WHO AM I?

My identity cannot be disclosed, published or shared under the terms of the General Restriction Orders made by the Chair of the on-going Scottish Child Abuse Enquiry.

I am a victim of bullying at Glenalmond College a co-ed boarding school in Scotland for 12 - 18 year olds.

I was the first member of my family to attend a boarding school. Glenalmond canvassed my parents to take me for the entrance test and at the time I was very excited to have been offered a place with the opportunity for apparently a great education in a great environment.

I wish now that I had never seen the place!

When I joined Glenalmond I was assessed as a potential entrant for Oxford or Cambridge.

WHAT HAPPENED TO ME

I left the school just before my GCSEs unable to continue there due to bullying I experienced there over a period of 3 years. I had a break down and refused to stay and have since had to cope with mental health problems. Staff failed to stop it time and time again in spite of promises to me and my parents.

I knew no-one there when I first arrived but did settle in well in my first year.

My difficulties began when the majority of pupils arrived the following year. Most came from the same feeder schools. I even discovered that my maths teacher was Godfather to at least two pupils. I was made to feel excluded.

Glenalmond knew all about my bullying during that year but it didn't stop.

An iPod I had been given as a birthday present at the start of my second year "disappeared" after a couple of months. The next year my bike "disappeared". My parents were ignored when they asked about these and there was no enquiry.

The following year another's iPod went missing, I was bullied and blamed constantly about this over a period of several weeks. My room and belongings were searched by the staff head of my boarding house I found out later. When I had been in San overnight my parents were asked to take me home since I was upset.  While I was at home that staff member let my parents know "as it might be some comfort" that the iPod had been found by the other pupil at his home but the staff head of my house didn't apologise for having suspicion too.

No-one seemed to care when it was my iPod and my bike that had gone missing without trace. No-one else had their belongings or rooms searched then.

None of my overnight stays in Glenalmond’s Medical Centre supervised by the school nurses when I escaped bullying were recorded on my medical records. All pupils’ medical records are stored in Glenalmond’s Medical Centre.

In my last months at Glenalmond I was bullied into handing over to two pupils some of my work and files for an exam entry and a portfolio for application to further education. One of the bullies included a teacher.

The Warden, Gordon Woods, was aware of the issue about my work being used for a portfolio for application to further education  when my parents complained about this.  He did not reply. Lord Menzies was written to by my parents 3 months later to ask why the Warden had not responded to their complaint. Lord Menzies was made aware of all the circumstances of that bullying by a senior pupil and teacher at that time and other bullying incidents at Glenalmond. 

Details of some of my bullying can be read in my slide show.

In the middle of trying to complete my technical coursework my teacher disappeared. No pupils were told what had happened and parents were not informed by Glenalmond. It was only when the press reported that he had been jailed for historic sexual abuse at another school that we all found out. There was no thought that pupils might have been at risk at Glenalmond.

At Glenalmond I did not experience the place where Lord Menzies Chairman of Council at Glenalmond College says, “the girls and boys are happy, they are achieving their best not only in their academic studies. They are equipped for life”.

I was not equipped for life.

My life choices have been diminished by bullying that Glenalmond failed to stop.

COMPLAINTS ABOUT GLENALMOND

After I refused to stay my parents complained to the Care Inspectorate in Scotland. 

Their complaint about bullying and 3 other matters at Glenalmond were upheld.

The upheld complaint was published on the Care Inspectorate’s website.

My parents then saw that there had been another upheld bullying complaint against Glenalmond. That upheld complaint was published 16 months before my parents' complaint and in the publication the Care Inspectorate made 5 recommendations - at a time when I was also being bullied.

These 5 recommendations for improvements were ignored by Glenalmond.

Care Inspectorate documents have been included to read in my slide show.

CONSEQUENCES

Bullying at Glenalmond College has affected me.

With mental health issues preventing me from completing my schooling I am uncertain about my future.

I was referred to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services and had subsequent appointments with a Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist and a Consultant Clinical Neuropsychologist.

Extracts from what they have said about me are in my slide show.

HOW GLENALMOND HAVE TREATED CONTACT BY MY LAWYER

After a while I realised that I could talk to a lawyer for advice on my experiences at Glenalmond and the problems they have caused me.

My lawyer wrote to the legal firm who represent Glenalmond.

It turns out they are not Glenalmond’s lawyers but represent Glenalmond’s insurers, Royal Sun Alliance.

My lawyer advised me that it would be wise to seek an opinion from a QC on my case which we did.

