Victims of Lagan College welfare officer say school did not do enough

Victims of a erstwhile schoolhouse payment serviceman who was convicted of intersexual battle person told BBC News NI their schoolhouse did not bash capable to forestall the abuse.

Neil Beckett groomed the schoolgirls and utilized his presumption arsenic a payment serviceman astatine Lagan College successful Belfast to entree susceptible young women.

He was recovered blameworthy connected 17 counts successful December.

In a statement, Lagan College told the BBC: "We wage tribute to the bravery of those pupils who came guardant and we guarantee you that the schoolhouse acted decently and promptly and successful accordance with Lagan College's Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy, which adheres to Department of Education guidance, astatine each times."

Two young women, who person spoken to BBC News NI anonymously, and the parents of immoderate of the victims judge the schoolhouse wasted important opportunities to safeguard pupils from harm.

Beckett joined Lagan College successful 2021.

In precocious 2022, allegations were made against him by 2 pupils.

A pupil said Beckett hugged her and kissed her connected the cheek, different said helium had fixed her a hug nether her blazer.

The principal, Amanda McNamee, gave grounds during the proceedings and said the schoolhouse safeguarding squad was progressive and that she took Beckett done the school's safeguarding argumentation and his occupation statement "line by line".

Mrs McNamee told the tribunal that the parents progressive were contented with the school's actions.

Beckett past continued successful his relation arsenic earlier and wrong a fewer months, successful aboriginal 2023, further allegations were brought to Mrs McNamee and a Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) probe began.

Jane and Ann, not their existent names, spoke to The State of Us podcast astir their experiences.

"There was a grooming signifier of trying to befriend people, helium didn't represent himself arsenic a teacher. helium portrayed himself arsenic a friend," Jane said.

"He wanted to get adjacent to you. He wanted you to fto your defender down, and helium utilized that."

Ann said: "He was unnervingly charismatic. Now that I look backmost helium conscionable had a mode of talking to you that made you consciousness similar you could archer him anything."

She said helium had antithetic ways of physically abusing his victims.

"I person a batch of sensory issues and he'd tickled me, and I felt really, truly weird astir it."

Both Ann and Jane said the bulk of the maltreatment they suffered astatine Beckett's manus happened aft the archetypal allegations against him successful October 2022.

"That conscionable felt similar a spot of a footwear successful the teeth that they knew astir this," Jane said.

"There'd been allegations made earlier it had happened to us.

"The information that the schoolhouse didn't bash capable to forestall it past is ridiculous."

Ann said: "They could person prevented this, they could person stopped it determination successful October and we wouldn't person faced arsenic overmuch maltreatment arsenic we did, but they didn't.

"I don't deliberation that's however a schoolhouse should grip themselves."

Both Jane and Ann, and respective parents of Beckett's victims, person told BBC News NI that the schoolhouse failed successful presumption of safeguarding, but besides successful presumption of enactment and attraction for pupils.

One parent said the precedence for Lagan College "was managing their nationalist image, not looking aft the girls who had been harmed".

Another genitor said the schoolhouse showed an "aloofness and detachment" erstwhile dealing with the harm done to his daughter.

A 3rd genitor claimed the schoolhouse had taken "no work and wishes to unreal this didn't happen".

Both Jane and Ann said they recalled a schoolhouse assembly astatine the clip of the constabulary investigation.

They said: "We were each taken into the hall. And Mrs McNamee headed the assembly. She told america that radical are guiltless until proven guilty.

"That, this is simply a subordinate of unit and we should not beryllium talking astir it.

"We can't speech to the enactment unit astir it, we can't speech to our friends astir it.

"We are not allowed to notation it astatine each successful school."

They said the crushed fixed for this was "in lawsuit they had to beryllium connected the basal successful the future".

Jane said her mum received an email from the school's committee of governors.

"It was thing on the lines of: 'As your girl is nary longer successful schoolhouse anymore, there's nothing, basically, we tin bash to help.'"

She added they would similar an acknowledgment of the wounded caused.

"An apology would beryllium nice. But they're not going to bash that."

In a statement, Lagan College told BBC News NI: "The information and wellbeing of each our pupils has astatine each times been, remains, and volition ever beryllium Lagan College's highest priority.

"Mr Beckett had worked successful a schoolhouse situation anterior to joining Lagan College, and received a wide Enhanced Disclosure Certificate from Access NI, and had due references for his position.

"We are incapable to remark immoderate further astatine this signifier to guarantee that we bash not prejudice ineligible action."

You tin perceive to this communicative successful afloat connected The State Of Us aboriginal today.

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