AUSTRALIA
Courier Mail

[with video]

Toowoomba primary school where paedophile Gerard Byrnes raped 13 girls had PowerPoint presentation on dealing with sex abuse

MICHAEL MADIGAN THE COURIER-MAIL FEBRUARY 18, 2014

THE assistant principal at the Toowoomba primary school where paedophile Gerard Byrnes raped and sexually abused 13 girls has admitted she was not equipped with the skills to deal with the “catastrophe’’ which hit the school.

Megan Wagstaff, assistant principal overseeing religious education, has told the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse she was not properly trained.

Commissioner Jennifer Coate asked: “Do you think you were properly equipped as the deputy principal of the school in terms of knowledge, training, and understanding of this complex area?”

“No I was not,’’ replied Ms Wagstaff

Ms Wagstaff said while she followed protocol in reporting the first complaint of Byrnes’ behaviour to the principal, she did not follow procedure…