Exclusive:‘Abuse’ charges dropped against four ex-teachers at top private school
Lawyer says move ‘appears to be a denial of justice’ as prosecutors reveal no action will be taken against men
Charges against four teachers in relation to the historic abuse of children at Edinburgh Academy have been dropped, The Scotsman has learned.
Prosecutors said no action will be taken against James Burnet, who served as head of the prep school between 1973 and 1988, his deputy John Brownlee and former PE teacher John ‘Jake’ Young.
Another former teacher, John Clearie, will also face no action after appearing at court on petition, the Crown Office said.
Laura Connor, a partner at Thompsons Solicitors Scotland, who represents survivors of historic abuse at Edinburgh Academy, said many would be “aghast” the Crown had decided not to move ahead with prosecutions.
“This is deeply unfortunate as it appears to be a denial of justice for many who waited years to see their alleged abuser in court,” she said.
“My team and I continue to pursue civil legal claims against the academy and we are confident of securing justice for all survivors including those let down by the criminal justice system.”
Guy Moffat, a former pupil and survivor of abuse, said it was “a shame for whoever came forward”.
He added: “I have no idea who the complainers are in any of these instances, but I hope that they don’t feel hard done by, by not getting the same treatment we got.”
In relation to Burnet, Brownlee and Young, a spokesperson for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service said: “After careful consideration of the facts and circumstances of these cases, including the available admissible evidence, Crown Counsel decided that there should be no proceedings.”
It comes after the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry found pupils at Edinburgh Academy suffered “dreadful abuse” over several decades while the school ignored complaints and focused on protecting its reputation.
Inquiry chairwoman Lady Smith said children were sexually abused by staff over four decades, from the 1950s to the 1980s, and endured physical and emotional abuse.
She said some boarders at the school lived in a “permanent state of fear” and that the institution “failed to look at itself through a realistic and critical lens”.
Broadcaster Nicky Campbell, who attended the school between 1966 and 1978, was among those who gave evidence to the inquiry and described being “haunted” in the middle of the night by memories of his schooldays.
Perpetrators of the abuse included teacher Hamish Dawson, who died in 2009, and former housemaster Brownlee, Lady Smith said.
Edinburgh Academy has reiterated its “sincere apology” to all those affected by abuse at the school and said it is educating its current pupils in a “caring and supportive environment”.
In 2024, Brownlee, then 89, was ruled by a court to have committed “cruel and unnatural acts” of physical and emotional abuse on pupils at the school between 1967 and 1991, but was deemed medically unfit to stand trial and was not sentenced to punishment.
Last year, a court also concluded Young, then 91, abused more than a dozen pupils over a 27-year period, but he was also deemed unfit to stand trial.
“A number of the charges focused on Young’s determination that children were not allowed to wear underpants under their shorts during PE classes,” Lady Smith said in her report. Ten involved assaults of various kinds, including punching and slapping.
Mr Moffat said he understood a further examination of the facts had been due to take place in relation to Brownlee and Young next year.
In her report, Lady Smith said physical abuse of children was “normalised” at the school and violence was “part and parcel of an aggressive and rigid culture that persisted into the 1990s”.
She also named former teacher Iain Wares, who is facing allegations of abuse and currently lives in South Africa, where extradition proceedings to return him to Scotland are ongoing.
Earlier this week, Barry Welsh, rector of the academy, said: “We have a commitment to facing up to the wrongs of the past which remains unwavering. We are grateful to Lady Smith and we have played our part in her inquiry throughout.
“Her report makes for sombre reading, and reinforces the remarkable bravery shown by our former pupils who have given evidence. We reiterate our sincere apology to all those affected by any abuse that occurred at our school.
“While we cannot change the past, we can shape the future. We continue to support survivors as fully as we are able whilst also educating our current pupils in a caring and supportive environment.”