Beaumaris Primary School sexual abuse survivor reaches record $8 million settlement with Victorian government

A survivor of “shocking” sexual abuse at a Melbourne primary school has received what his lawyer is calling “the largest publicly known payment to an abuse survivor in Australia” as part of an extraordinary $8 million settlement with the Victorian Department of Education has.

The man sexually abused by notorious pedophile Darrell Ray was one of a generation of students abused at Beaumaris Primary School in Melbourne Bay in the 1960s and 70s.

The man’s lawyer, Michael Magazanik of Rightside Legal, said his client had fought for justice for most of his adult life and settled the lawsuit a week in the Supreme Court of Victoria.

“He has been walking this path for decades, first advocating for the prosecution of many Ray victims and then fighting for fair compensation himself,” Mr. Magazanik said.

“Of course it was a rocky road for him and life was not easy as he struggled with deep-rooted damage.

“Now he has what he deserves and we are proud to have fought for him.”

“It is the largest publicly known payment to an abuse survivor in Australia.

“It represents the shocking damage the abuse has caused and the cost of beginning to restore my client’s life and return him to the position he would have been in if the school had protected him. “

Speaking to ABC Investigations, the man said he hoped his legal victory would inspire survivors who have lost faith in the justice system.

“I would strongly recommend that victims of sexual abuse seek legal advice and not pursue the national reparation route,” the man said.

“That is the most important thing I want to convey to other survivors.

“Trust your lawyer and get what you deserve, not what the government wants to give you.

“For me personally, an apology would never lead to closure. I was offered twice and I said no.”

“I wouldn’t be here anymore if I hadn’t found my faith. And that’s not for everyone either. But I had to become a Christian to have even a remote chance of surviving and finding a better way of life.”

“A bunch of adults in charge turned a blind eye”

Mr Magazanik said the epidemic of abuse at Beaumaris Primary School was a “shocking and monumental failure” and a microcosm of an education system that has repeatedly failed to protect children.

“It only happened because a few responsible adults turned a blind eye and the price of this blindness is enormous and continues to rise,” Mr. Magazanik said.

The man’s abuser, Darrell Ray, died in November 2023 while awaiting trial on 26 charges of indecent assault on a man, which followed a lengthy investigation by Victoria Police.

In 2001, Ray pleaded guilty to 27 counts of indecently assaulting 18 male pupils at Beaumaris Primary School and Tucker Road Primary School in Moorabbin between 1967 and 1976 and was sentenced to 44 months in prison with a minimum term of 17 months.

The rampant sexual abuse by Ray and three other former Beaumaris primary school teachers received greater attention in 2021 when former AFL star Rod Owen told the ABC his story of abuse by Ray at Beaumaris and on the St Kilda Little League team.

In 2023, Ray and three other pedophile teachers were the focus of the Victorian government’s commission of inquiry into the sexual abuse of schoolchildren at Beaumaris Primary and 23 other state schools.

It revealed decades of glaring failures and a “culture that placed the reputation of the education system above the safety of children.”

In response to the findings of the Beaumaris Inquiry, Victorian Premier Jactina Allen announced a $48 million “truth-clarification process” in June, admitting the state had “seriously and systematically” failed to protect children in state schools.

“We have failed to ensure the safety of these children,” Ms. Allan said in making the announcement.

“We didn’t listen when they spoke up. We have not acted to ensure this does not happen again.”

“What should have been a happy place became a place of horror for these victim-survivors.”

The government’s truth-telling process, which will include the first systematic review of the Victorian Department of Education’s failings, is open to survivors of sexual abuse in all state schools and is expected to be completed in 2026.