Evidence was heard from former pupil “James (CDR)” and assistant master Gordon Cruden, and the read-in evidence of assistant masters Stephen Campbell and Nicholas Diver.
Assistant Masters: Gordon Cruden (1976–1985)
(1953–). Studied French and English at Edinburgh University and received a teaching diploma in English at Moray House, then registered as a teacher with the General Teaching Council for Scotland.
Cruden worked at Merchiston from 1976 until 1985, when he was forced to resign suddenly after repeated incidents of indecent exposure involving pupils.
Cruden then applied unsuccessfully to teach at Bishop’s Stortford College in Hertfordshire, England after leaving Merchiston, blaming then-Merchiston headmaster David Spawforth for a bad reference in his written submission to the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry.
He then applied to Bloxham School in Oxfordshire, England, where he disclosed to the headmaster why he had ‘resigned’ from Merchiston before references were obtained.
UNNECESSARY SCAI ANONYMIZING: For some reason—despite Cruden having both submitted a witness statement and testifying at a Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry hearing under his own name—he was anonymized in the final Merchiston case study as “Antoine”.
Cruden’s span teaching at the school, given in both his written submission and oral testimony, exactly match the teaching years of “Antoine” given in the case study.
Quotations attributed to “Antoine” (a popular French name and rather obvious pseudonym for a teacher of French) are direct quotes found both in Gordon Cruden’s submitted written statement and his oral testimony on Day 266 of the Inquiry.
Word for word, Cruden’s on-the-record statements from both of these sources are repeatedly cited in case study footnotes but inexplicably attributed to “Antoine”. Unlike other anonymized witnesses, “Antoine” has no three letter designation attached to his name (eg. “Antoine (XYZ)”). The reason for this anonymisation at the final step remains a mystery.
2015 GUILTY VERDICT: Cruden was found guilty at Edinburgh Sheriff Court in December 2015 of three charges of indecent exposure relating to incidents involving three pupils at Merchiston Castle School between 1980 and 1985. By this point he had been teaching at Bloxham for 30 years.
On 16 December 2015, Sheriff Kevin Drummond granted Cruden an “absolute discharge” under section 246(3) of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995, which meant no fine, no imprisonment, no recorded conviction, and no requirement to register as a sex offender.
CONTINUED TEACHING: Following the 2015 verdict in a Scottish court, Bloxham School appeared to allow him to return to teaching “after taking legal and safeguarding advice.” Media reports and the school confirm that he returned to work in January 2016—but only briefly.
Cruden retired from the school later that same year, still a few years away from retirement age. Presumably either some Bloxham parents had discovered Google or the school realized post-conviction Cruden now presented a liability timebomb.
Assistant Masters: Gordon Cruden – SCAI Witness Statement (27 October 2020)
Pupils: Mark (CCY) – SCAI Witness Statement (11 September 2018)
Secrecy row as teacher agrees to be struck off over sex with boys at residential school
A teacher at a £29,000 Scottish residential school has agreed to be struck off after having sex with pupils on the premises. But Scotland’s teaching watchdog has been criticised over the case after it agreed to keep the name of the teacher and school secret.
Top schools in abuse inquiry
Some of Scotland’s top private schools are being investigated by a national inquiry into child abuse. Gordonstoun–Prince Charles’s former school–and Fettes College, where Tony Blair was a pupil, feature in the statutory probe. Others include Merchiston Castle and Loretto, Scotland’s oldest boarding school. They are among more than 60 residential care establishments identiifed as sites of alleged child abuse or neglect.
Two top public schools attended by Prince Charles and Tony Blair are investigated as part of major inquiry into child abuse
Two top public schools attended by Prince Charles and Tony Blair are being investigated by a major national inquiry into child abuse. Gordonstoun, the alma mater of the heir to the throne, and Fettes College – where the former Labour Prime Minister was a pupil – both feature in the statutory probe. Other private schools under investigation include Merchiston Castle School in Edinburgh, Loretto School in Musselburgh and Morrison’s Academy in Crieff.
Staff Leavers: Gordon Cruden
Gordon now returns to his beloved Edinburgh. We shall miss his honest, selfless devotion to the pupils in his care. We shall miss his unwillingness to bend to the latest fads in education and we shall miss his unflinching honesty.
Group for survivors of child abuse slams sheriff’s “disgusting” decision on indecent exposure case for teacher
A group which campaigns for victims of child abuse have attacked a Scottish sheriff’s decision to give a teacher guilty of indecent exposure an absolute discharge. Helen Holland of the In Care Abuse Survivors Scotland (INCAS) said it was “disgusting” that Gordon Cruden was not adequately punished for the offences at the elite Merchiston Castle school in Edinburgh.
Teacher found guilty of indecent exposure at top private school in Edinburgh gets absolute discharge and is still in classroom
Gordon Cruden, who taught at the exclusive Merchiston Castle, exposed himself in front of teenage boys at the school but escaped any punishment in December after a trial despite being found guilty.
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