Newhaven College slammed for allegedly downplaying abuse claims
A dossier of complaints against Newhaven College has been revealed, with the parents of an alleged sex abuse victim revealing their horror at the school’s alleged response to the claims against a senior teacher.
Education
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The parents of an alleged victim of sex abuse by a staff member at a private school have told of their horror at the school offering their child a final lesson with the accused, a day after police were alerted.
Newhaven College principal Gea Lovell told the parents that director of music Kirk Skinner “bears no ill will” to their child, documents seen by the Herald Sun reveal.
She even offered the child “a final lesson” with Mr Skinner, whom she had suspended the day before and who was under police investigation.
Staff and the parents claimed the Phillip Island school downplayed the criminal allegations and ignored prior concerns on his conduct.
Protests were also made about Mrs Lovell allegedly seeking to return Mr Skinner to work during a police probe, and putting her friendship with the accused above the welfare of the alleged victim.
Mrs Lovell emailed the alleged victim’s parents a day after their child made a police complaint.
“Kirk is on suspension pending this investigation … he says he bears no ill will against (the student) and that he would like to support (them),” the November 13 email reads.
“Do you wish (the child) to have a final lesson with Kirk? There will be another person in attendance — most likely me,” it adds.
Mr Skinner was charged with two counts of an indecent act with a child under 16 in January.
His case has been adjourned until May.
Days after the charges were filed in court, Mr Skinner celebrated his 60th birthday in Thailand with a member of the school’s board, who is also a police officer. It is not known if the police officer knew of the charges at that stage. Victoria Police confirmed “an investigation is under way involving a Leading Senior Constable from the Eastern region”.
The Herald Sun has a dossier of complaints slamming the school over its handling of the allegations.
Among parental and staff concerns was Mrs Lovell’s friendship with Mr Skinner.
She was accused of suggesting the child was “untruthful” during a recess staff briefing.
A November 27 staff complaint reads: “The principal stated that if we were to rate the scale of the allegation that the student has given to the police, then if sexual assault were here (placing her hand at one end of the spectrum), then the allegation was down here (gesturing to a distance from her first hand gesture).
“The principal also said we should ‘hold (name of alleged staff member) as we know him, close to our hearts’ until the investigation is over and to trust ‘all will go back to normal’.”
The staff said in their complaint that Ms Lovell’s briefing “caused great discomfort” and that no allegations of sexual assault against a child should be downplayed.
“There can be no rating of such behaviour,” the complaint said.
The Herald Sun is aware of five complaints sent to the board or government bodies over Newhaven College’s handling of the matter.
The school’s regulator is investigating.
Board chairman Greg Price confirmed to the child’s parents it would commission an independent probe into the school’s response, but it “will not be suspending our principal during this investigation”.
Neither Mrs Lovell nor Mr Skinner responded to the Herald Sun’s questions directly. But Mr Price said the school took the matters “very seriously and our priority is the welfare of the student involved and all our of students plus the wider school community”.
‘SCHOOL PROTECTED ALLEGED OFFENDER’
The father of a student allegedly abused by a Newhaven College staffer says the school neglected his child’s welfare to protect the accused sex offender.
The distressed dad said an offer by principal Gea Lovell to reunite the alleged offender — director of music Kirk Skinner — with the student a day into a police investigation was “terrifying” and made him feel “physically ill”.
“My first thought was, she doesn’t believe that anything wrong has happened,” he said.
The student’s parents have lodged a series of complaints about Mrs Lovell, including her friendship with Mr Skinner. The couple has called for Mrs Lovell to be stood down pending an investigation — a plea knocked back by the school board.
The Herald Sun is not suggesting Mrs Lovell engaged in any wrongdoing, only that the complaints have been made.
The father of the alleged victim told the Herald Sun he was dismayed by the school’s handling of the case. “They take great amount of time to pay lip service and to promote their obligations with regards to child safety, but through their responses and actions they … don’t understand what they are,” he said.
The father called for greater oversight of private schools. “I’ve been shocked by how they are not regulated in the same way that government schools are, how truly independent they are from basic standards,” he said.
“I think self-reporting in any industry fails to address any issues.”
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