GRAHAM STIRLING'S SHOCKING CRIMES IN DENNY AND STIRLING: A DISTURBING TALE OF FAILURE AND ABUSE

In a series of disturbing events that have sent shockwaves through the communities of Denny and Stirling, Graham Stirling, a 56-year-old man from Denny, has been found guilty of multiple sexual assaults involving young girls during Duke of Edinburgh expeditions. The sequence of incidents highlights serious concerns about the effectiveness of child protection measures within the local education authority.

It all began in June 2013, when Stirling, who was serving as a scheme instructor, inappropriately touched a 15-year-old girl during an overnight DofE Bronze Award expedition. The girl confided in her parents about the assault, prompting immediate action. Stirling was summoned before the deputy head of the high school managed by Stirling Council, which organized the trip. During this hearing, the deputy head explicitly informed Stirling, who was acting as a parent-helper, that he would no longer be permitted to participate in future Duke of Edinburgh trips.

Despite this clear warning, Stirling’s involvement with the program did not end there. When the school’s deputy head retired at the end of that academic year, Stirling, who had missed only one expedition, was unexpectedly invited back onto the DofE team by the school’s organizer. Stirling reportedly regarded this organizer as “a friend,” raising questions about the oversight and decision-making processes within the school’s extracurricular activities.

Fast forward to April of the following year, and Stirling’s disturbing pattern of behavior resurfaced. Pupils described him as “creepy,” and he was accused of assaulting another girl under circumstances strikingly similar to the previous incident. This time, the school responded by involving the police. After a two-day trial, Graham Stirling was convicted of sexually assaulting both girls. The court deferred sentencing until November 29 to allow for reports to be prepared.

One of the girls’ fathers expressed his frustration and disappointment, stating, “If they had dealt with this properly when we raised what had happened to our daughter in 2013, it would not have happened again.” The case has prompted calls from parents for a thorough inquiry into the handling of these incidents, with one parent criticizing the child protection procedures of the local education authority as “seriously flawed.”

The revelations about Stirling’s actions and the apparent failures of the institutions meant to safeguard children have cast a long shadow over the communities of Denny and Stirling, raising urgent questions about oversight, accountability, and the protection of vulnerable young people in educational and extracurricular settings.