School abuse calls roll in

Legal firm tells of constant reports from victims

A CALL-out for witnesses as part of investigations into sexual abuse at a Tasmanian school has resulted in calls every day since to a leading law firm.

Maurice Blackburn says a probe into historic abuse at Cressy District High School between 1970 and 1980 resulted in a significant community response since an advertisement had run a week ago.

Lawyer Zoe Papageorgiou said “alarm bells started to ring” when a survivor proactively approached the firm for legal advice regarding a possible civil claim.

“From then there was a thought they might not be the only survivor of that particular staff member, and that’s really led to us I guess unfolding that net,’’ she said.

“We want to be really confident when we put out witnessstyle ads that there are likely and sadly to be other survivors, and we were triggered by her testimony.”

Since then, there have been many calls from potential witnesses, including former school staff and students.

Ms Papageorgiou said the firm has been told the call-out has also been posted to a school Facebook group.

Maurice Blackburn has advertised several call-outs in recent months for Tasmanian schools within certain dates, including to attendees of Kingston High School between 1980 and 2005.

The firm will this week put a call-out for witnesses to potential sexual abuse at Rosetta

High School (now Montrose Bay High School) between 1999 and 2005.

Their investigations will likely flow into the upcoming Tasmanian Commission of Inquiry into child sexual abuse within state government institutions.

“When people call in, we are able to confirm that this is an incredibly relevant piece of information that they may have,’’ Ms Papageorgiou said.

“We can then put to them that the Commission on request can organise for a private session to hear what they have to say, or hear their testimony. That might be very helpful to the Commission.”

A Department of Education spokeswoman said safeguarding children and young people from the harm of abuse was a high priority for the department.

“The department takes allegations of child sexual abuse extremely seriously,’’ she said.

“The department has recently established a dedicated unit to look at any improvements it can make to safeguard children and ensure it protects children and young people from harm or abuse.

“Any person who has been a victim of, or has any information about, child sexual abuse should report the matter to police. When such matters are raised, DoE works closely with police to support investigations.”

The spokeswoman said the Commission of Inquiry into the Tasmanian Government’s Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in Institutional Settings was underway.