Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry publishes findings into Fife school

The findings of an inquiry into child abuse at a former Fife residential school have been revealed.

In her review as part of the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry, Lady Smith said vulnerable boys who were targeted by Christian Brothers at St Ninian's Residential Care Home, Falkland, between 1953 and 1983 suffered "lasting damage".

She concluded that the regime at St Ninian’s exposed children to risks of sexual, physical, and psychological danger.

During the case study, the inquiry considered evidence about the nature and extent of abuse of children in care at St Ninian’s.

It also examined the systems, policies and procedures in place, how these were applied and whether the abuse arose from systemic failures.

Lady Smith, chair of the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry, said: "The overall view I formed of St Ninian’s was depressing.

"It was a place where the Brothers who were perpetrators of abuse could pursue their abusive practices with impunity.

"Abusive Brothers had unrestrained access to the vulnerable children they wished to target.

"That such abuse was possible for virtually the entirety of St Ninian’s existence represents serious failures in oversight, management, and governance.

"Fundamental deficiencies in training, and a serious lack of relevant life experiences, conspired to enable dreadful abuse of children, who were supposedly being cared for by the order, to occur.

"Children were betrayed by serious breaches of trust and, for many, it caused lasting damage."

Hearings in the case study took place between June and July 2019, during which time the inquiry heard evidence from 42 witnesses.

These findings are the first in a series of three sets of case study findings in which the residential care of children provided by male religious orders in Scotland is examined.

Lady Smith added: "The order offered a genuine apology to survivors of abuse at St Ninian’s while recognising that 'sorry' has very little content of itself, and that what really matters is admission and recognition of what happened and that what happened was wrong."

The findings will be taken into account in the final report.

Laura Connor - a partner with Thompsons Solicitors, which is representing several survivors of abuse, said: "The findings of the inquiry’s report are welcomed, albeit not surprising.

"We know what happened to children under the so-called care of this organisation as we are currently dealing with various ongoing court actions against them.

"We very much hope that our clients and other survivors are able to take some consolation from the findings. We will continue to fight for justice for survivors and urge those in positions of power in this religious group to do the right thing now instead of avoiding responsibility by hiding behind legal arguments."