Child abuse royal commission: Former Brisbane Anglican diocese general manager told victim of abuse to keep complaint to himself

By Allyson Horn
ABC News
November 30, 2015

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A former senior church official told a Brisbane victim of sexual abuse to "get on with his life", a royal commission has heard.

The Royal Commission into Institutionalised Responses to Child Sexual Abuse has been examining the conduct of two men, former music teacher and convicted paedophile Gregory Robert Knight and former school counsellor Kevin John Lynch.

Knight worked at St Paul's School between 1981 and 1984, while Lynch worked there between 1989 and 1997.

The inquiry is also looking into Lynch's times at Brisbane Grammar School (BGS) between 1973 and 1988.

Today in Melbourne it heard from Bernard Yorke, the general manager of the Anglican diocese in Brisbane during the 1990s.

He told the commission via video link that he met with an abused student and told him to keep the complaint to himself.

"The wording I could have improved. But I was thinking of the boy at the time," he said.

"We were encouraging him to look forward and concentrate on his studies.

"It was mainly to get on with his life and get on with his studies."

Mr Yorke denied he told the student this to get the problem to go away.

He also admitted he was aware of allegations the abused student had complained to St Paul's School headmaster Gilbert Case, but that it was ignored.

He was asked what he did to investigate how many students were abused or the claims against Mr Case, but said it was not his responsibility.

"I can't really recall on this one," he said.

"The school council were making their own inquiries and it wasn't for me to interfere.

"But I was looking for names and I was looking for the names of the boys so we could provide some counselling."

Mr Yorke was the final witness to be called from the commission's hearings into BGS and St Paul's.