Chapter 12 — Salthill

Sexual abuse

His last posting was to a school in Cork in the 1950s, where his career as a teacher came to a dramatic end as a result of a complaint by a local doctor about his inappropriate behaviour with a young girl.

In their Opening Statement for Letterfrack, the Christian Brothers recorded the facts about this Brother in summary form, noting that he ‘was given the opportunity to explain himself and give his interpretation of what happened’. They commented: It is not clear why Br X was moved around from institution to institution despite being a danger to the boys. There is no detailed account to indicate what discussion took place about the matter, nor any indication as to why such a decision was taken.

This Brother was transferred to Salthill, notwithstanding the history of concern about his conduct with boys. Again, there was no evidence that he interfered with boys there, and it must also be borne in mind that no case was proved against him in Letterfrack. However, the documents indicated that the Brother Provincial had a serious concern about his propensities, and that alone should have ensured that he was not appointed to another residential school.

Conclusions on sexual abuse in Salthill

1.The appointment to Salthill of a Brother with a known propensity for abuse of boys showed a reckless disregard for the safety of children in care. 2.Concerns were raised about three Brothers whilst they were in Salthill. In none of these cases was the abuse addressed, other than as a practical problem for the Congregation. One Brother continued in his post and the two others were transferred to other schools. In the case of one of them, there is documentary evidence of serious abuse of young boys continuing for over 20 years after his transfer from Salthill. 3.The Congregation protected its own reputation instead of protecting children.

Neglect and emotional abuse

In the 1940s and 1950s, there were around 200 boys in Salthill. Unlike the position in Artane, many of these children were under eight years of age. In 1955, for example, over 80 of the 165 boys registered for the national school were in second class or lower. Despite the large numbers of very small children, staffing was no higher than in other industrial schools.

In Salthill, the absence of any childcare training had more serious consequences because of the age profile of so many of the children.

Although conditions improved in the mid-1970s, for the previous 40 years of its existence, Salthill did not deliver an adequate level of physical care to the children who were sent there. A picture of the Institution emerged from the Visitation Reports and the Department of Education reports for the period.

As in other Christian Brothers’ schools, both the children and the Community were supported out of the capitation grants. Very little information was available in the Visitation Reports but, in one year, the figures were set out in detail. In 1943, £1,600 was allocated to the nine Brothers in the School by way of stipend. In that same year, the three teaching Brothers received £214, or £71 each, by way of salary from the Department of Education.

The financial position depended on the number of children, and in 1960 the Visitor noted that, ‘As the numbers are being maintained the finances are satisfactory’.

In each of the succeeding years, stipends were paid into the House accounts, although no other breakdown of the figures was available. By the 1970s, the House account had a large credit balance in the bank, but this was accounted for, in part at least, by the sale of land.

In 1947, the Visitor observed that: ‘Apart from Government grants ..., rent, shops and farm contributed substantially to the funds’. Notwithstanding this, in 1951, the Visitor referred to the serious disadvantage caused by the lack of a farm. There was insufficient land attached to the Institution to allow it to be self-sufficient in terms of food.

During the relevant period, funding for the boys in Salthill was adequate to meet their basic needs.

The early Visitation Reports from the 1940s were very critical of the lack of hygiene in the School.

In 1938, the Visitor’s Report painted a rather dismal picture of life in the Institution. The Visitor noted that the workshops were very old and dilapidated. He advised that they be replaced immediately, as they presented a potential hazard.

He suggested that the chapel be heated during the months of rain, not only to preserve the timber but also as the children must be cold. Similarly, he noted that the recreation hall presented as drab, dark and cold, although ‘a few expressed the view that the breaths of the large number of boys made the room quite endurable’. He recommended that a good heating system would be desirable for maintenance purposes. An indication of how cold the School must have been was gleaned from the fact that the Brothers tended to wear their cloaks at all times up to the month of April. The boys did not possess cloaks.