A JUDGE has thrown out Sunderl
After nearly six days of legal argument, Judge Michael Cartlidge made his decision yesterday and, more than two years after it began, the Witherwack House criminal case collapsed.It is unlikely that ex-Witherwack staff will face abuse charges, and today a leading campaigner and former child resident said he would now press for a public inquiry.Meanwhile, Detective Chief Superintendent David Wilson, who led the Northumbria Police investigation, said: "The police are disappointed that the victims stories will not be given an airing at trial."He could not estimate the cost of the investigation.The four men facing charges of child cruelty were reported not to be in court to hear Judge Cartlidge say it would be wrong to put them on trial after so long. He dismissed the cruelty charges against them.They were: Robert Chapman, of Bradwell Common, Milton Keynes; Adrian Garbutt,of Spout Lane, Washington; Raymond Maude, of Calderbourne Avenue, Sunderland and Peter Murray, of Morris Street, Birtley.According to the Crown Prosecution Service, the judges reasons were that it would be hard to get reliable evidence about events of 20 years ago and the fact that there had been six separate investigations into Witherwack House at least two were commissioned by the council could have tainted evidence from witnesses, through repeated interviews with different agencies.The judge said the public had a right to expect such cases to be brought to court, and said the police and CPS were right to do so.Judge Cartlidges ruling angered a former child resident of Witherwack House, who was to have given evidence against the four ex-staff members.Brian Clare founded and led the campaign for a fresh look at Witherwack, on behalf of former child
inmates.
Saturday, 26 May 2007
compensation
Abuse claimants win compensation
The Witherwack children's home closed 10 years ago
Former residents of a council-run children's home who claim they were abused have won thousands of pounds in compensation.
Lawyers for Sunderland City Council have agreed out-of-court settlements of up to £50,000 each for 15 alleged victims, just days before a civil test case was due to be heard in Newcastle.
They are part of a 60-strong group who say their lives were ruined at Sunderland's now-demolished Witherwack House, and 24 other care homes across Wearside and the North East, between 1960 and 1990.
A spokesman for Sunderland City Council, which denies liability, said: "The hearing due to commence on 24 February at Newcastle County Court is no longer proceeding on the basis of settlements agreed."
Cases reviewed
The council took its decision following a recent Court of Appeal hearing, which extended the time limit given to adults who allege abuse occurred when they were children.
Solicitor Brian Peuch said he was "optimistic" about gaining settlements for the remaining 45 claimants, whose files will now be reviewed by his legal team.
He told BBC News Online: "Our other claimants' cases will be reviewed. If they were in homes where compensation has now been negotiated for others, we would be looking to get comparable compensation for them."
The current legal action - the largest of its kind in the north-east of England - emerged after two care workers at Witherwack House were found guilty of child cruelty in 1993.
Three years ago a trial into claims of child neglect at the home collapsed.
A Newcastle Crown Court trial judge cleared four former social workers, after ruling that witness statements from events up to 20 years earlier could not be relied upon.
Mr Peuch said: "The other claimants can be optimistic, though I don't want to raise their hopes too much."
Since Witherwack House closed 10 years ago, there has been an independent inquiry and two police investigations into allegations of abuse in city council-run homes.
The Witherwack children's home closed 10 years ago
Former residents of a council-run children's home who claim they were abused have won thousands of pounds in compensation.
Lawyers for Sunderland City Council have agreed out-of-court settlements of up to £50,000 each for 15 alleged victims, just days before a civil test case was due to be heard in Newcastle.
They are part of a 60-strong group who say their lives were ruined at Sunderland's now-demolished Witherwack House, and 24 other care homes across Wearside and the North East, between 1960 and 1990.
A spokesman for Sunderland City Council, which denies liability, said: "The hearing due to commence on 24 February at Newcastle County Court is no longer proceeding on the basis of settlements agreed."
Cases reviewed
The council took its decision following a recent Court of Appeal hearing, which extended the time limit given to adults who allege abuse occurred when they were children.
Solicitor Brian Peuch said he was "optimistic" about gaining settlements for the remaining 45 claimants, whose files will now be reviewed by his legal team.
He told BBC News Online: "Our other claimants' cases will be reviewed. If they were in homes where compensation has now been negotiated for others, we would be looking to get comparable compensation for them."
