Former Methody pupil awarded £50k over ‘degrading’ rugby trip

A former pupil of Methodist College Belfast has been awarded more than £50,000 in a civil case taken by our client Mr. Gabriel McConkey against his former school. 

In December 2022 Our client was at school Rugby trip to Portugal. During the trip he was forced by older pupils to run around a resort naked whilst others watched and a video was recorded. 

Our client was forced to have his head shaved into a degrading manner. 

He was also forced to witness other boys as they were coerced into performing an act on a sex toy whilst wearing women’s underwear. 

Today at the Belfast High Court our clients case against Methodist College Belfast settled for an amount in excess of £50,000.00, following an admission of liability by the school on grounds of negligence and their failure to supervise. 

The situation was aggravated by the manner in which the school handled the complaint, which included a member of staff threatening to shave the heads of the perpetrators. 

Mr McConkey, now 19 years old said, “No child should ever have to go through what I went through. This case was always about ensuring this doesn’t happen again. Grammar school rugby culture has to be exposed and must change.”. 

Outside Court, Victoria Haddock of Phoenix Law said “This settlement brings vindication for our young client who should never have had to take legal action following a school rugby trip. Parents and students alike should be able to count on schools protecting pupils from extreme and humiliating practices. Our client looks forward to putting this horrendous episode behind him and focusing on his education in the years ahead.”.