There has been little progress with the lawyers for Royal Sun Alliance and my lawyer received no proposals from them on resolution.

They seem to want to play a long game but I need closure; that my bullies answer for their actions towards me and that the school answers for its negligence and ignoring of Care Inspectorate recommendations which directly affected me and allowed my bullying to continue.

During my final few months there when my parents complained about a build up of my issues the staff member in charge of my boarding house wrote to them admitting this was "an upsetting time for you both and I apologise that the school and I have come up short of your and our expectations".  

WHAT I THINK

I don't understand why Glenalmond’s insurers, Royal Sun Alliance, may defend the school when recommendations by the Care Inspectorate to address bullying concerns were ignored in 2014 and this in turn had an impact on me.

If you have car insurance and do not declare previous incidents there are consequences. Insurance companies have conditions such as the correct locks on your house to prevent burglaries before they will honour a claim.

Surely a school’s insurer would have conditions about whether or not a school has been negligent as a member of the Scottish Council of Independent Schools or the Governors as trustees of a Scottish Charity or even with regard to a school’s duties regarding child protection? And especially when the school ignored Care Inspectorate recommendations.

Glenalmond College is a member of the Scottish Council of Independent Schools and as members the Governors of an independent school “must ensure that the school has suitable child protection policies in place”, and “any deficiencies or weaknesses in regard to child protection are remedied without delay.”  They did not.

Glenalmond's Governors and management staff ignored Care Inspectorate recommendations in 2014 and bullying of me continued up to the point I broke down in 2015 and left the school.

Glenalmond had two upheld bullying complaints published by the Care Inspectorate in April 2014 and August 2015 and between those dates ignored 5 Recommendations when bullying of me continued due to this “systemic failure”. These documents are screen shots in my slide show.

CARE INSPECTORATE  APRIL 2014  5 Recommendations -

• The provider should devise a protocol that demonstrates that incidents relating to bullying type behaviour are addressed on a more formal basis, and clearly documented in terms of strategies applied to ensure safety.
• The provider should ensure that the Anti Bullying policy and procedures are used effectively, in terms of addressing issues of bullying, which will assist recognition of what behaviours falls within this category.
• The provider should undertake updated development work with staff to ensure that where there is actual or potential for bullying behaviour, then staff have a clear consistent approach to managing these situations.
• The provider should ensure that where any concerns of bullying type behaviour are being raised by a young person or parent, then an investigation should be undertaken with clear findings and action documented. 
• The provider should ensure that minutes of meetings are fully recorded with appropriate action plan in place and communicated to all relevant parties.

CARE INSPECTORATE  AUGUST 2015  answers to my parents' complaint

“The service failed to take appropriate action to address a named young person being bullied.”  

“We found that systems were inadequate for addressing prolonged incidents. lncidents were not appropriately recorded nor was there a clear coordinated plan of how future incidents of bullying would be addressed.  This was inappropriate and highlighted that there was a systemic failure in ensuring that the young person received the best care and support available.” 

“The service failed to accurately record significant incidents involving a named young person.”

“The service failed to follow their complaints procedure by not responding to concerns in a timely manner.”

“As previously noted, there was a lack of effective recording of incidents involving the young person. We concluded that this was a factor in a lack of analysis and coordinated approach to support the young person during that time.”

Glenalmond College is a Scottish Charity SC006123 and charity trustees must “act with care and diligence” and “operate in a manner consistent with the charity’s purposes”.                                                                                                                                                                                                                  I think that they did not in my case. 

MY NEED FOR CLOSURE AND RESOLUTION

I do not have the resources to take on Royal Sun Alliance in Court or Glenalmond College whose President is Most Reverend David Chillingworth, Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church and Chairman is The Right Honourable Lord Menzies, a Judge of the Supreme Courts.

My lawyer has asked for a deposit of money between £ 5 000 - £ 10 000 before he will take my case to Court with support from Janys Scott QC which is why I have launched my case for funding on Crowd Justice.

I want to hold to account:

- those who did not care about me

- those who were able to affect me due to a lack of proper child protection and management

- those who have diminished my life choices

- those that have caused my parents so much stress and heartbreak

I hope that my case will raise awareness so that pupils in future will be saved from a similar bullying ordeal and so that all boarding schools are managed and scrutinised properly by professional and government bodies.

Please support my case.

Thank you, I am very grateful.

My legal representatives are Eric Scott, Campbell Smith LLP and Janys Scott QC