The Kington Times - April 30, 1927.

A Drive to Leominster.
Former Rector of Broadwas sent to Prison.

At Worcester County Petty Sessions, on Tuesday, Alfred Charles Style, formerly rector of Broadwas, Worcestershire, was charged with indecently assaulting four girls at Broadwas between July 31 and November 19 last. Mr G. W. Hobson prosecuted and Mr. A. A, Maund defended.

Prisoner wore dark clerical-grey clothing, but ordinary collar and tie.

The age of the girls were given as, 12, 11, 10 and 9.

Opening the case, Mr. Hobson said the charges were very serious ones to be brought against anybody, more particularly agains a clergyman, and it would be his painful duty to ask the Bench to say, when they had heard the evidence, if his instructions were correct, that the defendant had over and over again interfered with and assaulted, in particular, these four girls. This children attended Broadwas school and were Sunday school scholars. Defendant was the rector and was in the habit of having them at the Rectory to tea in the evening, sometimes on week-days, sometimes on Sundays, sometimes two, sometimes three. On more than one occasion he interfered with them. Mr. Hobson went on to describe certain alleged actions of accused in his bedroom and bathroom. This filthy and objectionable things went on, but it was to defendant's credit that he never hurt the children. He seemed to have treated them gently. He was accustomed to take them rides in his car. There were no suggestions of anything wrong in these except that it showed extraordinary relationship between this rector and these little girls.

This sort of thing seemed to have gone on for weeks and one girl would speak to Style interfering with her on three occasions. In his car he took them to Kidderminster, Leominster, and Knightwick. Altogether his behaviour was very extraordinary and extended over months. Nothing was said by the girls to their parents until rumours got about. Ultimately they made statements to the school mistress. She asked the girls to write down some of the things the Rector had done and they did so. The police were informed, and defendant was interviewed at 10 o'clock at Broadwas Rectory on December 10th.

Summonses issued were made returnable for January 4th, but the police were unable to serve these summonses, as defendant had left the district. It was not until quite recently that the police ascertained, or heard, that defendant was still in the country; at Bournemouth. He was taken into custody by inspector Davis, and when an accusation regarding just one girl was read over to him he said that it was false.

Five little girls gave evidence of the rector behaving indecently.

At this stage Mr. Maund was allowed to call the Rev. W. H. Neales, the Vicar of Cleeve Prior, who wished to get away to catch a train. Mr. Neales said he was formerly rector of St. Clements, Worcester, and had known Style for 40 years. He could say with absolute positiveness that he had never heard Style say anything indecent or unclean; had never heard him express a base thought or make a base jest. Style's life so far as he had seen had been absolutely blameless.

Miss Alice Bessie Hobbs, the schoolmistress, said she was staggered when the children told her of the rector's conduct. She advised them to tell their parents, but they said later they had only told them part. She told them to write down anything they wanted to about the rector, and the children's notes produced were the result. She did not go near the children while they were writing.

Cross-examined, the Rector had been very kind to all the forty odd children at the school, and had had many of them to tea and had taken many for drives. She denied that she offered one penny to any child who would say something against the Rector. She knew the children had a secret and offered one penny for anybody who would tell her what it was. When she heard the children's stories she doubted their truth and that was why she referred the children to their parents.

Charles Sydney Ganderton, farmer, Brooks farm, Broadwas, people's warden, said he took copies of three of the children's statements and asked the Rector if they were true. He replied that some were true, but some wren a pack of lies.
Inspector Davis said when he interviewed defendant on December 10th he did not deny the accusations, but said: "I think that, having resigned, it would be better for all parties if no proceedings were taken."

For the defence, Mr. Maund said this was not a case where one could convict of indecent assault. For years Mr. Style had been known for his fondness of children and the work he had done for them, and there had been no ground for any suggestion of improper conduct hitherto, He was getting on in years, was not a married man, and living a long life at Broadwas rectory, he probably tried to solace himself by romping and playing with children. In the course of the romping there might have been more horse play than one would always approve of, but there had been no suggestion of indecent assault in the ordinary sense. There must be some misunderstanding with Mr. Ganderton in the matter of the bathroom incident, for the defendant denied. Mr. Maund suggested that the children's stories were exaggerations created through their own imaginations.

Mr. Style did not go in the box.

The bench said they had considered this unfortunate and distressing case carefully and convicted the defendant on all four charges. He would be sentenced to a month's imprisonment in the second division in each case, the sentences to run consecutively.