Barnet Council has apologised after three former council workers were convicted of 28 counts of historic sexual abuse.

Colwyn Baker, David Hennessy and Nigel Putman worked as residential care officers at Swaylands School in Penshurst, Kent, which looked after vulnerable boys.

The school, now closed, was run by Barnet Council from 1968 to 1994, and the three men were yesterday convicted of abuse dating from throughout much of this period.

Leader of Barnet Council Councillor Richard Cornelius said: “Every member of this council takes their role in safeguarding young people very seriously indeed. It is at the heart of our responsibility as councillors.

“We have obviously reviewed what happened in the past, but it’s also important we constantly review our practices and look at what has, and hasn’t, worked for councils elsewhere in the country.

"We now have a multi-agency safeguarding team which makes sure all of the agencies responsible for child protection in the borough share their information. We have also looked at what Barnet can learn from the failure of authorities such as Rotherham to make sure we are doing our best to protect young people from the risk of grooming."

A council spokesman said: “No child should have their life scarred by sexual abuse and today's verdicts underline the importance of making sure that historic child abuse allegations are properly investigated and prosecutions brought, no matter how long ago the abuse took place. Everyone at this council is truly sorry that young boys suffered in this way.

“Thankfully this model of council run distant boarding schools for vulnerable children has long gone. Barnet today has two residential children's homes, both within the borough.

“The evidence given by the ex-pupils of Swaylands emphasises the importance of children being listened to and believed. Today, children in care in Barnet can speak up safely through The Role Model Army, our children in care council, which meets regularly with senior council staff, through the borough's youth safeguarding board, and through regular and frequent contact with their social worker and independent inspections. This is very different from how services operated in the past.

“However, the challenge of sexual abuse has not disappeared. The internet has opened up new avenues for abuse and events in Rotherham demonstrate just how many young people remain at risk of abuse.

“This case emphasises that no one should shy away from addressing cases of historical child abuse. There is a continuing need to learn lessons from the past if we are to keep children safe now and into the future, as well as ensuring that we are providing the support victims of abuse continue to need.”