Retired teacher spared jail for 'sadistic' abuse of young girls decades ago
Patricia Robertson's sentence was described some of her victims in court as an "absolute joke"
A retired teacher who force-fed young girls and banged their heads together during a historic case of "sadistic abuse" has avoided jail.
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Patricia Robertson, now 77, carried out the shocking abuse towards the children staying in residential care over a 15-year period.
Victims as young as five were abused by Robertson during their stay at Fornethy House in Kilry, Angus, Scotland, between 1969 and 1984.
A court heard she delivered punishments for wetting the bed while also force-feeding, banging girls’ heads together and dragging children by their hair.
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Robertson, who was 21 at the time when she carried out her first offence, was convicted of cruel and unnatural treatment against 18 victims in October following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow.
She appeared back a the same court again on Wednesday where she was handed supervision order for three years and made subject to a restriction order, meaning Robertson must stay in her home in Witham, Essex, between 3pm until midnight.
Many of her victims were in court for sentencing, where they branded her sentence "disgusting" and an "absolute joke" from the public gallery.
The incidents of abuse included Robertson force-feeding a nine-year-old girl, making her vomit, forcing her to stand in darkness in a confined space and ridiculing her for wetting the bed.
She also seized a child by the neck and forced her to stand against a wall, banged a child’s head against a desk and dragged her by her hair.
She was convicted of forcing a primary-age child to eat her own vomit after force-feeding her, and of slapping a child around the face, seizing her hair and dragging her by the ears.
Sentencing her, Judge Lord Colbeck said: "Your victims were aged between five to 12, mostly there due to poverty.
"Many on them spoke of excitement at going to Fornethy House. Those dreams ended when the door closed.
"It is clear you behaved in a sadistic manner to many young girls."
The judge said the offending was of "exceptionally high culpability" and victims had been left with trauma which amounted to "life sentences."
He also ordered her to pay a total of £18,000 to the victims within the next two months.
Rona Hargan, who spent time at Fornethy between 1976 and 1979 and was one of Robertson’s victims, described her time there as "hell."
She said: "It was horrendous and to get three years probation is an absolute joke, I lose faith in the justice system."
"It was like a horror movie that you live constantly in your mind and we'll live with this for the rest of our life."
Another victim of Robertson’s cruelty described her as a "shameful monster" who "can't hide from what she's done."
Mark Stewart KC, defending Robertson, said: "Mrs Baxter is now 77, the offences of which she was convicted ran until 1984, then she departed from that school around that time and took up position elsewhere.
"From the report and testimonials she had a fairly positive teaching career."
Thompsons Solicitors is representing around 220 people who say they were affected by their time at Fornethy House and are pursuing civil claims and legal firm Digby Brown is additionally supporting several other women.
Faye Cook, of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, said: "Patricia Robertson should have nurtured and supported these children but instead inflicted lasting trauma through her criminal actions.
"Cruel and unnatural treatment is a charge used by prosecutors to capture the dynamics of systematic child abuse over a period of time.
"It is now a matter of public record that she grossly violated her duty of care while holding a position of trust and power at Fornethy House.
"This type of abuse has never been acceptable and it should not have happened."
A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council, which ran Fornethy House, said: “Our thoughts are with the victims of these crimes and we know that this will have been a harrowing process to go through.
"Last year, Glasgow's council leader issued a public apology to victims of Fornethy House.“We will now be considering matters in light of these convictions."