Headmaster at top private school says men accusing him of sex attacks were 'frustrated underachievers looking for an excuse'

Roland Wright, 82, worked at Caldicott Prep School from 1959 until 1993
Denies 13 charges of indecent assault and two of indecency with a child
Claimed allegations he sexually abused his pupils were malicious
Elite prep school counts deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg among alumni

PUBLISHED: 11:20 EST, 31 May 2013 | UPDATED: 12:16 EST, 31 May 2013

'Absurd': Roland Wright, 82, denies 13 charges of indecent assault and two of indecency with a child

A former headmaster of a top private school today claimed allegations that he sexually abused his pupils had been made up by 'frustrated under-achievers looking for an excuse'.

Roland Peter Wright, 82, today denied the charges against him as he told a jury that he had never touched any boys at Caldicott Perparatory school.

He claimed the accusations against him were malicious and denied any impropriety during the period in question from 1959 to 1970.

'I've had the experience of being school governor at five different schools where there have been instances of this nature,' Wright told a jury at Aylesbury Crown Court.

'They were all concerning men in their 40s and 50s who had not achieved as much as they would have liked to achieve.'

When prosecutor John Price said that his stance was 'absurd' Wright responded saying: 'It's not absurd, because it's true.'

Wright, is facing 13 charges of indecent assault and two of indecency with a child at the school where Nick Clegg was a pupil.

Wright was asked about an allegation that he once stroked the inside of a boy's groin in his car as he drove him home after a rugby match.

He replied: 'I deny that. I might have patted him or touched him, but not stroked. There's a big difference there. Tapping and patting are not sensual, but stroking is.'

The jury has been told Wright encouraged an atmosphere of sexual freedom among the boys at the school, and abused boys as they slept at night in their dormitories, touched them in his car, and on a school trip to Scotland.

Some of the alleged sexual encounters were said to have taken place at his teacher's cottage where he still lives near the school grounds in Crown Lane, Farnham Royal.

Police started investigating the well-known headmaster in 2001, when five former boys claimed they were molested at the school.

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Although 12 boys eventually made accusations against him, Wright was charged in August last year for allegations relating to seven of the children - now aged in their late 50s or 60s. None of the men can be named for legal reasons.

Some of the accusers played for the school's rugby team, and the jury heard their names appear in meticulous handwritten records Wright made of matches which were kept in faded exercise books in a desk draw in his personal study.

Wright was accused of not mentioning the records to police officers, which he said he had moved from his desk to a cupboard following his arrest in November 2011.

However, the former teacher claimed it was the police's fault that the books had not come to light until the trial was into its seventh week.

Wright said: 'I did not conceal them... I did not suppress them. It was just a complete botched search. I was amazed to discover all my information from the school was still intact. It could have been easily found and it was not hidden.'

He also admitted he had had a recent 'clear out' of rubbish, which included throwing away calendars from his time at Caldicott.

Wright taught at the school from 1952 and became headteacher in 1968 until his retirement in 1993.

'Absurd': The retired headteacher told a jury he never touched any boys at the exlusive prep school in a 'sensual' way

Police began investigating him in 2001 after one former pupil told his doctor that he had been abused.

The jury has heard the victims had described Wright as 'gentle' towards them, and would not threaten them.
One, who is the subject of two current charges, even described him as 'inspirational'.

Another pupil, who later enjoyed success as an amateur rugby player, attributed this to Wright, who coached the school's team as well as teaching French.

The victim, who is not one of the seven on the indictment, revealed that the abuse had taken place.

However, he was reluctant to initially lay the blame with Wright as he had been a family friend as well as a teacher.

One fellow pupil had witnessed Wright touching that boy's penis while on a school trip to Scotland - but left the hotel room once he realised what was happening and said that nothing was ever said about what had occurred.

All of the allegations relate to Wright's tenure at prestigious Caldicott Preparatory School, which was founded in Hitchin, Hertfordshire in 1904 and moved to its present site in 1938. It became a charitable trust in 1968.

The £20,000 per year school, which has capacity for 240 boys aged between seven and 13, boasts 40 acres of grounds and playing fields.

Many pupils go on to elite secondar schools including Harrow, Eton and Wellington College.

Caldicott counts deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg among its high-profile alumni, along with former England cricket captain Andrew Strauss and actor Ed Stoppard - the son of playwright Tom.

Clegg joined the school as a pupil in 1975 before later moving to the prestigious Westminster School.
The trial continues.