Paddy Randles facts for kids
Patrick A. Randles (born 1924 – died 12 July 2017) was an Irish general practitioner (a family doctor). He was also a strong campaigner against corporal punishment, which means physical punishment in schools. In 1969, he brought worldwide attention to how children were being physically punished in Irish schools. This happened after he found a 9-year-old patient with an injured arm who had been beaten by his teacher. The boy was punished because his handwriting was messy.
Biography of Patrick Randles
After becoming a doctor, Randles first worked in England. He was very interested in how children think and behave (child psychology). He noticed that English children seemed confident. This was different from what he saw later in his own practice in Navan, County Meath, Ireland, during the 1960s. He felt that children in Ireland often had lower self-esteem. He also saw a big difference in how parents treated their children.
Some parents told him that their children were being physically punished at the De La Salle School in Navan. One boy, 9-year-old Norman Murray, had hurt his right wrist in a fall. He tried to write with his left hand. His teacher then hit him several times on his injured right wrist with a rubber hosepipe. This was a punishment for his messy handwriting. Norman's mother asked Dr. Randles for a note to show the school Brother. She wanted them to hit her son on his left wrist instead, because his right one was too painful.
Campaign Against Corporal Punishment
Dr. Randles visited the school to complain. He spoke to the headteacher, Brother Damien. Brother Damien showed him the strap he used for punishment, which had coins sewn into it to make it heavier. Dr. Randles told Brother Damien that he would work to stop this kind of punishment.
He started collecting statements from parents who visited his doctor's office. He sent these stories to Irish newspapers, but none of them published the information. However, a British newspaper called the News of the World became interested. This newspaper was also sold in Ireland. They sent reporters to Navan. On 4 May 1969, the newspaper published a story titled 'Children Under The Lash'. It talked about corporal punishment in both the UK and Ireland. The article mentioned that some students at De La Salle school refused to go to class or even ran away from home. It also said that staff used custom-made straps for punishment.
Most people in Navan did not see this story. Bundles of the newspapers were stolen before newsagents could sell them. This happened during the three weeks that the story was covered. A week after the News of the World article, the local newspaper, the Meath Chronicle, published a story. It featured a group of former students who supported the school. They were quoted saying, "We fully appreciate the work of the De La Salle Brothers for the past 52 years in Navan." They also said, "we reassure them of our continued loyalty and our confidence in their work for the boys of Navan, both inside and outside the school."
Norman Murray's mother was asked to meet the local Roman Catholic bishop, John McCormack. The bishop asked her not to talk about the issue anymore, but she refused. Dr. Randles and his wife, Mary Randles, who was an expert in family planning, faced strong opposition. They received warnings and faced difficulties. Some people in the community avoided them. Negative comments were even made about them during church services and by nuns in schools.
Legacy of Patrick Randles
The De La Salle Brothers left the school in 1976. Dr. Randles continued to work in Navan. His wife, Mary Randles, said that the "stain" of their campaign affected them sometimes for decades afterwards. In 1982, corporal punishment was officially stopped in all Irish schools.
Patrick Randles passed away in 2017. He was survived by his wife. A special bench with a brass plaque was put in his honor. Councillor Tommy Reilly, who was the Mayor of Navan, unveiled it.
