Almost 300 previous students of Spiritan-run schools have come forward with allegations of abuse at these establishments, according to the most recent update from a survivors’ group. The overwhelming majority of the complaints are associated with Willow Park and Blackrock College, both institutions managed by the Spiritan congregation, previously known as the Holy Ghost Fathers. Willow Park serves as the preparatory school situated on the grounds of Blackrock College.
The allegations of extensive abuse in these institutions entered the public domain when two siblings reported incidents of sexual abuse by priests at Blackrock College. A 2022 RTÉ Radio 1 Doc on One documentary featuring the Ryan brothers led to an influx of claims from abused students in the schools, extending to Dublin’s Templeogue College and Rockwell College in Co Tipperary.
As per a recent post on the Blackrock College Union’s web page, over 290 individuals have lodged complaints against 49 clergy and 12 lay staff members affiliated with the Spiritan congregation. Each Spiritan-run institution has been implicated in these allegations.
Roughly 50 restorative justice meetings have been held to date, providing an opportunity for face-to-face dialogues between survivors and current leaders of the Spiritan order. Supported by the Blackrock College (Past Pupils) Union, an initiative named Restore Together was launched in 2021, with the Spiritan congregation in Ireland participating too.
This initiative employs a restorative justice framework where victims engage in meetings with the current leaders of the Spiritan order. The congregation has been making personal apologies to the affected individuals and providing for exclusive funding of counselling services for those affected.
The union’s update also suggested that the Spiritans should commit to a scheme of financial compensation. Detailed proposals outlining how such a scheme might be operationalised have been provided to the Spiritans and their legal representatives by Restore Together. According to this group, the compensation plan must be focused on the victims, non-confrontational, and trauma-sensitive.
The organisation further emphasises that “no sum of money can ever substitute for a stolen childhood,” but any compensation scheme should deliver “full Christian justice to victims and award sums that fully acknowledge the victims and their anguish.” To ensure this, scheme payouts should at least be equivalent to what a victim/survivor would attain in a successful court proceeding.
In conclusion, the Spiritan order has not finalised the compensation scheme’s terms, and they recently stated that they cannot predict when the scheme will be active.