The current legal action - the largest of its kind in the north-east of England - emerged after two care workers at Witherwack House were found guilty of child cruelty in 1993.
Three years ago a trial into claims of child neglect at the home collapsed.
A Newcastle Crown Court trial judge cleared four former social workers, after ruling that witness statements from events up to 20 years earlier could not be relied upon.
Mr Peuch said: "The other claimants can be optimistic, though I don't want to raise their hopes too much."
Since Witherwack House closed 10 years ago, there has been an independent inquiry and two police investigations into allegations of abuse in city council-run homes.
whistle blowers
Do we have any choice? When we are told of abuse by other staff, if we do not do every thing in our power to bring it to light and try to get it dealt with properly, we become colluders with a cover-up. The cost is often high, as the following stories show, but the benefits are that each whistleblower contributes to changing the climate and culture of social care to challenge the acquiescence with malpractice of too many organisations- and standing against abuse cover-ups means giving a voice to the victims.
1. Alison Taylor was head of a children's home in Gwynedd, North Wales from 1982-87. She blew the whistle about abuse of children and police investigated in March 1986. In October, they reported to the Director of Social Services. Alison (not the alleged abusers) was suspended and later sacked in 1987. She continued to lobby the Welsh Office, the Secretary of State for Wales, the DSS Inspectorate, the Prime Minister and successive Health Ministers, the Home Office and the National Children's Bureau with her dossier of 75 allegations. However, it was only when she took it to HTV television company and they did a documentary, when the concerns about widespread abuse in children's homes in North Wales got taken seriously and the Waterhouse Tribunal on Child Abuse was set up (due to report in January 2000). 300 former residents made complaints of assault against 148 adults.
2. Carryn Williams, assistant Director for Caerphilly Social Services, blew the whistle when a former manager who had been dismissed for failure to protect children, got a new job working with vulnerable care leavers. He got the job with a housing agency after getting a reference from Caerphilly Council. Carryn told Tai Cymru, which oversees Welsh housing agencies, and she was sacked after those who wrote the reference complained. The manager she whistled on was awarded £14000 in a court settlement for having the housing job offer withdrawn.
3. Elaine Bowerman worked in a Warrington school for children with learning disabilities. she spent 10 years trying to get her union, Lancashire Council and the police about indecent assault and violence by Robert Boyle, but when she finally took her warnings to parents, she was sacked. Boyle was tried in 1997, but was only found guilty of lying. Only then did the court learn that he had been convicted 20 years earlier for indecent assaults. Lancashire has subsequently introduced a whistleblowers' procedure for child abuse: "Intimidation of any employees who report concerns will be regarded as gross misconduct."
4. Karen McKay demanded that children's complaints about Taff Vale Children's Home, Cardiff, be investigated. she lost her job, but her refusal to be silenced provoked a police inquiry that spread to 32 other homes in the area and a series of trials and convictions of abusive staff.
5. Susan Machin was a Senior Social Worker at Ashworth Special Hospital, Merseyside. She gave evidence to the inquiry into alleged abuse of patients. She lost her job, but was later vindicated by an industrial tribunal. Ashworth has since been reorganized, including senior staff losing their jobs. (Susan Machin was Chair of FtC until early 1999.)
6. Jane Jones, deputy matron of a nursing home in North Yorks, blew the whistle on the owner sexually abusing elderly residents. he was arrested as a result.
7. Colin Smart, Director of Sunderland Social services, was told that 3 ex-Sunderland care workers had been previously sacked for sexual assault on children. He attempted to investigate why the police had never been told. he discovered a series of other abuses in the home the staff had worked in, with some of the violence involved apparently approved by councillors as a form of control. Councillors and other chief officers tried to block Colin, who resigned in protest. Following failed police investigations, he compiled 5 volumes of evidence on abuse and suppression of evidence. The Council took High Court action against Colin to restrain him from publication of their confidential documents and he was gagged. Finally, ex-residents of the home forced Sunderland to set up an NSPCC investigation, apologize to them and the Police resumed their investigation.
