Stockgrove Park

These images are from the Stockgrove Park brochure published in the 90s. The brochure pages each have images of the students which in the circumstances are not appropriate to reproduce. It was produced by the Headmaster Ken Rabone. One shows a group of 7 boys with towels around them by a swimming pool and another a boy in the gymnasium. Former whistleblowing’ staff had the opinion that the brochure was like a sales catalogue. The school was subject to an Inquiry in 1995 following allegations of sexual, physical and emotional abuse to pupils.

The headteacher was Ken Rabone. He worked there from March 1992. He was also known as Ken Child. An Inquiry reported that he had no experience in dealing with emotionally disturbed pupils. He had also failed to tell his interviewers that he had a criminal conviction for assault with an offensive weapon. The regime of the school changed after he took over.

07.08.97. Community Care

31.07.97. Betrayal of the children. Evening Standard

Stockgrove Park was founded in 1970 to care for ‘ maladjusted children’. One boy from Islington was sent to Stockgrove Park in 1975 and ran away a few times. Some children were placed there by the courts.

The school came under Camden Council Education Department in 1989 and Buckinghamshire, where it was situated, carried child protection responsibility. In 1995 following the exposure of abuse within the school by whistleblowers, there was an 18 month Independent Inquiry led by child care expert, Barbara Kahan and child protection social worker Bodil Mlynarska.

The report made reference to the silencing of staff and a failure of the authorities to act on concerns about abuse in the school. The Inquiry also criticised Camden’s handling of the suspension of the deputy head, who was disciplined for alleging abuse and told to leave in 1993 after working there 22 years. The Inquiry highlighted that Thames Valley police had provided, to the responsible authorities, evidence of abuse allegations concerning pupils at this school.

One member of staff was disciplined following allegations of sexual abuse but no charges were brought and he later returned to the school with a warning but following further allegations was dismissed in 1994. Rabone was said to have developed a regime where he frequently expelled boys. Rabone himself had begun alleging physical abuse of the boys and was sent off sick by the Education Director in January 1994. The school closed in the June.