failed and abused" by those in positions of authority.

"When I was there it was horrendous and I can still hear the screams today, the girls screaming: 'Get your hands off me'."

The judge rises temporarily while Phillips takes a break due to a medical condition.

We expect to resume just after 11:00 BST.