Supervision could have saved teen - report

Ross Kimpton. Photo / Supplied

Members of a school 1st XV with a booze "culture" were left to drink unsupervised for three hours in London on the night a teen sleepwalked to his death.

A report into the death of Howick College rugby player Ross Kimpton, 17, said it was conceivable he would still be alive if they had been in the care of adults.

When the board tried to bring the boys home after the death, parents of other players threatened legal action and forced the tour to continue.

The report, obtained under the Official Information Act, revealed the board of trustees had concerns about the team drinking and about what happened after Ross's death.

Its author, Auckland barrister Nigel Dunlop, said there was an indication students continued to drink after the tragedy and he urged the Education Ministry to give schools detailed guidelines for trips.

Ross' father Murray Kimpton welcomed the tough new rules proposed by Dunlop: "They can only do good," he told the Herald on Sunday.

Ross was among 24 Howick College students aged 15-18 and five adults who arrived in the UK in September 2007 for a two-week tour.

Dunlop's report said: "The board's concerns that the students not take drugs or consume alcohol on the trip was emphasised to the tour organisers. The board understood drinking to be part of the 'culture' of the 1st XV."

The day after they arrived the students were given £10 and three hours of free time. "Some or all" went to an inner-city London pub where they drank and watched a rugby game on TV. The teacher in charge of the tour, Brett Rossoman, had gone out for dinner.

Some students continued drinking after returning to the hotel. In the early hours of the morning, Ross climbed out of a fourth-floor window and fell 15m to his death.

A post mortem examination revealed he was 2 times above the legal limit for driving. An inquest was told alcohol, jetlag and being in a foreign country had put him at risk of sleepwalking.

Dunlop stated: "It is conceivable that had the students been directly supervised on the night of 21 September 2007 they would not have acquired and consumed alcohol and [Ross Kimpton] would not have sleepwalked to his death."

Rossoman said last week he "wouldn't change a thing" about the tour. He said some parents wanted their children to have the freedom to drink and he respected that.

Rossoman added Ross' death was about a sleepwalking tragedy and not alcohol consumption. He said he told off the students when he found them drinking.

A parent on the tour, who refused to be named, said the tour was run well. He said: "The problems we had were with the board of trustees."

Howick College board chairman Wayne Johnson said the school had updated its policies and procedures but refused to comment further.

Despite Dunlop's conclusions, the Education Ministry refused to make anyone available for interview and ignored certain written questions.

Rawiri Brell, a deputy secretary, said there was no place for alcohol or drugs on a school trip and responsibility for supervision extended into recreation times.

He refused to explain why none of the children on the trip was interviewed for Dunlop's report, which was spurred by former teacher Raymond Lewis' complaints about "gross mismanagement" of the trip.

Lewis won a claim for unjustified dismissal after arguing he was ousted for raising concerns including issues around Ross' death.

Director's tour fear

Howick College's director of sport pulled out of the ill-fated rugby tour to the UK and Ireland because he "feared something could happen".

Speaking for the first time about the incident, Chris Hull said everyone involved in the tour was still deeply affected by the death of Ross Kimpton.

Hull had fundraised endlessly for the trip but withdrew after becoming concerned about the way the tour was going to be run.

He told school management about rumours the students were "going to get on the 'large' ... as soon as they got there" and later heard they consumed "vast amounts of alcohol" on the tour.

He said he respected the boys on the tour "but everyone knew they would drink on Saturday nights".

After Kimpton's death, the school placed a cloak of secrecy over the incident, said Hull.

"It was all swept under the carpet," he said.

When the boys got home they were taken to Kimpton's gravesite where two were so overwhelmed they fainted. Some of them later broke down in Hull's office.

Hull said he lost friends over his stance on the tour, including tour organiser Brett Rossoman who works at the school.

"Brett was a good friend of mine before the tour; subsequently we've never spoken. I'll never rest over it - some things weren't dealt with properly.

"A lot of parents were upset that I wanted the tour to come home. I didn't think they appreciated a young man had died. I've been in the game for a good number of years. I know when a young man dies you come home with him."

Hull sought "words of wisdom" from friends and former All Blacks Buck Shelford and Ian Jones on what should happen and they agreed the boys should return.

At the time, Hull said Ross' father Murray Kimpton told him he didn't have a problem with the boys' drinking, rather the lack of supervision.

It is understood the family don't blame anyone for the death and are trying to move on. Hull stressed the school had improved its practices after the death. He said he was not blaming anyone by speaking out.