ALISTAIR PERRY, FORMER HEADTEACHER FROM BRISTOL, HAS SENTENCE REDUCED BY APPEAL COURT

A former headteacher, Alistair Perry, who was jailed for sexually assaulting a teenage girl, has seen his prison sentence reduced by senior judges. Perry, 47, who previously served as the executive principal at Colston’s Girls’ School in Bristol, was originally sentenced to 28 months in jail in July last year after being convicted of two counts of indecent assault. He had denied twice that he preyed on his then-16-year-old victim, but a jury found him guilty, with evidence including the victim’s statement that his "hands were everywhere." During the trial, it emerged that the girl had gone to Perry's house in Weston-super-Mare for maths tuition just days before her GCSEs. The court learned that her parents had trusted Perry as a friend and had started revising in his small home office. However, while Perry's wife and parents-in-law were downstairs, he moved the session to his bedroom and subjected her to sexual assault. The second incident occurred when she returned to his home to babysit Perry’s son. On crutches at the time, the girl was sitting on the sofa watching TV when Perry came downstairs, lifted her onto his lap, and touched her under her bra and underwear while holding her with one hand, as she told officers. The victim later disclosed the abuse to her father, who chose not to call the police due to concerns about "invasive questioning," Cardiff Crown Court was told. It was also revealed that members of the church both families attended, which cannot be named to protect the victim’s identity, knew about the abuse but opted not to report it, believing it was a matter between Perry and God. Last year, governors of Colston’s Girls' School submitted character references describing Perry as an "honest" and "hardworking" individual—descriptions that a former pupil testified to including Perry making "sexual jokes" and looking down girls’ tops. On January 29, the London Court of Appeal was informed that the victim reported her abuse to police years later after encouragement from a psychiatrist. Perry’s lawyers, from Colaton Raleigh in east Devon, argued during the appeal that his "glowing references" and "model behavior" in prison should be considered. Mr. Justice Sweeney acknowledged Perry’s reputation but stated, "his fall from grace has been considerable," and noted Perry's capacity for rehabilitation. He emphasized that Perry was solely responsible for his actions, which led to his downfall, describing the case as a "tragedy" for all involved. The court ultimately ruled that Perry’s original 28-month sentence was excessive and reduced it to 20 months. Commenting on Perry's sentencing, an NSPCC spokesperson for the South West stated, "Perry held a position of great trust and responsibility over children for many years but carried out an appalling attack on a child for his own sexual gratification. It is right that he has now faced justice for his disgraceful actions, and this case should reassure victims that they will be listened to and believed if they come forward to report non-recent child sexual abuse. We hope the victim is now receiving support to recover from what happened to her."