Principal sacked after failing to report abuse a teacher at new school

By Sarah Elks
Australian
February 18, 2014

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/in-depth/principal-sacked-after-failing-to-report-abuse-a-teacher-at-new-school/story-fngburq5-1226830503081

Former Child Protection Officer at a Toowoomba Catholic primary school Catherine Long was asked for advice over a student. Photo by Jack Tran

A FORMER Catholic primary school principal who was sacked and charged after failing to report child sex abuse allegations to police is now working at another Catholic school as a Year 7 teacher.

Terence Hayes told the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse that he disclosed his history to the new school - a Catholic P-12 establishment in Burpengary, north of Brisbane.

Mr Hayes was sacked as principal of a Toowoomba Catholic primary school after The Australian revealed he had failed to report to police “serious sexual abuse” allegations in September 2007 about teacher Gerard Vincent Byrnes.

Byrnes was arrested in November 2008 and was later jailed for 10 years for molesting and raping 13 girls at the school, aged between eight and 10, in 2007 and 2008.

Mr Hayes was charged and prosecuted but not convicted for the criminal offence of failing to meet his mandatory reporting requirements.

The Royal Commission is dealing with the handling of the sexual abuse allegations raised about Byrnes at the Toowoomba school.

Mr Hayes said he was telephoned by KQ, the father of a girl known as KH, on September 3, 2007, to say the girl was uncomfortable at the way her classroom teacher, Byrnes, was touching her.

He said he knew immediately he was dealing with a “serious allegation” “most likely” of sexual abuse.

Mr Hayes said he arranged a meeting with the father and the girl at the school for September 6.

He then contacted his superiors at the local Toowoomba Catholic Education Office (CEO) because “the mantra (that) CEO is the first port of call was the understanding of the principals”. He said that was because the “Bishop should not be compromised”.

Mr Hayes said the CEO told him to write in dot points what the girl said, to give Byrnes a heads up about the allegations and that it was the parent’s responsibility to make a written complaint about a teacher.

Catherine Long, a student protection officer at the school, took notes at the September 6 meeting. She records KH as saying Byrnes rubbed her chest under her shirt and put his hands up her skirt, and that of another student KA.

Mr Hayes said he told the father he could take the allegations to police.

He said he rang the CEO after the meeting and later had a telephone conversation with two of his superiors there.

When he told them of the meeting, he did not describe the girl complaining of her teacher putting his hands up her skirt. He only said she was uncomfortable at the way he touched her.

Staff at the CEO told Mr Hayes to write a disciplinary letter to Byrnes, and to tell the complainant father he could go to police if he chose.

Mr Hayes agreed he did not follow school and diocese protocol that such a complaint should be placed in writing on a mandatory reporting form.

He said he did not do that because principals had been repeatedly told they should take matters first to the CEO.

The allegations were never taken to police. They were raised 14 months before Byrnes was finally arrested, after another girl told her mother she had been molested, and the mother went to police.

Earlier the inquiry heard that staff at the Toowoomba Catholic primary school received just two hours of child protection training a year.

This morning, the school’s then Assistant Principal Megan Wagstaff told the commission she and other teachers had one training day each year, of which about two hours was spent on child protection training.

Asked whether she felt she was “properly equipped” as a deputy principal to deal with child protection issues, given her training, knowledge and understanding at the time, she said “No, I wasn’t”.

She gave evidence that she received a phone call from a mother of a student on September 7, 2007. That mother said her daughter had overheard two students — one of whom was KH — talking and giggling about Byrnes putting his hands down their pants.

Ms Wagstaff said she noted the conversation but did not think sexual abuse had taken place. She said the mother thought the girls were making things up and were speaking inappropriately about a teacher.

Ms Wagstaff said she passed on her notes to principal Mr Hayes and spoke to the local Catholic Education office. She also asked Ms Long for advice.

She said she did not know Mr Hayes and Ms Long had heard from KH the day before.

“Knowing what we know now this could have been handled differently,” Ms Wagstaff said.

She accepted school procedure required her to have filled out a mandatory reporting form and supplied it to her principal, but she did not. She said if she had her time again, she would have done that.

In her written notes after the mother’s phone call, Ms Wagstaff writes that she spoke to Ms Long for advice, as she was a student protection officer.

“She informed me that we cannot react to hearsay and gossip so no further action was taken with the girls,” Ms Wagstaff wrote.

Former principal Terence Hayes, who was charged but not convicted for failing to report the suspected abuse to police, is now giving evidence to the Royal Commission.

The hearing continues.