Former Choirboy: Pedophile Nun Raped Me When I Was 12 And Had My Baby

© press

A former choir boy has revealed how a pedophile nun repeatedly raped him when he just 12 years old before having his baby whilst living in a church-run home. 

Child abuse victim, Edward Hayes, claims he was abused for almost three years whilst he was staying a the John Reynolds Home in Lytham St Annes, Lancashire, a school run by Catholic nuns from the order of the Franciscan Missionaries of St Joseph.

Now 76 years old, Mr. Hayes has bravely exposed the depth of child abuse at John Reynolds Home by waiving his right to anonymity, revealing he was raped by 27-year-old Irish nun Sister Mary Conleth in the 1950's.

Hayes, who was just 10 years old at the time of his abuse, was taken into the home after suffering neglect from his immediate family. He soon found that, what appeared to his salvation, soon became his nightmare.

© press

"It was nice to be somewhere warm, where I was eating food and having hot baths. My first years there created some great memories for me." Hayes said

'I was a great student, I sang in the choir, I could read perfect Latin and playing football - even being touted by local football clubs.'

All that was to change when Irish nun Sister Mary Conleth arrived at the school. One day, Mr. Hayes was called to the laundry room to assist Conleth when the nightmare began to unfold.

'I had barely started work in the laundry when it happened. I was still twelve. She'd pull my trousers down, push me to the floor and lay on top of me.

'She would pull her habit up and she had no pants on. She'd talk dirty to me. I would not let her kiss me. I thought babies were made by men kissing women.' he said.

By the time he was 14, he had his own room allocated to him by the nun so she could carry on raping him.

Then one day in 1956, the nun declared she was pregnant, and the abuse abruptly ended as quickly as it at started.

"At the time I didn't even understand how I got her pregnant because I never kissed her. We were more naïve back then."

the nun was then sent back to Ireland to live with her sister and Mr. Hayes was banished from the home after Christmas in 1956.

Soon after being adopted by a family. Hayes fell into a chaotic life, where it became a full-blown alcoholic by the time he was 21.

After a string of failed marriages, Hayes joined the army to serve in the Royal Artillery but later left after developing an ulcer as a result of excessive drinking.

"I couldn't ever settle, every single day I thought about the abuse, I started drinking to try to blot everything out. I never told anybody what happened to me, not even my wife.

"I read an article about a Catholic Church abuse survivor and thought, 'I'm going to speak out, I need to do something about this."

© press

Hayes first went to the police to report the pedophile nun, then to a social worker, and his local MP, before finally contacting a Catholic care charity.

He was then directed to survivor group MACSAS (Minister and Clergy Sexual Abuse Survivors) and his life started to change.

Mr. Hayes met MACSAS volunteer Noel Chardon, a fellow survivor of Catholic Church pedophilia abuse, who helped him come to terms with his ordeal.

"Victims of the Catholic Church have treated absolutely appallingly. I know that first hand. Edward was set up in a cul-de-sac by the Catholic care charity who dumped him there. They are waiting for people like Edward, like myself, to die so they can say this all happened such a long time ago and they're so very sorry."

After filing a lawsuit against the church, Hayes received a paltry £20,000 but was swallowed up by his legal fees.

Mr. Hayes said: 'I was pleased to bring them to account but it was a pittance. I worked out they were giving me about 22p a day for my ordeal.

"I had to pay £10,000 to the solicitor and then I had costs of around £5,000 myself so I didn't come out with much at all."

"But at least I made them acknowledge what they had done to me. And now, as I speak publicly, I think will be the most satisfying of all."

"As for the nun, she died in 2002 so I might never find out what happened to the child. I am still speaking to organizations in Ireland. I have gotten used to being determined."

"I have been through hell for the majority of my life, trying to hide what happened to me."

'Nobody should go through that. Seeking retribution has been a great solace for me.'

A spokesman for the Sisters of the Franciscan Missionaries of St Joseph said: 'I am desperately sad abuse took place to Mr. Hayes while he was placed under our care.

'The Franciscan Missionaries of St Joseph have offered our sincere and unreserved apology for the abuse he suffered whilst resident at the John Reynolds Home and all the subsequent pain and trauma which followed the actual abuse.

'There is no place for abuse in the Church and along with every other agency caring for children and vulnerable adults we now have stringent Safeguarding policies which aim to prevent any possible recurrence of what happened to Mr. Hayes.'