Angus Bell, a former pupil of Loretto School in Musselburgh, has received a six-figure payout after alleging he was repeatedly abused by fellow pupils in the 1990s, but says he has still not received an apology from the school.
Bell, now 46 and living in Montreal, Canada, waived his anonymity in 2023 to launch legal action over claims he was assaulted during his time at the school, which he attended from the age of 10. He described the institution as a "madhouse of violence" and alleged a catalogue of abuse, including being whipped with belt buckles, thrown down flights of stairs, locked in trunks and waterboarded in a dirty toilet.
Civil trial settled out of court
Bell gave evidence at the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry into abuse at elite boarding schools. Last year, a civil trial, thought to be the first to involve pupil-to-pupil abuse, was due to begin at the Court of Session in Edinburgh, but the school settled out of court with a six-figure sum.
No pupils from the school have ever been convicted of any crimes, but Bell said he does not hold them responsible. Instead, he blames the school's culture for allowing the behaviour to continue and says he has never received an apology.
"The school have never contacted me directly to apologise," he said. "At no point in this process has anyone from that school spoken to me directly."
Former pupil describes 'brutal system'
Bell, an author and carpenter, said there was a "brutal system of punishment and hierarchy" and that there were only two types of pupils at the school - the attackers and the attacked. He previously revealed he had been sexually and emotionally abused by older pupils during the 1990s and likened every day to being "a cross between The Purge and The Running Man - it was eight years in Hell."
He also gave accounts of extreme violence, including children set on fire, pupils beaten with hockey sticks and cricket bats daily, others whipped with belts, waterboarding in toilets, and being thrown down stairs. "It was very militaristic," he said. "Every minute of every day was regimented, and the older children were in charge."
"It was like being a prisoner by day and being in a prisoner-of-war camp by night," he added. "It became dog-eat-dog; you either attacked someone to survive or you were attacked. The violence grew as the children grew - they were addicted to it."
Inquiry and book
After leaving the school at age 18, Bell said he suffered from depression and complex PTSD. In 2019, he heard about the Scottish Government's inquiry and started writing down the abuse he had faced. "I thought, finally, maybe society is ready to talk about it," he said. "In the enquiry, I was able to account in detail all the ways I was assaulted over eight years."
Since giving evidence at the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry, dozens of fellow former pupils and staff have reached out to offer their support. Bell has released a book called 'The Lost Boys: A Memoir of Survival, Silence and the System that Failed Generations' detailing the abuse he faced and its traumatic effect on his life.
"The scale of abuse in private schools is staggering," he said. "People on the outside have no idea what went on within those walls. Bullying happens in any school, but when it happens in a boarding school, there is no escape."
School response and police investigation
Pete Richardson, Head of Loretto School, said: "Loretto recognises the suffering caused by the historic abuse at the school and has committed to learning from the past to create a safe, supportive learning environment where student wellbeing is the highest priority."
"Today, our students receive the greatest level of care, are listened to and respected and know that they can raise concerns and will be supported by appropriate action," he added. "Loretto continues to support the work of the SCAI and has made an unreserved apology for past wrongdoings - and we reiterate that apology to all survivors today. Our sympathies lie with all victims of abuse."
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "An investigation is ongoing into non-recent physical and sexual abuse at a school in Musselburgh, East Lothian."