8. Chris Clode and Janet Hover were managers in Flintshire, North Wales. When 2 children's home staff were found to have abused a child, the managers wanted staff to be disciplined. When Chief Officers refused to discipline the staff or stop them working with children, Janet and Chris were removed from their jobs. Later they were asked to be witnesses at the North Wales Child Abuse Tribunal against Flintshire, who had to apologize to the Tribunal for preventing whistleblowing
1. Alison Taylor was head of a children's home in Gwynedd, North Wales from 1982-87. She blew the whistle about abuse of children and police investigated in March 1986. In October, they reported to the Director of Social Services. Alison (not the alleged abusers) was suspended and later sacked in 1987. She continued to lobby the Welsh Office, the Secretary of State for Wales, the DSS Inspectorate, the Prime Minister and successive Health Ministers, the Home Office and the National Children's Bureau with her dossier of 75 allegations. However, it was only when she took it to HTV television company and they did a documentary, when the concerns about widespread abuse in children's homes in North Wales got taken seriously and the Waterhouse Tribunal on Child Abuse was set up (due to report in January 2000). 300 former residents made complaints of assault against 148 adults.
2. Carryn Williams, assistant Director for Caerphilly Social Services, blew the whistle when a former manager who had been dismissed for failure to protect children, got a new job working with vulnerable care leavers. He got the job with a housing agency after getting a reference from Caerphilly Council. Carryn told Tai Cymru, which oversees Welsh housing agencies, and she was sacked after those who wrote the reference complained. The manager she whistled on was awarded £14000 in a court settlement for having the housing job offer withdrawn.
3. Elaine Bowerman worked in a Warrington school for children with learning disabilities. she spent 10 years trying to get her union, Lancashire Council and the police about indecent assault and violence by Robert Boyle, but when she finally took her warnings to parents, she was sacked. Boyle was tried in 1997, but was only found guilty of lying. Only then did the court learn that he had been convicted 20 years earlier for indecent assaults. Lancashire has subsequently introduced a whistleblowers' procedure for child abuse: "Intimidation of any employees who report concerns will be regarded as gross misconduct."
4. Karen McKay demanded that children's complaints about Taff Vale Children's Home, Cardiff, be investigated. she lost her job, but her refusal to be silenced provoked a police inquiry that spread to 32 other homes in the area and a series of trials and convictions of abusive staff.
5. Susan Machin was a Senior Social Worker at Ashworth Special Hospital, Merseyside. She gave evidence to the inquiry into alleged abuse of patients. She lost her job, but was later vindicated by an industrial tribunal. Ashworth has since been reorganized, including senior staff losing their jobs. (Susan Machin was Chair of FtC until early 1999.)
6. Jane Jones, deputy matron of a nursing home in North Yorks, blew the whistle on the owner sexually abusing elderly residents. he was arrested as a result.
7. Colin Smart, Director of Sunderland Social services, was told that 3 ex-Sunderland care workers had been previously sacked for sexual assault on children. He attempted to investigate why the police had never been told. he discovered a series of other abuses in the home the staff had worked in, with some of the violence involved apparently approved by councillors as a form of control. Councillors and other chief officers tried to block Colin, who resigned in protest. Following failed police investigations, he compiled 5 volumes of evidence on abuse and suppression of evidence. The Council took High Court action against Colin to restrain him from publication of their confidential documents and he was gagged. Finally, ex-residents of the home forced Sunderland to set up an NSPCC investigation, apologize to them and the Police resumed their investigation.
8. Chris Clode and Janet Hover were managers in Flintshire, North Wales. When 2 children's home staff were found to have abused a child, the managers wanted staff to be disciplined. When Chief Officers refused to discipline the staff or stop them working with children, Janet and Chris were removed from their jobs. Later they were asked to be witnesses at the North Wales Child Abuse Tribunal against Flintshire, who had to apologize to the Tribunal for preventing whistleblowing
thrown out
Operation Rose
All 15 of the cases that have been taken by the police against our clients have now been thrown out by the courts.
The accused have denied the allegations made against them from the very beginning and the fact that courts have found no basis to those allegations raises some important questions about the police investigation.
Gill Rutherford, the Thompsons lawyer who has represented the majority of people investigated and all 15 wrongly accused which have been taken to Court , called on the police to reflect on their handling of the investigation.
"If allegations are made against individuals they must of course be investigated. But the fact that the police investigation paid no heed to the overwhelming evidence that my clients were innocent raises serious doubts about the fairness of the way in which the investigation was conducted.
