Abuse survivors climb Everest for the NSPCC
CHILD abuse survivors are raising awareness and funds for child protection charity the NSPCC by climbing Mount Everest.
Giles Moffatt spoke about the cruel and abusive behaviour he experienced while he was a pupil at Edinburgh Academy when he gave evidence at the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry in Edinburgh last year.
The 51-year-old is one of 12 men and women who make up Team Uprising. They have travelled to Nepal to trek 150km at ultra-high altitude on the world’s highest mountain.
Moffatt also recently gave evidence during an “examination of facts” at Edinburgh Sheriff Court involving former Edinburgh Academy teacher John Brownlee. It was ruled that Brownlee had committed a number of violent assaults against children at the school.
In preparation for the inquiry, Moffatt set up a survivors’ group which now has more than 70 members. Several volunteered to join him when he said he wanted to turn his negative childhood experiences into something positive by raising money for the NSPCC and awareness of the impact of abuse by climbing Everest.
The team will trek over nine days to Everest Base Camp. Moffatt and fellow Edinburgh Academy abuse survivors Neil MacDonald and Neil Russell, and their friends and supporters Andy Leslie and Mitch Smith, will then undertake an ice climb to the 6119-metre summit of Lobuche.
Moffatt and Leslie will carry on even higher through the heart of the Himalayas with legendary mountaineer and guide Ang Tshering Lama with the aim of reaching the summit of Everest by the end of May.
The funds they raise will go towards supporting NSPCC services. These include Childline, the charity’s free counselling service for children; the adult Helpline for reporting concerns about a child; and the charity’s educational programmes, such as Talk PANTS and Speak Out Stay Safe, which aim to help prevent child abuse and neglect.
Moffatt, who lives in Rye, East Sussex, said: “Childhood abuse causes mental health problems, addictions, self-harm, low self-worth, anxiety, relationship and work problems throughout life.
“This trip is part climbing, part fundraising, part therapy. We can’t change our past but we can do something to prevent other children from experiencing the horrors we endured.
“We want a zero-tolerance of any form of abuse of children and hope to inspire others to have the courage to speak up and seek support.”
Team Uprising also includes former Edinburgh Academy pupils Frazer Macdonald, Graeme Sneddon, Adrian Blakemore, Niall Mackinlay, and friends and family Cat Bolten, Rachel Leslie, Andrea Christensen and Jacob Christensen. They would like to thank Ooni Pizza Ovens, Tiso and Thermos, the Altitude Centre in London, Lindores Abbey Distillery and Taking the Pea snacks for their financial support.
Young people up to the age of 19 can contact Childline on 0800 1111 or visit Childline. org.uk. Any adult concerned about a child can contact the NSPCC Helpline by calling 0808 800 5000 or emailing help@NSPCC.org.uk