News / Crime
‘Grooming’ ignored at Clifton College years before arrest
Clifton College was aware of signs of grooming up to 16 years before a former teacher was arrested for filming pupils in bathrooms and showers with hidden cameras.
An independent report commissioned by the £30,000-a-year independent school just off the Downs found repeated complaints made by parents, staff and pupils – including evidence the teacher was found tied up half naked – were ignored and lost by the school.
Jonathan Thomson-Glover, 53, a former German teacher and master of the East Town boarding house, pleaded guilty last August to 36 charges of making, taking and possessing indecent images of more than 120 pupils.
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His victims were aged 12-17 and were secretly filmed over 16 years, with the images recorded onto hundreds of VHS tapes at the school and at his second home in Cornwall. He was sentenced to three years and nine months in prison.
The teachers’ practices were uncovered by a police investigation triggered into indecent images accesses from Thomson-Glover’s computer in Cornwall.
But an independent report, published on Monday, found incidents were reported to senior managers at the school as far back as 1998, but there was a lack of accountability and oversight which “allowed Thomson-Glover to establish what would now be recognised as grooming behaviour”.
The report also found that complaints about Thomson-Glover from cleaners, porters and domestic staff were “diluted, lost or disbelieved as they were reported up the management chain”.
Clifton College’s headteacher Dr Tim Greene, who joined in April this year, said he was “deeply sorry”. He added: “It is clear that the shortcomings detailed in the report combined to create an environment which allowed Mr Thomson-Glover to groom not only his victims, but also many adults around him so that he was able to exploit his circumstances in the way he did.”
Since Thomson-Glover’s conviction, the school said it had held a series of “root and branch” reviews into its safeguarding policies, which has led to improving staff training, among other changes.
A spot-check by the Independent Schools Inspectorate in February 2016 found the school had made “excellent progress in establishing first-class procedures and practices and raising the awareness of all staff and pupils to the importance of safeguarding”.
Bristol24/7 revealed earlier this year that the Ministry of Defence had stopped funding places for children of members of the armed forces, a key stream of income for the school, as a result of the scandal. The funding has now been reinstated.
An NSPCC spokesperson said: “This report is deeply concerning and highlights how Thomson-Glover was able to abuse a position of trust over many years without action being taken.
“He was a serial sex offender, responsible for dozens of offences and with no regard for the consequences of his actions on his victims.
“It’s crucial that schools are a place of safety for children any allegations of abuse are taken seriously and fully investigated.”
ChildLine is available 24/7 on 0800 1111 to offer confidential advice. Meanwhile, adults concerned about a child’s welfare can call the NSPCC’s helpline on 0808 800 5000.