"I am of course extremely pleased to have been able to defend these clients and to have seen justice done and their names cleared. But the fact is that Operation Rose has not only caused needless suffering and distress to 15 innocent people and their extended families and friends which has impacted on their right to respect for private and family life, but has also been a scandalous waste of public money
All 15 of the cases that have been taken by the police against our clients have now been thrown out by the courts.
The accused have denied the allegations made against them from the very beginning and the fact that courts have found no basis to those allegations raises some important questions about the police investigation.
Gill Rutherford, the Thompsons lawyer who has represented the majority of people investigated and all 15 wrongly accused which have been taken to Court , called on the police to reflect on their handling of the investigation.
"If allegations are made against individuals they must of course be investigated. But the fact that the police investigation paid no heed to the overwhelming evidence that my clients were innocent raises serious doubts about the fairness of the way in which the investigation was conducted.
"I am of course extremely pleased to have been able to defend these clients and to have seen justice done and their names cleared. But the fact is that Operation Rose has not only caused needless suffering and distress to 15 innocent people and their extended families and friends which has impacted on their right to respect for private and family life, but has also been a scandalous waste of public money
A ten - year police investigation into sexual and physical abuse at 361 children's homes has been criticised after resulting in only six convictions despite 730 allegations against around 200 care workers.
Operation Rose was conducted by Northumbria Police, at a cost of £5 million, after a woman in her twenties disclosed to a social worker that she and a friend had been abused as children in care.
Initial inquiries identified thirty victims who alleged abuse, dating from the Sixties, by eight suspects at twenty seven homes in four local authority areas.
Police embarked on a process of "trawling" for information by writing to 1,800 former residents explaining that they were looking into homes where they had once lived.
As a consequence homes runs by two voluntary agencies and all six local authorities in the force area - Northumberland, Newcastle upon Tyne, North Tyneside, Gateshead, South Tyneside and Sunderland - came under investigation.
A total of 277 residents and former residents made allegations against 223 care workers for alleged offences including rape, buggery, indecent assault and physical assault.
Of 32 people who were charged with a total of 142 offences, five were found guilty, one pleaded guilty, 12 were found not guilty, nine had cases withdrawn, four died before their cases were heard and one remained on file.
Court reporting restrictions, which previously prevented publicity of the Operation Rose trials, were lifted at the conclusion of the final case this week.
Esme Allenby, 54, of Cramlington, Northumberland, was told she would not face trial for nine counts of indecent assault, dating back 27 years, which she denied.
The prosecution at Newcastle Crown Court told Judge Maurice Carr that it was in the public interest that the trial did not proceed because vital documents were missing.
The North-East branch of Falsely Accused Carers and Teachers, an organisation set up after instances of unproved allegations elsewhere in the country, attacked the police approach to gathering complaints.
Ray Johnston, the co-chairman of Fact (North East), said: "Scores of carers and teachers have had their lives ruined and the lives of their families destroyed by these actions."
Mr Johnston was suspended from his post as a senior teacher at Netherton Park in Northumberland in August 1997. He said: "I was just fully aware I hadn't done anything to justify being suspended at all and thought it was thoroughly wrong."
Mr Johnston learnt from colleagues that a girl had accused him of physical assault and eight months after his suspension he was arrested and later charged with five counts of child cruelty and two of physical assaults.
After years of court adjournments Mr Johnston's case was dismissed after a judge ruled that the three and a half-year delay in the case had breached his human rights. He has now submitted a complaint to the Police Complaints Authority citing victimisation and malicious prosecution.
A former teacher, Derek Gordon, from Chester-le-Street, Co Durham, said Operation Rose had left him "marked for life" even though he was acquitted of child abuse charges.
Northumbria Police defended Operation Rose. The assistant chief constable John Scott, said: "It was a thorough and professional investigation. Six people involved in child abuse have been put behind bars as a result of our investigations
Operation Rose was conducted by Northumbria Police, at a cost of £5 million, after a woman in her twenties disclosed to a social worker that she and a friend had been abused as children in care.
Initial inquiries identified thirty victims who alleged abuse, dating from the Sixties, by eight suspects at twenty seven homes in four local authority areas.
