Pubdate: Sun, 13 Feb 2005
Source: Scotland On Sunday (UK)
Copyright: 2005 The Scotsman Publications Ltd.
Contact:  http://www.scotlandonsunday.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/405
Author: Annalisa Moore

TOP SCHOOL SUSPENDS 21 BOYS OVER CANNABIS

A TOP public school has suspended 21 pupils following an investigation into
cannabis use, it emerged today.

Ampleforth College, whose former pupils include the late Archbishop of
Westminster Cardinal Hume and which aims to give pupils a Roman Catholic
education, sent the boys home last week after drug use at the boarding
school came to light.

The ?20,000-a-year school, set in picturesque countryside in North
Yorkshire, will offer counselling and carry out random testing on pupils
once the suspension period is served.

Head teacher Father Gabriel Everitt said: "Some may regard cannabis as a
soft drug, widely tolerated for recreational use by much of society. That is
not the view here.

"It can be vastly more powerful than what was available a generation ago.

"Our attitude is uncompromising. We regard any form of drug-taking as a very
serious breach of discipline, and we are conducting a rigorous investigation
into all the circumstances of this discovery."

A North Yorkshire Police spokesman confirmed allegations had been made and
said the force was investigating.

Police last year began an investigation into allegations of child sex abuse
at the boarding school. Detectives questioned former school pupils following
claims of abuse alleged to have happened in the late 1960s and 1970s.

The actors Rupert Everett and Colin Firth, Michael Ancram, the deputy leader
of the Conservative party, and Edward Stourton, a presenter on Radio 4's
Today programme, were all pupils there at the time. Lawrence Dallaglio, who
has just stepped down as England rugby captain, attended the school more
recently.

Ampleforth is run by 12 Benedictine monks and has a total teaching staff of
60. The majority of its pupils - 85% - are Roman Catholic but the school
also welcomes pupils of other faiths. 
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MAP posted-by: Josh