Fornethy House survivors given fresh hope at latest conference

As children, hundreds of women were sent by the local authority to Fornethy House in Kilry, Perth & Kinross, where they allegedly suffered abuses including being force-fed, beaten, emotionally abused and sexually assaulted.

On Sunday night, dozens of women attended the second Fornethy Survivors Conference at the Renfield Centre to hear from key speakers about ongoing progress on their case.

Records of Fornethy House's official status as a residential school were revealed by Dr Diane McAdie, sending a wave of shock through the conference room.

The specialist researcher said: "From the very beginning it was never a respite home, it was never a holiday home.

"It was always a school under the education committee, under Glasgow Corporation.

"Glasgow City Council now have direct responsibility for everything that happened there."

The local authority was Glasgow Corporation until 1975 when it became Strathclyde Regional Council. Glasgow City Council was created in 1996.

A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council previously told the Glasgow Times that information available to the authority showed that Fornethy House was originally used as a place to send girls to convalesce in the country after an illness.

They claimed that as the years went on the purpose was moved from a place to heal to a place that offered short breaks in the country to girls in schools run by the authority.

A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council said: “We have never denied the council’s role in helping to find a resolution.

“We understand that this process is upsetting for everyone involved and we will continue to work with all partners.”

Further records revealed by Dr McAdie reveal that around 20,000 girls went through the residential school system over the 30 years it was open between the 1960s and 1990s. Most of the girls were from deprived backgrounds.

Parents were encouraged to send their children to the school and encouraged not to visit unless there was a specific visiting day scheduled.

The children were classified as mentally deficient in some reports.

Marion Reid, founder of the Fornethy House Survivors Group, said: “I’m angry, angry.

"A lot of what was revealed we knew but seeing it in black and white now - I’m speechless because it’s just so bad."

She emphasized a sense of urgency in concluding their battle with the council.

She added: “This better be sorted as soon as possible because I’m 66. We lost a girl whose funeral was on Thursday.

“How long are they going to keep this going? All the evidence is there, it’s time something was done about it.”

Other speakers included solicitor Megan Lafferty and Eleanor Deeming Johnstone of the Scottish Human Rights Commission.

David Scott, who has been investigating the case alongside his wife, researcher Lesley Scott, said he hoped the revelations discovered in the archives at Mitchell Library with Dr McArdie would help the Fornethy Survivor's case.

He said: “The first conference was about establishing what happened. The women told their stories and we had started our research, but it was in the early stages.

“For the women to tell their stories it was enormously difficult and they were hugely brave.

“Now, we’re moving forward. We’ve been in the archives for six months and it wasn’t a respite centre, it wasn’t a holiday centre, it was a residential school.

“It was governed by all of the legislation governing schools and there is no excuse for what happened there or for the lack of oversight.

“That is the starting point from which we have to move forward.

“What we’re now looking for is proper and realistic engagement from the authorities to give the women the answers they need and the help they deserve.”

The Scottish Government have been contacted for comment.