“As far as I can remember, I believe that we had a draft job description for our Liaison Governor of safeguarding and child protection in 2007. I do believe that shows that we were really concentrating on our processes. I cannot actually remember if it happened. If it did happen then that would have meant that my child protection co- ordinator in the school would have been reporting to that governor every term but I cannot remember if that draft job description became reality in 2007 onwards.”—Andrew Hunter, SCAI Witness Statement (17 November 2020)
“Between 1998 and 2015, the school was inspected regularly by HMIE/Education Scotland and The Care Inspectorate. We tried to achieve the best possible grades in all the categories. I cannot remember precisely what regulators felt about welfare and child protection. From memory, we would not have been given unsatisfactory grades in this important area until 2013 onwards. Indeed, we more often than not secured very complimentary grades. For example, I am sure that I can remember that, with Mrs Chispa Prini-Garcia, we drafted our first job description for the Child Protection Liaison Governor in June 2007. All regulators were always scrupulously professional. We always concentrated on welfare and child protection.”—Andrew Hunter, SCAI Witness Statement (17 November 2020)
“In October 2012 and September 2013, we received from The Care Inspectorate 4 “Excellent” Grades in each inspection for Care and Support, Environment, Staffing and Management and Leadership. We could not understand why it appeared that we may have lost total focus on these vital areas. It became apparent that some focus had been lost in these areas following the suicide of a member of staff, James Rainy Brown, on 29 April 2013, further staff challenges in safeguarding and child protection and the subsequent concentration on the school by police and regulators. We also could not understand how the picture by regulators of Merchiston Castle School could change so dramatically for the worse but we spent little time on this point of view and set about our improvement agenda in this area. From memory, I also think the inspectorate criteria changed.”—Andrew Hunter, SCAI Witness Statement (17 November 2020)
“Essentially, in 2013 onwards, since we received directives from The Registrar for Independent Schools, in tandem with the regulators, and with a link inspector, we went through a wholescale review of important care and welfare improvements related to child protection, health and well- being and leadership for improvement. The directives included areas like safeguarding and child protection. The full audit of this is at Merchiston Castle School.”—Andrew Hunter, SCAI Witness Statement (17 November 2020)
“After the suicide of a member of staff, James Rainy Brown, I was interviewed by the police for the whole of the next day. I had school lawyers with me and I told them that I wished to speak to the police about all of the challenges that I had faced in safeguarding and child protection. I gave the police everything. They had their correct procedures and they came back and demanded the audit trail. For every single one of the issues, we had an in-depth audit trail of what had been done but our audit trail needed more evidence of seeking external advice and/or the use of the disciplinary process We had this process and I worked on it with my bursar but it was not automatically instinctive for me to place someone immediately on the disciplinary process. I learned that.”
“You could ask why that took so long to learn? With the board of governors, I do not think that safeguarding and child protection assumed a high enough priority for some time. I think that would have been the case in quite a few independent schools especially boarding schools. I think boarding schools used to be unintentionally, quite inward looking places. You spend a lot of your time thinking about your colleagues and the students. It is a different ambience to a day school.”—Andrew Hunter, SCAI Witness Statement (17 November 2020)
“With the board of governors, I do not think that safeguarding and child protection assumed a high enough priority for some time. I think that would have been the case in quite a few independent schools especially boarding schools. I think boarding schools used to be unintentionally, quite inward looking places. You spend a lot of your time thinking about your colleagues and the students. It is a different ambience to a day school.”—Andrew Hunter, SCAI Witness Statement (17 November 2020)
“In October 2012 and September 2013, we received from The Care Inspectorate 4 “Excellent” Grades in each inspection for Care and Support, Environment, Staffing and Management and Leadership. We could not understand why it appeared that we may have lost total focus on these vital areas.”
“It became apparent that some focus had been lost in these areas following the suicide of a member of staff, James Rainy Brown, on 29 April 2013, further staff challenges in safeguarding and child protection and the subsequent concentration on the school by police and regulators.”
“We also could not understand how the picture by regulators of Merchiston Castle School could change so dramatically for the worse but we spent little time on this point of view and set about our improvement agenda in this area. From memory, I also think the inspectorate criteria changed.”—Andrew Hunter, SCAI Witness Statement (17 November 2020)
“In terms of the school’s strategic approach to key aspects, like care and welfare improvements related to child protection, safeguarding, health and well-being, the leadership and management of the school, the executive and the Board of Governors, from January 2015, we embarked upon an improvement journey.”—Andrew Hunter, SCAI Witness Statement (17 November 2020)
“In time, I seem to remember 2013 onwards, I specifically asked the referee a question which I was told was potentially not correct in terms of employment law but the question was “Could you tell me ifthere is any reason, please, as to why this prospective member staff would wish to work in a boys’ school and seek refuge in a boys’ school?”. I cannot remember who told me that question was not correct but it may have been the school’s legal advisers. I took advice from regulators such as Education Scotland and the Care Inspectorate and was told that, in the light of the challenges we had faced at Merchiston, I was quite entitled to ask this question.”—Andrew Hunter, SCAI Witness Statement (17 November 2020)
“It was inevitable that our policies became even more sophisticated. We also appraised anyone who was in a new position of responsibility who had been promoted from outwith the school or within the school. Wherever possible, an internal appointment involved the candidate applying and an interview process. This was to try and ensure that we had “checks and balances” on any internal appointment. We felt that was professional and due diligence. Members of staff also preferred that.”—Andrew Hunter, SCAI Witness Statement (17 November 2020)
A report into the exclusive Merchiston Castle School has concluded that for 60 years, “abusers were protected by tradition”. Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry chairwoman Lady Smith has published her findings on the provision of residential care at the Edinburgh boarding school, concluding that over almost six decades, there was a “more or less continuous line of indecency” from two named perpetrators.
Abuse at a boarding school for boys in Edinburgh was “normalised for generations”, the chair of the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry has said. Lady Smith published her findings on Wednesday relating to the provision of residential care for children at Merchiston Castle School in Edinburgh.
The head teacher of £29,000-a-year Merchiston Castle in Edinburgh apologised as his former colleague was struck off for romps with teenagers.
