Megan Stammers: School Was at Centre of Grooming Scandal Three Years Ago

The Telegrah
September 27, 2012

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/9564930/Megan-Stammers-school-was-at-centre-of-grooming-scandal-three-years-ago.html

Robert Healy had groomed both girls on the social networking website Bebo which was popular with teenagers

Megan Stammers

The school which employs teacher Jeremy Forrest, who has disappeared abroad with 15-year-old student Megan Stammers, was at the centre of a scandal just three years ago after a teacher was found to groomed two female students.

In February 2009 Bishop Bell Secondary School teacher Robert Healy, then aged 27, was jailed for seven years after he admitted grooming and sleeping with two girls aged 15 and 16.

After the court case another female pupil's mother said she would remove her daughter, 12, from the school because she felt the school's leadership team had failed to protect students from the paedophile teacher. The court heard the relationship was known around the school.

Healy had groomed both girls on the social networking website Bebo which was popular with teenagers. Other pupils at the school knew what was going on before he was caught.

It was reported today that pupils at Bishop Bell were aware of the closeness of Mr Forrest and Miss Stammers, and had told a teacher seven months ago that they had been seen the pair holding hands on an aeroplane following a school trip. The pair are believed to be in France.

And earlier this year it emerged that a retired priest had been allowed to remain a governor for more than a year after child sex allegations came to light.

Canon Gordon Rideout, 73, was charged in June with 38 sexual offences against children and young teenagers dating back to the 1960s and 1970s.

But the priest had been allowed to remain on the school's board of governors despite being suspended by the Church of England when the allegations first came to light last year.

At the time the headteacher at the school Terry Boatwright reassured parents that the allegations were historical, dating back more than 40-years in some cases and were not connected with the school.

In the case three years ago, Healy took his first victim, a 15-year-old pupil, back to his father's empty house for sex three or four times.

After she broke it off, he started a second relationship with another 16-year-old pupil from the Eastbourne school where he worked as a supply teacher.

He admitted having sex three times with the younger girl between October and December 2007 and seven times with the older girl between February and April 2008.

The younger girl's father said afterwards: "You send your daughter to learn in school. You expect the teachers to protect them, not abuse them."

Tracey Elliott, prosecuting, said Healy had made little effort to be 'subtle' about his affair with her.

She said: "Several pupils knew and there was certainly talk around the school."

The court heard at least one staff member at his school had cautioned him about his inappropriate behaviour around some of his female pupils.

Tracey Elliott, prosecuting, said: "It does appear he had had informal warnings previously about his behaviour in relation to year 11 girls. He was told to be careful."

Healy was summoned to the headmaster's office after both girls reported him and he initially denied any inappropriate behaviour. He was sacked by the school for gross misconduct in August 2008, a month before he was charged.

After the court case in 2009, a spokesman for East Sussex County Council said: "The protection of children and young people is our top priority. As soon as these allegations against Robert Healy came to light, in line with normal procedure, he was refrained from work.

"He was a temporary member of support staff and his employment was subsequently terminated."

A week later the mother of a then 12-year-old girl pupil told her local newspaper she had decided to take her 12-year-old daughter out of Bishop Bell Church of England School after learning about Healy.

She accused the school of failing to alert parents to the case and said: "I chose that school because I believed it would take care of of the pupils, especially with its Christian ethos. If your child isn't safe at school then where are they safe?

"I am angry that the school never said anything to us parents. As far as I am concerned, the school has a responsiblity to keep our children safe and, for something as serious as this, the parents should have been told."

In a joint statement in 2009, the local education authority East Sussex County Council and the school said Healy had been withdrawn from work and dismissed as soon as the allegations came to light.

The statement read: "We would not routinely inform parents of disciplinary processes against staff and, because this was a criminal matter, we were bound by the restrictions of the legal process which prevented us from sharing information with parents."

Bishop Bell's headteacher Terry Boatwright said: "I wrote to all parents regarding the situation as soon as I could legitimately do so, asking any who had concerns to contact me."