Men who attended Elizabeth College in the 1970s and 1980s have said they were abused during their time at the school.
The College yesterday announced an “independent, expert-led review” into the “non-recent allegations” so it can “gain a fuller understanding of what happened”.
Guernsey Police said they have not received any “new formal complaints” in relation to the College.
The College’s review is separate to any police investigation, so a Guernsey Police spokesperson said anyone with relevant information should contact them directly.
This is what we know so far.
Late on Monday, Elizabeth College issued a statement saying that it has received reports about historical abuse at the school.
It said there has been a “number of disclosures of alleges non-recent abuse” made in recent months, all “concerning the experiences of former pupils in the 1970s and 1980s”.
Review
While the College hasn’t given any further details about what the allegations concern or who may have been accused of committing the abuse, the private school has acted on the disclosures.
It has “commissioned an independent, expert-led review” to be led by a woman called Joanna Nicolas.
She is a safeguarding consultant, with “more than 30-years’ experience of working in the fields of Safeguarding and Child Protection”.
Elizabeth College said the aim of Ms Nicolas’ review is “to ensure that all relevant lessons are learned from the past and that anyone impacted has an independent process through which to disclose their experiences should they wish to do so”.
The College said any former member who would like further information about how to participate in this review should contact Ms Nicolas directly.
She can be reached via nonrecentcasesreview@joannanicolas.co.uk
Safeguarding
Elizabeth College said it already takes its safeguarding responsibilities “extremely seriously”.
“Safeguarding legislation and practice have evolved significantly over the decades, and the current school has rigorous safeguarding procedures in place,” said the College.
“These were most recently inspected and approved by the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) in November 2025.”
John Roche, the Chair of the Elizabeth College Board of Governors, said the independent review will offer anyone who wishes to make a disclosure a “confidential channel” to do so.
“The College takes its duty to safeguard its pupils extremely seriously and the welfare of the child will always be paramount, which is why the College has commissioned this review.
“Safeguarding practice has evolved and improved significantly over recent decades, but nonetheless it is important that we understand and learn from our past.
“To this end, we have appointed Joanna Nicolas to undertake a review for the Board of disclosures of non-recent abuse from decades past, providing a confidential channel through which anyone negatively impacted by their experiences can be listened to and heard.”
While Elizabeth College has launched its independent review into the allegations, it is also working with Guernsey Police on the matter.
Police
The College said any information will be referred to the police where appropriate and necessary.
“The College works closely with the Police and other safeguarding authorities and will always make appropriate referrals of such matters to these agencies in line with its legislative and statutory duties. However, in light of the concerns raised, the Board has determined that it wishes to gain a fuller understanding of what happened in its past.”
Guernsey Police confirmed it has known about the historic allegations for a few weeks at least. But “no new formal complaints” have been made.
“Guernsey Police is aware of Elizabeth College’s plans to conduct a review into historic allegations of child abuse at the school and has been engaging with senior staff,” confirmed a police spokesperson.
“Police were first notified about these plans in March. Since then, officers have been liaising with representatives from Elizabeth College to ensure that any reports or evidence of criminal offences are properly referred on to the police.
“We made safeguarding colleagues in supporting agencies such as Health & Social Care and Education aware to ensure that a full multi-agency response can be activated if evidence of criminal offences is found.
“At this stage, no new formal complaints have been received by Guernsey Police in relation to these recent disclosures.”
Contact
Guernsey Police have said that any police investigation is entirely separate to the College’s review.
“Therefore, we would strongly encourage anyone with relevant information to come forward directly to Guernsey Police at the earliest opportunity by calling 01481 222 222 or visit the Police Station.
“Anyone with immediate concerns around child safeguarding in Guernsey or Alderney should contact the Multi Agency Support Hub (MASH) by calling 01481 223 182. An emergency duty team for safeguarding is available out of hours by calling 01481 222 222.”
