{"id":289007,"date":"2026-02-17T23:36:11","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T23:36:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/289007\/"},"modified":"2026-02-17T23:36:11","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T23:36:11","slug":"second-priest-at-st-bedes-college-was-accused-of-sexual-abuse-by-three-complainants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/289007\/","title":{"rendered":"Second priest at St Bede\u2019s College was accused of sexual abuse by three complainants"},"content":{"rendered":"

The offending related to four boys who were boarding at St Bede\u2019s College <\/a>in Christchurch between 1996 and 2000.<\/p>\n

It can now be revealed that another priest, Father Brian Cummings, was also accused of sexual abuse by three different complainants.<\/p>\n

\"RowanRowan Donoghue outside the Christchurch District Court last month. Photo \/ RNZ, Nathan McKinnon<\/p>\n

Cummings, who died in 2022 aged 68, was rector at the school between 1990 and 2001.<\/p>\n

RNZ approached the Society of Mary for comment on allegations involving Cummings last week.<\/p>\n

Initially, the religious order said if there were allegations about any other Marists they encouraged complainants to take them to police.<\/p>\n

Pressed further for comment, a Society of Mary spokesperson confirmed on Tuesday it had records of three complaints of sexual abuse against Cummings from three complainants.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey were received in 1996, 2014 and in 2023; the third came after he had died. All related to his time at St Bede\u2019s College. Cummings strenuously denied the accusations in 1996 and 2014.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first two complaints were investigated by police and the Society of Mary. Police took no action on either complaint. The third complaint was investigated by the church.\u201d<\/p>\n

RNZ asked St Bede\u2019s College rector Jon McDowall for comment on allegations of sexual abuse in relation to Cummings.<\/p>\n

He replied the school was \u201caware of allegations against the late Father Cummings\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose allegations are working through a process and we are not able to offer any further comment at this time.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said he found the matters \u201cdistressing\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny form of abuse is unacceptable, regardless of when it occurred or whether it involved one individual or many.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was not in this role at the time these matters arose. My responsibility now is to ensure we respond with clarity, care and integrity.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said work was underway to understand what was known historically and how those matters were addressed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat work is being led by the current boards and myself.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome historical allegations were previously subject to investigation. Where new information comes to light, we encourage it to be brought forward and addressed through the appropriate channels.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat matters most is that anyone impacted feels supported and heard. We are committed to ensuring concerns are addressed appropriately, with care, integrity and accountability.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said the school today operated with \u201cclear safeguarding expectations, strong oversight, and a culture where student wellbeing comes first\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cAbuse has no place at St Bede\u2019s \u2013 past, present or future.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a statement, Detective Superintendent Darryl Sweeney said: \u201cPolice can confirm offending was reported to us centred on St Bede\u2019s in the 1980s\/90s, investigated by Canterbury District in 2013.<\/p>\n

\u201cFollowing enquiries, the evidential test to proceed with prosecution was not met.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis investigative material has been handed to the current investigation [into Donoghue].\u201d<\/p>\n

McDowall sent an email to former St Bede\u2019s students on Tuesday. The email, seen by RNZ, referred to \u201ccontinued media coverage\u201d relating to \u201chistorical matters\u201d related to the school.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am aware there may be further reporting in the coming days. I do not want you as Old Boys and Alumni to be caught off guard if additional historical matters are referenced. I will not speculate on what may or may not be published, but it is possible that some of the content may be difficult to read.\u201d<\/p>\n

McDowall said he recognised that for many former students the coverage may \u201cbring back difficult memories or raise personal questions about your own time at the college\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor some, it may be confronting or unsettling. That response is entirely understandable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anyone who wished to speak to him about any concerns, or share their own experiences could contact him directly.<\/p>\n

Cummings\u2019 departure from St Bede\u2019s College was marked in the 2001 yearbook.<\/p>\n

Cummings first started at the school in 1980 as an English and religious education teacher, he was also a dormitory master, eventually becoming the dean of boarders. In 1988 he left the school and was deputy rector at St Patrick\u2019s College Silverstream, but returned about two years later to become rector.<\/p>\n

McDowall earlier told RNZ it was brought to his attention by police in recent weeks that the college had previously been notified of concerns relating to Donoghue.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn learning this, I immediately took steps to establish clearly what was known by the school, when it was known, and how it was handled. I was not in this role at the time, and records from that period are limited. This work is ongoing; I am committed to gaining as much clarity as possible and doing so with care and integrity.<\/p>\n

\u201cI will say again, if there was inaction, and any failure to respond appropriately, then I am appalled. My thoughts remain with the victims and survivors who continue to live with the impact of this harm.\u201d<\/p>\n

Police appeal for people to come forward<\/p>\n

In a statement to RNZ, Detective Senior Sergeant Karen Simmons said last week that police were appealing for anyone with information on offending by Donoghue to come forward.<\/p>\n

A suppression order on Donoghue\u2019s guilty plea was lifted last month.<\/p>\n

\u201cFollowing the lifting of all suppression, police have been made aware that former students of Wellington school St Patrick\u2019s College Silverstream, have alleged similar offending by Father Donoghue,\u201d Simmons said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know it can be incredibly difficult and at times distressing to talk about these matters, but we would like to reassure any victims of offending that we will take them seriously.<\/p>\n

\u201cPolice has a number of officers and detectives dedicated to these cases, and we provide a safe space to report offending in confidence.\u201d<\/p>\n

St Patrick\u2019s Silverstream rector Rob Ferreira earlier told RNZ the school had not been made aware of any allegations of abuse in care while Donoghue worked at the school between 1982 to 1992.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have not had any inquiries from the police either.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe operate according to clearly set out guidelines and best practice and you should note that our primary concern is the wellbeing of our students. Given that \u2013 our protection of the privacy and any other rights of survivors of abuse and other individuals would be paramount.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said the school had informed the community that Donoghue\u2019s name suppression had lifted.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The offending related to four boys who were boarding at St Bede\u2019s College in Christchurch between 1996 and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":289008,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[1903,1117,1975,160492,3595,12784,153365,111,43,139,69,1118,17041,8466,17703,15768,11420,1529,6736],"class_list":{"0":"post-289007","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-zealand","8":"tag-abuse","9":"tag-accused","10":"tag-at","11":"tag-bedes","12":"tag-by","13":"tag-college","14":"tag-complainants","15":"tag-new-zealand","16":"tag-news","17":"tag-newzealand","18":"tag-nz","19":"tag-of","20":"tag-priest","21":"tag-second","22":"tag-sexual","23":"tag-sherwood","24":"tag-st","25":"tag-three","26":"tag-was"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/289007","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=289007"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/289007\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/289008"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=289007"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=289007"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=289007"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}