Police embarked on a process of "trawling" for information by writing to 1,800 former residents explaining that they were looking into homes where they had once lived.
As a consequence homes runs by two voluntary agencies and all six local authorities in the force area - Northumberland, Newcastle upon Tyne, North Tyneside, Gateshead, South Tyneside and Sunderland - came under investigation.
A total of 277 residents and former residents made allegations against 223 care workers for alleged offences including rape, buggery, indecent assault and physical assault.
Of 32 people who were charged with a total of 142 offences, five were found guilty, one pleaded guilty, 12 were found not guilty, nine had cases withdrawn, four died before their cases were heard and one remained on file.
Court reporting restrictions, which previously prevented publicity of the Operation Rose trials, were lifted at the conclusion of the final case this week.
Esme Allenby, 54, of Cramlington, Northumberland, was told she would not face trial for nine counts of indecent assault, dating back 27 years, which she denied.
The prosecution at Newcastle Crown Court told Judge Maurice Carr that it was in the public interest that the trial did not proceed because vital documents were missing.
The North-East branch of Falsely Accused Carers and Teachers, an organisation set up after instances of unproved allegations elsewhere in the country, attacked the police approach to gathering complaints.
Ray Johnston, the co-chairman of Fact (North East), said: "Scores of carers and teachers have had their lives ruined and the lives of their families destroyed by these actions."
Mr Johnston was suspended from his post as a senior teacher at Netherton Park in Northumberland in August 1997. He said: "I was just fully aware I hadn't done anything to justify being suspended at all and thought it was thoroughly wrong."
Mr Johnston learnt from colleagues that a girl had accused him of physical assault and eight months after his suspension he was arrested and later charged with five counts of child cruelty and two of physical assaults.
After years of court adjournments Mr Johnston's case was dismissed after a judge ruled that the three and a half-year delay in the case had breached his human rights. He has now submitted a complaint to the Police Complaints Authority citing victimisation and malicious prosecution.
A former teacher, Derek Gordon, from Chester-le-Street, Co Durham, said Operation Rose had left him "marked for life" even though he was acquitted of child abuse charges.
Northumbria Police defended Operation Rose. The assistant chief constable John Scott, said: "It was a thorough and professional investigation. Six people involved in child abuse have been put behind bars as a result of our investigations
operation rose police fight back
Police leading a huge but largely abortive child abuse inquiry denied yesterday they had encouraged false allegations and wrecked the lives of innocent teachers and care workers by "trawling" for evidence in children's homes.
Dozens of professionals in the north-east, backed by MPs, have lodged complaints about the blunderbuss effect of the five-year Operation Rose that saw more than 200 people investigated but in the end only six convicted.
The £5m inquiry led to 558 claims of assault, rape and other sexual abuse from 277 residents or former residents of 61 care homes.
The methods used by Northumbria police have been referred to the Commons home affairs committee, which is studying the handling of hundreds of similar child abuse allegations in care homes.
The scale of the north-east inquiry has emerged with the lifting of a legal gag. The two years of reporting restrictions on the trials of 32 north-east care workers and teachers linked to 142 allegations of child abuse, ended on Tuesday with the collapse of the final case in Newcastle crown court.
The legal move has cleared the way for the complaints of care workers and teachers either acquitted by juries or told by police that they would not face trial.
Ray Johnson, co-chairman of the north-east branch of Falsely Accused Carers and Teachers, said that the clumsy snail's pace investigation had destroyed his life and career as it had scores of others.
He has lodged papers with the police complaints authority claiming malicious prosecution and victimisation after a judge threw out charges against him because a three-and-a-half-year delay had flouted his human rights. "My life has been utterly destroyed for the past five years for no reason whatsoever," he said. "People who abuse children physically or sexually should be punished, but the methods of the Northumbria police have brought the downfall of innocent people whose only crime was to look after disaffected children in homes."
John Scott, assistant chief constable of Northumbria police, defended the idea of the "trawling" system yesterday but acknowledged that it could trap the innocent. He said: "We would conduct the inquiry in the same way, were we to do it again. However, recommendations have been made to establish best practice."
The police have now drawn up recommendations for child abuse inquiries involving care homes, which include "fast track" legal preparation to get cases quickly to court, and a national protocol to record unused material.
