‘Deep shame' at past abuse in St Jarlath's

By DAVID BURKE â€ËœDEEP SHAME' has been expressed that in the past priests at St Jarlath's College, Tuam, abused some of their charges. A statement from the College President, Canon Brendan Kilcoyne, said that the new secondary school formed by the amalgamation of St Jarlath's and St Patrick's was committed to the safety and welfare of all its students. [private] The abuses of the past were referred to in the report by the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church (NBSCCC) which was published last week. One section of the report stated that 'The fieldwork team noted that a disproportionate number of allegations were made against priests working in one local second level school. This school had in the past acted as the Archdiocesan Junior Seminary. This raised concerns about the historical lack of safeguarding mechanisms within the school and also about the absence of a child centred culture. 'It is recorded on a case file that one young person indicated that when he tried to raise his distress about how he was being treated by one member of staff, this was met with aggression from another member of staff. However, all allegations were referred to the statutory authorities. 'These incidents took place over twenty years ago and considerable change has taken place since then within the school. It is understood that great importance is given, by the current school leadership team, to developing a strong pastoral care policy and practice. Attempts have been made to encourage an active dialogue between students and staff through the existence of a students' council. Such developments are to be welcomed.' Statement Reacting to the report, the following statement was issued by St Jarlath's College: 'The National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church has issued a report on child safeguarding in the Archdiocese of Tuam.  Commenting on historical complaints of child sexual abuse in the Archdiocese, the Report refers to a secondary school in which complaints arose. 'The school in question is St Jarlath's College. The complaints refer to a timespan between 20 and 40 years ago, when St Jarlath's was a boarding school.  Four different priests who worked in the school in those years had allegations made against them. All complaints were reported to the statutory authorities.  One of these priests was convicted in the courts. 'It is a matter of deep shame to our College that any child should have suffered whilst in our care. We invite anyone else who may have a complaint of this kind to contact either the College or civil authorities and to avail of a dedicated helpline at 1800 303416. 'St Jarlath's  College ceased operating its boarding school in 2005. In 2009 it amalgamated with its neighbouring school, St Patrick's College, to form a new secondary day school with an enrolment of just over 500 students. 'St Jarlath's is committed to the safety and welfare of all its students and its Board of Management has adopted the revised Child Protection Procedures for Primary and Post-Primary Schools. Our Board of Management and staff have been trained in these procedures and adhere to them.' [/private]