MARK STANDISH FROM DURHAM AND THATCHAM JAILED FOR CHILD ABUSE AT CROOKHAM COURT SCHOOL

In a case that echoes a dark chapter from the late 1980s, Mark Standish, aged 48, has been sentenced to four years in prison after being convicted of multiple counts of indecent assault against a pupil at the now-defunct Crookham Court School near Thatcham, Berkshire. The conviction comes more than two decades after the notorious boarding school was embroiled in a child abuse scandal that led to the imprisonment of several staff members.

Standish, who was a teacher at Crookham Court School during the late 1980s, was known to have gained the trust of the student’s parents shortly after starting his role. The school, which operated with a system where parents would give teachers money at the beginning of each term for their children, became infamous for its abusive environment. The victim, who was only 14 at the time of the abuse in 1987 and is now 38, was subjected to a series of sexual assaults by Standish, also known as Alex Standish, of Station Street, Waterhouses, Durham.

The court heard that Standish exploited his position of authority, allowing the boy to spend more money than he had and coercing him into working to pay back the excess. Threatening to inform the boy’s parents if he disobeyed, Standish forced the teenager to perform physical exercises in his own living quarters at the school, eventually escalating to naked physical activity. Over time, the assaults worsened, with the abuse becoming increasingly severe.

Standish’s criminal activities came to light after the scandal at Crookham Court School was exposed on the BBC television series That’s Life. In an effort to cover his tracks and prevent the victim from reporting him, Standish advised the boy’s parents to withdraw him from the school. This advice was part of a broader pattern of manipulation and concealment that characterized the school’s brutal regime.

The school’s dark history was further revealed through subsequent trials. In 1989, the owner of the school, Philip Cadman, was sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in the abuse, a sentence later reduced to six years on appeal in 1992. French teacher William Printer was convicted of two indecent assaults and one attempted serious sexual assault, receiving a similar six-year sentence after his trial. Additionally, English teacher Anthony Edmonds was jailed for six years after admitting to multiple charges of sexual assault and indecency.

Standish’s conviction is based on incidents that occurred between 1988 and 1989. During the sentencing hearing at Reading Crown Court, Judge Stephen John emphasized that Standish had deliberately targeted a vulnerable teenager, taking advantage of the fact that the boy’s parents were abroad at the time. The judge described the school as being run under a “sadistic and brutal regime,” highlighting the systemic nature of the abuse that took place within its walls.

At the time of sentencing, Standish showed no visible emotion as he was led away. He had been living abroad, working as the head of a security sector programme with the United Nations in Kosovo, earning a salary of approximately £120,000. His career was abruptly halted when he was convicted, forcing him to resign from his post. The court’s decision underscores the long-overdue justice for the victims of this sordid chapter in the history of Crookham Court School.