De La Salle Brothers Schools

De La Salle Brothers Abuse Claims

In Australia, the De La Salle Brothers first established themselves in 1906 in Armidale, New South Wales where they opened De La Salle College (now known as O’Connor Catholic College). Between the 1920s to the 1940s there was a rapid expansion of the De La Salle Brothers in Australia, with an increased recruitment and influx of brothers from Ireland. This was the period when most of the De La Salle schools in Australia, including boarding schools, were established.

However, like many other religious orders in Australia, the De La Salle Brothers have over the years been involved in allegations dealing with institutional child sexual and physical abuse. The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in June 2017 heavily scrutinised the religious order in Analysis of Claims of Child Sexual Abuse Made with Respect to Catholic Church Institutions in Australia and provided the following data in relation how extent child sexual abuse has occurred in the Order between 1950 to 2010. The Royal Commission indicated that:

• 328 people made a claim of child sexual abuse received by the De La Salle Brothers, amounting to 7% of all claims of child sexual abuse during this period.

• This represents 17% of all claims received by religious institutes with only religious brother members.

• Of these claims:

  • 288 (88%) identified one or more religious brothers as an alleged perpetrator;

  • 43 (13%) identified one or more lay person as an alleged perpetrator; and

  • Seven (2%) identified one or more priest as an alleged perpetrator.

• Some claims identified more than one alleged perpetrator with differing religious statuses.

• 12 (34%) people made a claim of child sexual abuse which identified more than one alleged perpetrator.

• 242 (74%) people who made a claim of child sexual abuse also made an allegation of physical abuse.

• The average age of the claimants at the time of the alleged child sexual abuse was 13 years of age.

• 27% of claimants were under the age of 13 years at the time of the alleged child sexual abuse and 73% were between 13 and 18 years of age (where the age was known).

• 77% of claimants alleged that the incidents of child sexual abuse occurred in the period from 970 to 1989 (inclusive).

• BoysTown Beaudesert was identified by the Royal Commission as having the highest number of claims of child sexual abuse with 219 claims against this institution. Allegations go back to the 1980s.

The following are some of the De La Salle Brothers schools that are reported to have history of child sexual and physical abuse:

Below are those within the De La Salle Brothers that have been convicted, charged or investigated for child sexual and physical abuse: