It’s not yet clear what information will be shared from the current review into historic abuse allegations at Elizabeth College.
The school has also been unable to confirm when any information will be made public, if it is.
“The Review has been commissioned by the Board of Directors of the College to gain a fuller understanding of what happened in the past to ensure that all relevant lessons are learned and that any survivors of abuse have an independent and confidential process through which to disclose their experience,” explained a College spokesperson.
“The Board is committed to sharing the findings and recommendations with safeguarding partners. Beyond this, given the sensitivities around safeguarding and bearing in mind the confidentiality rights of survivors, the Board will consider the output from the review carefully and determine what is appropriate to share in due course.”
The private school has been the subject of national news headlines as well as local attention after announcing that it has commissioned an independent review into alleged non-recent abuse.
The Observer newspaper named one specific teacher in relation to the allegations, and it implicated the former Elizabeth College boarding house – which closed more than 20 years ago.
Elizabeth College told Express that the decision to close the boarding house had nothing to do with any past allegations around abuse made by former pupils.
The College reiterated that the allegations that have been made relate to men who attended the school more than 40 years ago and that the current independent review relates to those reports and how they were handled at the time.
“Having been contacted about a number of disclosures of alleged non-recent abuse concerning the experiences of former pupils in the 1970s and 1980s, the Board has commissioned this review. It relates to non-recent abuse of all kinds at the College, alongside how these cases were handled.”
The review is being led by Joanna Nicolas who is a safeguarding consultant, with “more than 30-years’ experience of working in the fields of Safeguarding and Child Protection”.
“The College has been contacted about a number of disclosures of alleged non-recent abuse concerning the experiences of former pupils in the 1970s and 1980s,” the spokesperson confirmed. “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 recent concerns raised, the Board has determined that it wishes to gain a fuller understanding of what happened in its past. It is for this reason the Board commissioned an independent, expert-led review into disclosures of non-recent abuse.
“What happened in the past, and the College’s handling of such matters, is a matter for the independent review which the College has commissioned. This will provide any past pupils affected with an opportunity to be listened to and heard.”
The College added that “Ms Nicolas has committed to carrying the review out efficiently and sensitively. How long this takes, and the resource required is a matter for her – it is too early to estimate at this time.”
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
Anyone with information relevant to the inquiry can also contact Guernsey Police by calling 222 222.
Anyone with immediate concerns around child safeguarding in Guernsey or Alderney should contact the Multi Agency Support Hub (MASH) by calling 223 182. An emergency duty team for safeguarding is available out of hours by calling 01481 222 222.