THE family of a boy who fell to his death while on a Scouts hike of the Great Orme has started a petition calling on the UK Government to launch a public inquiry into the organisation.
Ben Leonard, 16, of Stockport, suffered fatal head injuries when he fell about 200ft after slipping in Llandudno while on an Explorer Scouts trip on August 26, 2018.
Last month, an inquest jury concluded that Ben was unlawfully killed by the trip’s Explorer Scouts leader and assistant leader, contributed to by neglect by The Scout Association.
READ MORE:
Scout leaders unlawfully killed boy who died in Llandudno
Scouts respond after boy who fell from Orme was unlawfully killed
Boy who died at Great Orme will be remembered ‘as a brilliant person’
On Monday (March 11), the Leonard family set up an online petition urging the Government to scrutinise the organisation.
It has so far received more than 700 signatures: www.change.org/p/public-inquiry-needed-into-the-scouts-association-and-why-they-should-be-regulated.
Tom Leonard, Ben’s older brother, said a public inquiry “needs to happen”, and believes it would help to “get the truth out” and investigate how The Scout Association operates.
He hopes the petition will also help to maintain momentum following last month’s conclusion of the inquest, rather than to allow Ben’s death to go “under the radar”.
While the conclusion of the seven-week inquest left him “very numb”, he said he believed the verdict the jury reached after two days’ deliberation was the “correct outcome”.
Tom said: “I don’t expect a public inquiry to happen right now, but what I don’t want is to have to wait 20 years for this.
“You’ve seen with the Post Office Horizon IT inquiry; even though it’s become a massive thing now, it can go under the radar.
“The more signatures we garner, the less they (Government) can turn a blind eye to it. It’s a case of shoving it in their face and saying: ‘What are you going to do?’”
Tom said he and his family have not had contact with The Scout Association following the conclusion of the inquest on February 22.
He stressed that they do not want to see the organisation, which was founded 114 years ago, cease to exist, but would like to see change in the way it operates.
Jackie Leonard, Ben and Tom’s mother, previously said that she would like to see The Scout Association held to account by an external regulatory body.
Tom said: “I think I’m more hurt by what’s happened since Ben’s death. The thing that hurts most is the abuse of power, the gaslighting.
“Grief is just love in its most excruciating form. I don’t mind crying over him because it means that what we had was real, and that I do still love and miss him. The pain doesn’t go away.
“I don’t want the Scouts to not exist anymore because it can be a safe space for kids, but it needs to change, and they need to be held accountable.
“You don’t just carry the weight of my brother’s death, you carry the weight of everyone else affected. It does have a ripple effect.”
READ MORE:
Scouts ‘institutionally defensive’ as report issued after Orme death
Scouts referred to police in connection with boy’s Llandudno death
Ben Leonard - family call for external regulation of Scouts
David Pojur, assistant coroner for North Wales East and Central, oversaw the inquest, the third which was held into Ben’s death.
Following its conclusion, he issued a 39-point Prevention of Future Deaths report, in which he described The Scout Association as “institutionally defensive” and said that “lives of young people are being put at risk”.
Mr Pojur sent this report to nine different parties, including The Scout Association and the secretary of state for education, Gillian Keegan MP, all of whom must respond to it by April 18.
He also referred The Scout Association and one of its employees to North Wales Police regarding conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.
The Department for Education said it would “consider any required action” from the findings in the inquest into Ben’s death.
A Government spokesperson said: “Our deepest sympathies are with Ben's family and friends.
“Keeping young people safe will always be our first priority, including in out-of-school settings.
“The Government will read the coroner's report carefully and consider any required action.
“This is now a police matter, so we will not comment further at this time.”
A spokesperson for The Scout Association added: “We are closely reviewing the recommendations from the coroner and will be adopting all further changes we can, on top of those already implemented, to do everything in our power to stop such an event happening again.
“We are committed to providing our formal response to the coroner by April 18.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here