Sentence of Peter Webb referred to Court of Appeal

[aliburns]

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[RemedyLaw]

Ajaz Karim is set for trial this week, postponed from 03/04/2018.

The trial began today at Brighton Crown Court

[richardb]

Interestingly, Karim's trial is being widely reported in the media.

Beware of discussing the allegations before verdicts are returned.

[lvesey]

Why is it that the full fees are mentioned multiple times every time CH is in the news?

[jtaylor]

Because that’s the media for you! Doesn’t make a good headline to say that x% of pupils pay nothing etc....

[Avon]

I tried to get the Police interested in a certain ex-Master for his over-zealous use of corporal punishment/assault when as a junior house master, yet the b*stard has got away with it as corporal punishment wasn't illegal until 1998. How the hell he was rewarded in a New Years Honours for "his work with children" is beyond me. Maybe it was instigated by his friends in a certain club. I hope they are ashamed of themselves. He certainly did his best to ruin my childhood.
However it does seem that the family are wrong-uns as his son folded a very profitable company with the loss of jobs for the workforce because they apparently ran out of capital. This was rumoured to be because of too many first class overseas trips, but that's pure conjecture on my part. Also his daughter was convicted on 25 counts of fraud whilst serving in the Police as a senior officer. She was sentenced to serve time in prison but was released early - so crime does apparently pay. I personally think they deserve wider public recognition.

That same master ran an unruly ‘B’ house as housemaster and there were some strange associations to former masters as well.

When this sorry affair plays out in the courts and IF there are convictions, then there should be a serious retrospective of a period at CH where there was a SMC (of which the above housemaster was a member) was culpably oblivious. I feel that there was insufficient thought given to the merger of Horsham and Hertford and what we are seeing here - thirty years later - is some of the fallout.

Once the courts decide - and to a degree - regardless of the outcome, I think that there will be a release of considerable anathema by OB towards many of those in positions of authority at the time who could, or should have done a better job.

[J.R.]

Time will tell. - Times are changing, at last !

[richardb]

We cannot go into detail at this stage but there is going to be one hell of a debate a few months down the line when this is all over, and the school are going to have a lot of explaining to do.

[dsmg]

Excuse my ignorance Avon, but what's an SMC? Also, you say insufficient thought was given to the merger leading to some of what we are seeing here, but surely Webb and Burr at least, committed their crimes some time before the merger took place.

[Avon]

Excuse my ignorance Avon, but what's an SMC? Also, you say insufficient thought was given to the merger leading to some of what we are seeing here, but surely Webb and Burr at least, committed their crimes some time before the merger took place.

Ah, sorry - typo. I meant SMT - which was senior management team IIRC. RCHP, RDTS, EC, etc in my time.

[aliburns]

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[Avon]

Ah, don’t get me wrong - I think the merger was a great idea. What I think was poorly handled was the transition; three headmasters, one disinterested, one ancient and stentorian, and one weak and vaccilating.

There was also a tranche of sneering or arkward staff who couldn’t handle the girls being there.

[postwarblue]

The disclosure thing: the prudent employer does not provide any sort of reference at all, only a statement that so and so was employed between this and that date.

It must be obvious that paedophiles will seek employment that gives them access to their prey. One defence against this must be that the employing organisation makes it blisteringly clear that ANY allegations will immediately be reported to the police.

I just hope British institutions have moved on from sweeping 'unpleasantness' under the carpet.

[LHA]

Avon, your belief that the merger has brought about more problems really couldn't be further from the truth. The merger was the best thing to happen for CH pupils as they are now mainly rounded, confident people who are sociable and understand the boundaries that girls and boys require. They also talk more openly amongst themselves and to mentors. They are also taught how to behave and be tolerant to others in lessons as part of the curriculum in junior schools.

This change was mainly brought about by the introduction of 'real' pastoral care, not necessarily by those 'creepy' school chaplains but by many others including friendly master's wives. Plus the school abides, as all schools do, to a code of conduct in that "every child matters" and that there is professional help for "any child that needs it."

The problems that have arisen are down to the adults / teachers who should know better and have betrayed their positions of trust. Clearly they cannot keep their hands to themselves and need locking up. So maybe it's a lack of proper background checks into the hiring of teachers, that and the fact that most schools do not provide full disclosure as to the real reasons why they have left or been got rid of.

As for CH being open to any sort of debate amongst the Old Blues community into past misdemeanors, forget it, it won't happen. We just have to be grateful that something is finally happening now and that, hopefully, all future pupils may be safer that they have ever been before. Fingers crossed.

Forgive me but 'teachers who 'should know better' is hardly an appropriate way to describe serial paedophiles.

[aliburns]

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