Former boarding school teacher jailed over sex abuse of boys
William Bain preyed on the pupils while working at three different fee-paying schools across Scotland. The victims included a boy who had gone to Bain for help as he was being bullied.
The former physics teacher, 72, was due to stand trial at the High Court in Glasgow but instead pleaded guilty on Monday to 11 sex abuse charges.
Bain had previously been sentenced to six and a half years in 2016 for similar offences against five boys at a school in Dunbartonshire. He was freed in 2020. It is believed the latest crimes were reported after publicity around that earlier case.
Judge Lord Young reduced Bain's sentence from ten years in recognition of his guilty pleas.
The charges, for offences committed between 1978 and 1999, consisted of ten charges of lewd, indecent and libidinous practices against boys aged 13 or younger and one charge of indecent assault on a slightly older boy.
Bain first abused a 12-year-old boy at a private school in Edinburgh, where he was later a house tutor. He abused the child after ordering him to stay behind for detention.
The next boy would often go to Bain for help with his homework. Shanti Maguire, for the prosecution, told the court: 'It was during these occasions of tutoring that Bain would sexually abuse him.'
Bain ordered the child to keep quiet about what happened.
• Edinburgh boarding school 'protected' abusers for 60 years
Revealing the effect on this victim, Maguire said: 'Due to the nature of these events, he has spent many years blocking out the memory of the incidents in that he cannot recall all of the details.'
By the mid-1980s, Bain had moved to a private school in Aberdeen, where he targeted another boy. The pupil was described as 'isolated and homesick' having moved from England to attend the school. Bain, who was a house master, invited the child into his room and told him he would 'look after him'.
But, Maguire told the court, instead the teacher abused the child and stopped only when the school bell rang.
Bain's next victims were at the same boarding school in Dunbartonshire involved in the 2016 case. One student, then a teenager, was molested on three occasions in the physics teacher's laboratory.
Maguire said: 'These incidents took place in view of other pupils. Bain acted as if it was mere wrestling. However, [the victim] believed it was done for other purposes — namely an opportunity for Bain to touch him.'
Another boy was the victim of bullying and had described the school as a 'brutal environment'. He was preyed upon in Bain's lab; in a dark room at a photography club run by the teacher; and groped during rugby training sessions and walking trips.
• Boarding school agrees six-figure payout over pupil abuse claim
A third boy at the school had also been bullied and was grieving following the death of his brother. He was 'drawn' to Bain due to his apparently 'kindly nature'.
Bain, a Cambridge graduate, groomed the child by giving him sweets and taking him to fast-food restaurants. The teacher initially exposed himself in the camera club dark room and went on to grope the boy, who described feeling 'trapped'.
Other incidents occurred in the lab and in Bain's private flat in the grounds of the school, to which 'a number of pupils' were given access. It was there another teenager was molested while a film was being shown. A further assault occurred while this boy was using a computer at the flat.
A sixth boy studying at the school was inappropriately touched but was told by Bain casually 'not to worry'. The victim spoke of feeling 'uncomfortable' as the teacher stood watching him and other pupils as they showered.
Another student initially regarded Bain as 'friendly' but was later abused in his bed and while alone with Bain in the flat.
The court was told that Bain, of Crieff, Perthshire, had recently been living with his 99-year-old mother.
Brian McConnachie KC, for the defence, told the hearing: 'Around the time of the millennium, [Bain] accepted that his behaviour had been out of control and he was determined to put an end to it.
'He has given evidence at the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry. He not only spoke about his own offending, but assisted with evidence of the culture that existed at the schools that he was involved with.'
Sentencing, the judge said he had read a number of victim impact statements describing the 'terrible legacy' left by Bain's abuse. He said those men were left feeling 'alone and lost' as boys, thinking they would not be believed had they spoken out.
Lord Young said: 'These children were entrusted by their parents to the schools. They ought to have been nurtured and educated in a safe environment.
'Instead, it seems that throughout your career as a teacher, you abused this position to pursue your own sexual deviances.'
Bain remains on the sex offenders list.
Fiona Kirkby, procurator fiscal for High Court sexual offences, said: 'William Bain is a prolific offender who repeatedly exploited his position of trust as a teacher to sexually abuse children in his care. He has now been held accountable and imprisoned for his depraved actions.'
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