St Michael’s Collegiate Girls’ school: Timeline of the Grace Tame abuse

REVEALED: How one of Hobart’s most prestigious schools, St Michael’s Collegiate, failed to protect Grace Tame from her predator teacher Nicolaas Bester.

SEX-abuse survivor Grace Tame, 24, made headlines around Australia this week by becoming the first woman in Tasmania to be granted court approval to discuss her experience of sexual abuse, after a nine-year enforced silence under Tasmania’s gag laws.

For six months in 2010, the 15-year-old scholarship holder was repeatedly sexually assaulted by a teacher on the grounds of the elite St Michael’s Collegiate girls’ school, which charges tuition fees up to $18,200 a year.

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School principal Adam Forsyth responded this week, saying: “I cannot get over the bravery and tenacity that Grace has shown for the last decade. For her to show such determination is incredible.

“The teachers are heartbroken but so proud of what she is doing and what she is achieving. Whilst sadly, we can’t change history, we can do all that we can to protect our students and make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

But questions remain as to exactly what the school knew and when, and what more could have been done to prevent and intercept the abuse at the Anglican institution.

For legal reasons Grace has declined to comment on the school’s specific handling of the matter.

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But documents obtained under Right to Information paint a tragic timeline, suggesting there are lessons to come from missed opportunities where more robust intervention may potentially have changed the course of events.

Former principal Robyn Kronenberg’s notes show that between 2004 and 2010, both she and other senior management had cause to speak to teacher Nicolaas Bester about his conduct on several occasions following “a string of complaints made by parents and students”.

He was issued at least two formal warnings following “sexist” behaviour, including one instance when he “upset a number of students with a comment he made about a student who had not returned to school to do Year 12 because she was pregnant”.

According to those present, the comment was that “the girl was as easy as the drive-through at McDonald’s”.

That was in February 2010. Bester’s employment continued and in April that year, the principal had another phone call with a concerned parent.

It was Penny Plaschke, Grace Tame’s mother. She requested an urgent meeting.

Documents show that at that meeting Grace’s parents raised concerns about a “relationship developing between Grace and Nico Bester” including that Bester had given Grace a key to his office, was advising her about her eating disorder, and had tried to visit her in hospital, against hospital regulations.

Ms Kronenberg immediately met with Bester to go through each issue and he was told “that his behaviour was not professional” and not to have contact with Grace.

Initially, Bester abided by the principal’s directive, but by June he had re-initiated contact with Grace and the grooming escalated to contact offending, which continued until December that year.

Disturbingly, at one point during the abuse period, a teacher witnessed Grace and Bester at the school on the weekend in the science area. That teacher later admitted feeling “concern” but did not report it when it occurred.

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On August 7, 2010, Ms Kronenberg also noted that she was “surprised” to see Bester at the Year 10 formal and was “concerned that he was present to see Grace”. (The night before, Grace had been sexually assaulted by Bester on the school grounds.)

Then on October 23, 2010, yet another staff member witnessed Bester at Grace’s weekend workplace.

That teacher thought it odd and reported it to the school. The principal informed Bester that “he MUST keep his agreement not to meet with Grace”.

He agreed, but continued to abuse Grace for another two months, including in the principal’s own chair.

By this point the former principal was sufficiently concerned to contact the school solicitor to seek advice on whether Bester’s known behaviour constituted grooming and whether action should be taken by the school.

The solicitor’s advice was “that grooming had to show that it was leading to sexual misconduct and that would be difficult to prove. He confirmed that I had met with the teacher and warned [Bester] about his actions. [The solicitor’s] only other advice was to inform the parent”, which the former principal did.

Police were not notified and the abuse continued for another two months.

For legal reasons Penny Plaschke and Grace Tame declined to comment.

Then in 2015, when Bester reoffended by making child exploitation material, the school contacted this newspaper requesting that the Mercury “refrain from mentioning the school’s name”.

An editorial decision was made to include the school’s name and in response a letter was sent by the chair of Collegiate’s board and recent former principal Judith Tudball expressing “deep disappointment” over the reference to the school stating that, “arguably those [in the wider community] who didn’t know don’t need to know” and reminding the editor of the advertising relationship the school has with the paper.

In a statement to the Mercury on Friday, principal Forsyth said the school had since “undertaken a comprehensive independent accreditation process of our policies and practices to safeguard students and children”.

Dr Forsyth said accreditation was achieved in May.

“I cannot comment on decisions made or actions taken by previous leadership of our school, except that the school did fail to protect Grace Tame, for which we will always be very sorry,” Dr Forsyth’s statement read.

“We will do whatever it takes to protect our students.”

Former principal Robyn Kronenberg was contacted for comment but did not respond by deadline.