Chapter 11 — Glin

Neglect and emotional abuse

Additional points in her original report were that the dormitory walls had not been re-plastered as promised and remained damp, and there also remained room for improvement in boys’ clothing. She noted that the outdoor sanitation annexe was better kept than previously. Overall, she noted a general improvement in all departments.

In May 1948, the Visitor noted that the damp walls in the boys’ dormitories remained untreated, as did the play yard: The surface of the playground is completely gone and the rough stone foundation revealed and in dirty weather the surface must be something approaching a morass and as in this establishment, owing to the fact that the various sections are completely cut off from one another and that the boys have to go out into the open air when passing from one to the other this mud is carried on their boots into all departments and particularly the chapel.

He drew attention to a pattern he had noticed from visiting other institutions, which was the lack of facilities for the boys’ recreation: During the recreations there seems to be a universal tendency to just turn the boys loose in the playing field or to herd them into an empty hall and then to let them fend for themselves. A lot of them seemed to just loll around. Obviously such boys should be kept well occupied in an interesting manner. There seems to be a very great need for a much more generous supply of apparatus for games both outdoor and indoor. Very little seems to be done in the matter of supplying suitable reading material for them. Physical training is only carried out in a rather haphazard manner if at all.

Although the deteriorating condition of the premises was noted in various reports, the Congregation was reluctant to invest in repairs and renovations when the viability of the School was very much in question.

Dr McCabe remarked, in Medical Inspection Reports completed during the 1950s, that she was satisfied with improvements to the boys’ diet. During an inspection in February 1954, she noted many improvements in the School. A new boiler had been installed, the dormitories painted, a carpenter’s shop added, new equipment introduced to the kitchen, and new blankets and bedspreads acquired for the beds. The Visitation Report in May 1954 was not quite so positive. The Report noted that the boys’ play hall was small and ‘somewhat depressing’, but the Superior asserted that the boys had plenty to amuse themselves with during the frequent rainy periods. The Visitor found the shower facilities rather primitive, although the Superior assured him that improvements had been made. He was glad to see that the boys had new boots and sandals ‘so that there was none of the heavy clattering of boots that is such an undesirable feature of some of our industrial schools’.

The Visitor in 1958 expressed concern at the standard of trades training in Glin. Tailoring and shoe mending were still the only trades but, in the previous five years, only one boy had directly benefited from the training he received. Practically all of the boys upon leaving Glin went to work on farms, and many did not have an aptitude for it. He was satisfied with the boys’ diet and clothing, although he was critical of their footwear.

The Visitor made similar findings as regards trades training in his Report the following year. He recorded that, despite the existence of a carpentry shop, that trade was not taught. He believed that machines rather than people were used in the trades in which the boys were instructed and jobs could not be secured for them. Boys tended to work on farms before drifting off to England or into the Army. He supported the Superior’s suggestion that a Brother who could teach arts and crafts be drafted onto the staff in order to ‘take some of the dullness out of their lives’. He added, ‘the evening is long here and occupation for the boys is necessary’.

In 1959 the Visitor expressed concern at the state of disrepair of the School during his Visitation, although he noted that ‘repairs are out of the question owing to falling numbers and meagre government grants’. However he advised that the fire escape, which was in a dangerous condition, be attended to as it presented a danger and ‘could scarcely be used in an emergency’. He queried the unusually high level of failure at the Primary Certificate examinations, and noted that the children were weak at arithmetic.

The Visitor in 1961 made the customary remarks about the state of disrepair of the premises. He also commented that, when the boys left Glin, they often seemed very lost in the world: Some of them do not easily fit into their new surroundings especially those who have never known what family life should be. Many drift from job to job and eventually emigrate. The general impression of the visitor would be, I think, that the institution fulfils a useful purpose and many pupils who have been the victims of circumstances and brought up under sordid conditions are given a fresh start and are well prepared for life.

The Visitor in 1964 stated: The boys’ toilets are bad and require to be completely renovated. Being in the open and uncovered they are exposed and in wintertime this is severe on the boys. They would require to be replaced by new toilets but owing to the uncertainty with regard to the future of industrial schools this is scarcely to be recommended. The boys’ kitchen is in the same bad condition as it has always been.

The following year, the Visitor acknowledged that a substantial sum had been spent on updating the boys’ kitchen, but additional renovations had been put on hold pending a decision on the future of the School. The School closed in 1966.

Home leave was first granted in 1924 and was for a maximum of seven days per annum. It was extended in 1935 to 14 days, following an unofficial suggestion by the Cussen Commission prior to its final report. Following publication of this Report, the period was once again extended to 21 days per year, and the discretion regarding who went on home leave was transferred to the Resident Manager, who was thus allowed a certain degree of latitude in determining the length of a child’s leave.

In 1948, a further 10 days were allocated, thus increasing the total to 31 days.

Some figures for home leave from Glin between 1942 and 1966 were compiled by Br McCormack in his report. These are available primarily from the Christian Brother Annals and are set out below:26 1942: In July about 80 of the boys spent three weeks with their parents or friends (Annals). 1944: 75 boys went on home leave (Annals). 1945: 110 boys went home for a three weeks holiday in July (Annals). 1953: In August all but three of the boys returned from holidays in their homes. One of these had been taken to England by his mother, but after negotiation he was returned to the school (Annals). 1955: About 50 boys went home on holidays (Annals). 1958: About 50 boys went home on holidays (Annals). 1961: About 40 of the boys got a fortnights holiday with families who offered to take them (VR 19.4). 1962: In July, 36 boys went home for a months holidays (Annals). 1965: In July some boys went home for their holidays. In August, 36 boys went to Carne, Co. Wexford for 3 weeks holiday. Transport was provided by the Limerick Lions Club (Annals). 1966: In July, 20 boys went home on holiday and 30 went to Knockadoon. All returned on 1 August (Annals).

These figures are not absolute and are provided without context, and even contradicted on occasion by Department of Education figures; for example, in 1942, 70 not 80 boys went on home leave and, in 1944, 74 boys went on leave out of a total of 207. Some years are also missing, but can be found in records provided by the Department of Education; for instance, in 1948, the Department recorded that just 28 boys returned home that summer.