A former primary schoolteacher at Saltus school carried out sexual assaults on pupils, it was alleged yesterday.

The school has launched an investigation after it was said the unnamed male teacher “touched students in a sexual manner”.

A letter from the school to parents and alumni said the teacher was said to have exhibited grooming behaviour in the 1970s and 1980s.

Deryn Lavell, the headteacher at Saltus, wrote that the school had nothing on record to indicate complaints, but that an investigation was under way.

The letter added: “The teacher left Saltus and Bermuda many decades ago.”

The school has hired T&M Protection Resources, an American-based investigation firm, and has asked anyone with information or who were victims of sex abuse to come forward.

T&M has set up a hotline at (646) 445-7645 and people can also e-mail SaltusGrammar@tmprotection.com with information.

The letter added: “We are working with T&M because we want to ensure that the investigation is handled professionally and confidentially. Anyone who comes forward can be confident their privacy will be protected.”

The letter said: “We will share the results of their investigation with the Saltus community as soon as they become available and will remain in contact with Bermuda authorities throughout this process.”

Ms Lavell said yesterday it was “difficult to respond to allegations from so long ago”, but that the school had no reason to doubt the people who had come forward.

She said it was “our intention to open our doors to this conversation”.

Ms Lavell added: “Society is transforming and there is

growing awareness that abuse, no matter when it occurred, should not remain in the shadows.

“We are grateful to those who came forward and we have invited anyone with information that may be helpful to the investigation, to contact T&M in confidence.

“In order to protect the privacy of those involved, and as we are at the beginning of our investigation, there are no further details that can be shared at this time.”

Ms Lavell emphasised that the safety of pupils was the school’s main concern and that it planned to release the investigation’s findings “as soon as they are available”.

The school declined to provide further details on the suspect teacher.

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