Grace Dieu Manor School

Grace Dieu Manor School & Nursery
Grace Dieu Manor House chapel c.1898
Address
Grace Dieu Thringstone Coalville , Leicestershire , LE67 5UG England
Coordinates	52.75708°N 1.35293°W / 52.75708; -1.35293
Information
Type	private
Religious affiliation(s)	Roman Catholic
Established	1933
Local authority	Leicestershire
Department for Education URN	120318 Tables
Headmaster	Margaret Kewell[1]
Gender	Coeducational
Age	12 weeks to 11
Website	www.gracedieu.com

Grace Dieu Manor School was a private Catholic preparatory school at Grace-Dieu, near Thringstone in Leicestershire, England. It was founded in May 1933 by the Rosminians as a prep school for Ratcliffe College, and occupied the 19th-century Grace Dieu Manor, which has about 120 acres (50 hectares) of grounds.^[2] The school closed in July 2020 and the site placed on the market.

Sexual abuse scandal

Victims of sexual abuse by former staff at the school are suing the Rosminian order, the owners of the school. The abuse was catalogued in the 2011 BBC documentary Abused: Breaking the Silence.^[3] The eleven men's claims span a period from 1952 to 1973, but many others have yet to be looked into^[4] and involve sadistic physical, sexual and emotional abuse including regular beating.^[4]

A former principal, Charles Foulds, has said that the incidents "have no relevance to the school of today" but also that "everyone here is very distressed that any child suffered in this place over half a century ago."^[4]

References

1. "Grace Dieu Manor School – THE SCHOOL IS NOW CLOSED". www.gracedieu.com.
2. Past & Present Archived 30 June 2017 at the Wayback Machine. Grace Dieu Manor School. Accessed October 2014.
3. Sources which are cited in support of the documentary Abused:Breaking the Silence are as follows:
   • "Abused: Breaking the Silence". BBC. 20 June 2011.
   • Crace, John (21 June 2011). "TV review: Abused: Breaking the Silence". The Guardian. London.
   • Thompson, Damian (21 June 2011). "Fr Kit Cunningham's paedophile past: heads should roll after the Rosminian order's disgraceful cover-up". London: The Telegraph.
   • Phillips, Francis (20 June 2011). "Why didn't the Rosminian order tell us the truth about Fr Kit?". Catholic Herald.
   • "Devastation and disbelief when abuse case hits close to home". The Irish Independent. 20 June 2011.
4. ""Ex-pupils in legal bid 'after years of abuse'" Leicester Mercury 21 June 2011". Archived from the original on 26 August 2011. Retrieved 22 June 2011.