There are about 85 cases pending nationally and the Commons committee is studying a further 100 convictions of care workers and teachers dating back 30 years.
The committee chair, Chris Mullin, Labour MP for Sunderland, said in January as the inquiry was set up: "It's been suggested that a new genre of miscarriage of justice has arisen from the over-enthusiastic pursuit of allegations of abuse of children in institutions. The decision to conduct this inquiry was taken in response to a large number of well argued representations."
Typical among the cases of Operation Rose was that of a Esme Allenby, 54, a care worker whose life was said to be ruined by nine allegations of indecent assault. Though the police never took the claims to trial, she was devastated by the public pursuit of the claims.
Dozens of professionals in the north-east, backed by MPs, have lodged complaints about the blunderbuss effect of the five-year Operation Rose that saw more than 200 people investigated but in the end only six convicted.
The £5m inquiry led to 558 claims of assault, rape and other sexual abuse from 277 residents or former residents of 61 care homes.
The methods used by Northumbria police have been referred to the Commons home affairs committee, which is studying the handling of hundreds of similar child abuse allegations in care homes.
The scale of the north-east inquiry has emerged with the lifting of a legal gag. The two years of reporting restrictions on the trials of 32 north-east care workers and teachers linked to 142 allegations of child abuse, ended on Tuesday with the collapse of the final case in Newcastle crown court.
The legal move has cleared the way for the complaints of care workers and teachers either acquitted by juries or told by police that they would not face trial.
Ray Johnson, co-chairman of the north-east branch of Falsely Accused Carers and Teachers, said that the clumsy snail's pace investigation had destroyed his life and career as it had scores of others.
He has lodged papers with the police complaints authority claiming malicious prosecution and victimisation after a judge threw out charges against him because a three-and-a-half-year delay had flouted his human rights. "My life has been utterly destroyed for the past five years for no reason whatsoever," he said. "People who abuse children physically or sexually should be punished, but the methods of the Northumbria police have brought the downfall of innocent people whose only crime was to look after disaffected children in homes."
John Scott, assistant chief constable of Northumbria police, defended the idea of the "trawling" system yesterday but acknowledged that it could trap the innocent. He said: "We would conduct the inquiry in the same way, were we to do it again. However, recommendations have been made to establish best practice."
The police have now drawn up recommendations for child abuse inquiries involving care homes, which include "fast track" legal preparation to get cases quickly to court, and a national protocol to record unused material.
There are about 85 cases pending nationally and the Commons committee is studying a further 100 convictions of care workers and teachers dating back 30 years.
The committee chair, Chris Mullin, Labour MP for Sunderland, said in January as the inquiry was set up: "It's been suggested that a new genre of miscarriage of justice has arisen from the over-enthusiastic pursuit of allegations of abuse of children in institutions. The decision to conduct this inquiry was taken in response to a large number of well argued representations."
Typical among the cases of Operation Rose was that of a Esme Allenby, 54, a care worker whose life was said to be ruined by nine allegations of indecent assault. Though the police never took the claims to trial, she was devastated by the public pursuit of the claims.
u tell me
Shirley Carr and solicitor Alison Stott of Alison Stott solicitors, Aykley Vale Chambers, Aykley Heads, Durham City have admitted the use of fraud in the civil proceedings which was used to engineer my alleged bankruptcy. Its clear police don't want to act on that because Carr is their present whipping stick for use against me. They are proving this as fact beyond all reasonable doubt. My crime? I contributed to the Nolan Enquiry into Freemasonry within the Police and Judiciary. An Enquiry which I now believe was nothing short of a whitewash job to allay public concerns about the power being exercised by vile masons. Masons are aware that their Masonic Mafia brothers ruling our police and judiciary will protect them. Their established satanic rings interfering with children must get boring for some of them sometimes. How many masons I wonder were involved in the child abuse cases at Witherwack Estate, Sunderland. Why were masons at the Sunderland Civic Centre trying to hush the whole thing up? What happened to the person investigating these things who came to my home for registration details of vehicles used by masons? The contact number I was given for that investigator went dead? Why were police records held on mason Hamilton, the Dunblane mass child killer, all erased? These are the true facts of life, not the one's authority would often have us believe. A film I saw a few years ago contained the remark, "shit always floats to the
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