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Swaylands School: Three men convicted of 28 sex charges Swaylands School: Three men convicted of 28 sex charges
(about 2 hours later)
Three men have been found guilty of a total of 28 historical indecent assaults against boys at a school for vulnerable children in Kent.Three men have been found guilty of a total of 28 historical indecent assaults against boys at a school for vulnerable children in Kent.
Former care workers Colwyn Baker, 71, David Hennessy, 74, and Nigel Putman, 62, abused youngsters at the now shut Swaylands School, in Penshurst, between 1963 and 1979.Former care workers Colwyn Baker, 71, David Hennessy, 74, and Nigel Putman, 62, abused youngsters at the now shut Swaylands School, in Penshurst, between 1963 and 1979.
Baker was convicted of 20 offences, Hennessy of six and Putman of two.Baker was convicted of 20 offences, Hennessy of six and Putman of two.
The men are due to be sentenced at Maidstone Crown Court on Wednesday. The men are due to be sentenced at Maidstone Crown Court on 27 May.
Baker, of Craighouse Avenue, Morningside, Edinburgh, had denied 24 indecent assault and three serious sexual assault charges.
Hennessy, of Westfields, Narborough, King's Lynn, Norfolk, had denied 17 indecent assault charges, one of gross indecency with a child and one serious sexual assault.
Putman, 62, of Kings Road, Slough, Berkshire, had denied three indecent assaults.
A total of 15 not guilty verdicts were also returned, with the jury unable to decide on a further five counts.
'Truly sorry'
Swaylands School, a residential facility for boys with emotional and behavioural difficulties, was run by Barnet council in north London.
It was closed at the end of the summer term in 1994, 18 months after the council and Kent Police became aware of allegations of sexual abuse of students at the school by two staff members.
Following the verdicts, the council said it was "truly sorry" that young boys had suffered at the school.
A spokesman said: "No child should have their life scarred by sexual abuse and today's verdicts underline the importance of making sure that historic child abuse allegations are properly investigated and prosecutions brought, no matter how long ago the abuse took place."
He added that the evidence heard by the court emphasised "the importance of children being listened to and believed".
Alison Millar, head of the abuse team at Leigh Day who represented the survivors of the abuse, said Baker, Putman and Hennessy had picked on the most vulnerable of children.
"These were emotionally damaged boys with behavioural difficulties; many of them coming from already troubled backgrounds, or with special educational needs.
"Removed from their homes and communities in London and sent away to Swaylands where they should have received care and attention.
"Instead, the defendants cruelly abused them," she said.
Previous convictions
Det Supt Paul Fotheringham, from the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, said the trio were supposed to look after the boys out of class, but instead "exploited the pupils in their care and committed horrible acts over a long period of time".
He added that the verdicts were justice for the 65 former pupils who had given evidence to the police.
Hennessy and Baker had previously been convicted of similar offences also relating to their time at Swaylands.
In 1993, Hennessy was convicted of four indecent assaults and two serious sexual assaults on one boy.
In 1994, Baker was convicted of four indecent assaults and one gross indecency, on three boys.
Both men were sentenced to three years for each offence, to run concurrently at the time.