Ampleforth College fails Ofsted inspection after 'serious safeguarding risks' identified

Ampleforth College failed its latest Ofsted report after a "serious safeguarding incident" was identified during an inspection last month.

It comes just days after Gavin Williamson, the Education Secretary, intervened to save the leading Benedictine school from closure by overturning a ban on new pupils being admitted.

It is rare for the Government to intervene in the running of a private school and the drastic move was only taken following a series of earlier sanctions.

The £36,000-a-year boarding school, based in Yorkshire, said last week that the decision to reverse the ban came after inspectors "found many improvements in the school’s safeguarding procedures".

But Ofsted’s latest report, published yesterday, revealed that inspectors remain concerned about the school’s ability to keen children safe.

Inspectors found two incidents where visitors had not been accompanied on the school premises, one of which resulted in a "serious safeguarding incident" and the other in a near-miss vehicle accident.

"Leaders’ actions to mitigate risks to pupils are not effective," the report said. "A secure culture of safeguarding is not embedded in all aspects of the school’s work."

Inspectors also noted that staff "sometimes do not know where pupils are or that they are safe".

They noted that while "some improvements" have been made since the previous month, the "weaknesses in the school’s safeguarding practice remain".

In November, Ampleforth College was told it must "cease to admit" any more students, with the Education Secretary citing his duty to "safeguard the education and wellbeing of children".

At the time, Mr Williamson ruled that efforts to improve safeguarding in the wake of a child abuse scandal had been "slow and insufficient".

A damning report published by The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse in 2018 found that leaders at Ampleforth in North Yorkshire and Downside hid allegations of "appalling" abuse against pupils as young as seven to protect the church's reputation.

The two schools which are both linked to Benedictine monasteries were run at times by "secretive, evasive and suspicious" church officials who avoided reporting misconduct to police and social services, the report said.

The inquiry found that sexual abuse spanning four decades at both schools was likely to be "considerably" more widespread than previously thought.

Both must implement a "strict separation" between the governance of the abbey and the school if safeguarding arrangements are to be free from "often conflicting priorities", the report concluded. Allegations stretching back to the 1960s encompassed "a wide spectrum of physical abuse, much of which had sadistic and sexual overtones", it said.

Ten individuals linked to the schools, mainly monks, have been cautioned or convicted over sexual activity or pornography offences involving a "large number of children".

Robin Dyer, headmaster of Ampleforth College, said he welcomes the news that they can admit students again.

"However, notwithstanding the fact that our outcomes remain good - our students are happy and safe, and our parents overwhelmingly endorse the College - it is a simple truth that any criticism of our safeguarding policies and practice must be taken with the utmost seriousness," he said.

"We welcome scrutiny as an opportunity to improve. It is our intention to be the best we can be in all areas of education, to continually progress, and to work positively with all stakeholders to achieve this aim.

"We are excited about the future and the prospect of equipping our students with the skills and attitudes that enable them to navigate the challenges of today’s society safely and happily."