Fornethy survivor: 'I was sexually assaulted by gardener, he got away with it by dying'

Key Points

Violet Duffy, 68, was the first former Fornethy House pupil to report decades-old physical and mental abuse to police
Retired teacher Patricia Baxter was convicted last month of cruel and unnatural treatment of girls in her care, including Violet
Multiple women, including Violet, have also reported allegations of sexual assault by former Fornethy staff member George Howe, who died in 2020
Police admitted they initially failed to investigate Violet’s 2017 complaint, with almost 100 survivors now having come forward
While Baxter’s conviction offers some justice, survivors remain frustrated that other alleged abusers died before they could be held accountable

On a bench by the sea, Violet Duffy has finally found some peace after the teacher who abused her was brought to justice.

Violet, 68, was just 11 when she went to Fornethy House, a residential school in Angus, in 1970.

She was the first former pupil from Fornethy to go to police with allegations of physical and mental abuse against staff.

Last month, retired teacher Patricia Baxter – then known as Patricia Robertson – was found guilty of abuse charges against girls in her care at Fornethy, including Violet.

Glasgow & West

Former teacher, 77, convicted of historical abuse of girls at Fornethy House

Patricia Robertson, 77, was found guilty of ‘cruel and unnatural treatment’ of girls at Fornethy House.

Violet also told police of a sexual assault she says she suffered at Fornethy by a man who worked there.

For the first time, STV News can reveal that man was George Howe, a former gardener and school bus driver at Fornethy. Police Scotland told STV News it has received three separate reports of sexual assault against Howe.

George Howe from Knowehead in Courier photo. DC Thomson

“We thought George was such a lovely man,” Violet told STV News.

“I just thought nobody would believe me, because I couldn’t even believe it – but he did, he did hurt me.”

Violet’s story

Before Violet went to Fornethy, she described herself as the mischievous youngest child of a loving family.

“I was always getting into trouble,” Violet told STV News at her holiday home in Suffolk.

Violet was a pupil at Fornethy House. Contributed

Violet, like many girls, was told that Fornethy House would be a place to escape inner city Glasgow for “a minimum of six weeks”.

The facility was acquired by the Glasgow Corporation (now Glasgow City Council) and turned into a residential school for disadvantaged girls.

It was opened on August 30, 1960.

But Violet said the abuse began almost immediately.

“As soon as we went in, the way they spoke to us, the way they acted, I knew we’d walked into something really bad,” Violet told STV News.

“I’d never been around adults that treated children in that way, I was just shocked.

“We were scared right away.”

Over the next six weeks, Violet was subjected to regimental physical and mental abuse by teachers like Patricia Robertson.

Violet said: “They would grab your hair, pull you, punch you, kick you and that was when it was a punishment.

“It was almost like frenzied attacks – even when you would walk by them going into the dining room, they would hit you.”

‘They loved it’

“It was like a game to them, being that small and being punched in the way that a man would punch another man,” Violet told STV News.

“They were frightening us as much as they could.

“(Robertson) gave out most of the beatings and she didn’t care – it didn’t bother her.”

Robertson, now Patricia Baxter, was convicted last month of 18 charges relating to the “cruel” and “unnatural” treatment of children in her care, including Violet.

The court also heard how Robertson took part in force-feeding children until they gagged, striking them with a ruler and dragging them by the hair.

In stark contrast to Robertson, Violet described the gardener she knew as George as a friendly face around the school.

“I loved this man,” she said. “He was the only person who smiled and was happy.”

‘He was a saviour to us’

George Howe in Arbirlot Church hall in October, 1962. Arbroath Herald photo archive

Violet saw Howe as a “saviour” until the day before she was set to leave Fornethy. That’s when she says he sexually assaulted her.

After going down to the school’s tuck shop, where she bought chocolates as a gift for her mum, Violet says she saw Howe.

“George was in the corridor, and he put out his arms and I ran to him,” said Violet.

“I thought he was a safe place for me to go and he held me tight. I felt this thing, and it was hurting me and he was squeezing me hard.

“I said, ‘George, you need to let me go, let me go’, and he wouldn’t. I pulled back and he was like in a trance and I was crying.

“I started punching his back and I said, ‘George, let me go, let me go please’, then he let me go and I ran.”

It wasn’t until she was older that Violet realised what she said he had done.

“I never told many people about that because I was ashamed of it,” she said.

“I thought it was my fault that it happened with George because I loved George so much and he was such a lovely man and I didn’t blame George at the time I blamed myself.”

Police failed to investigate

Violet was the first woman from Fornethy to report abuse to police in 2017, at which time she also disclosed details of her sexual assault by Howe.

Police have admitted her initial reports were not acted upon.

Since then, Violet has not been the only woman to make similar claims.

STV News can reveal that five women have come forward with allegations – three of them against Howe.

Investigating officers attempted to speak to Howe just two weeks before he died in 2020. He was 94.

Detective inspector Mark Lamont, of the public protection unit at Tayside Division, told STV News they were pursuing further arrests and charges against former Fornethy staff who have since died.

“With regards to the victims of abuse at Fornethy, the people who came forward to give statements to the police, it’s just under 100 victims,” he said.

“The first complaint that came from a victim at Fornethy came in 2017, and although we noted it, no investigation was carried out.

“It was only off the back of media (coverage) in 2020 when it became clear that there were other victims who were engaging with Thompsons solicitors… when it came over to me.

“A number of people who we would class as suspects were identified by the victims as being responsible for abusive behaviour.

“There’s about five that detail sexual abuse.

“It was open for 30 odd years and Fornethy school had a big turnover of children, and I think we’re just scratching the surface of people who have come forward to report the abuse.”

It has been a painstaking investigation for police and a frustrating one for survivors.

“We don’t have any of the modern techniques to help us understand (what happened),” added DI Lamont. “We didn’t have CCTV or computers to see things that might help us understand, just general records about what happened at Fornethy.”

Violet has lived with the memories of what happened to her ever since she was taken from Glasgow into the isolating countryside and to Fornethy House where her abuse took place.

The investigation secured the conviction of Patricia Baxter, who has yet to be sentenced, but for survivors like Violet there is frustration that other alleged abusers escaped justice through death.

“I gave the police plenty (in 2017) to go and arrest them and they never bothered,” she said.

“He basically got away with it by dying.”

Help and support is available now if you need it.

The Samaritans can be contacted any time, from any phone, free on 116 123, email at jo@samaritans.org, or visit samaritans.org to find your nearest branch. Details of other services and more information can be found on the NHS website here.