Epsom College tragedy

[Bambala]

I was horrified to read the story about the headteacher and family dying this morning, this poor family and I can't stop thinking about how the children at school must feel learning about this tragedy. I am sure the staff there are being brilliant at supporting them. I remember hearing that my old headteacher had died after I left school and even then being really shocked and upset.

Do we actually know what happened yet?

Or is this pure speculation?

Either way these types of threads are wrong on every level

You missed out the vaccine emoji's 🙄

No they didn’t mean that 🤦‍♀️

There was a thread about this last night,MN deleted it,hopefully this one will be as well.

Where has it been confirmed that a main did this awful crime?

This thread is tacky and should be pulled - did any of you think the families may be reading this?

Says the person posting on it…

Yes, realised that now! But to be fair, that exact line is normally in reference to vaccines.

Sorry to person I quoted originally

Yes that’s true to be fair

I'm not making distasteful speculative remarks, though, am I?

@Southeastdweller i hadn’t thought of that I will ask for it to be taken down. I suppose I just like being able to talk about things that upset me and with no adults around me today I thought mumsnet was good place. It was quite triggering to me to think about this man potentially being the perpetrator as when I was at boarding school we had a housemaster and his wife should not have been there - she didn’t work at the school she came with him as a package and she was a very negative and damaging figure - it didn’t end like this thank goodness but I have always felt it is strange that at boarding school people who are married to teachers/housemasters/heads etc become so involved in the school life.
I will ask for it to be deleted out of respect for the family, sorry if I offended anyone.

MN have deleted 3 threads since last night.

I wouldn't imagine the families are browsing MN this morning.

So it shouldn't be talked about at all? People are making assumptions on the NB thread and it's not been deleted has it? They just delete comments of that nature. I think It's OK to discuss this so long we remain respectful.

My feeling is that roughly what happens is the annihilator, because his identity is so strongly invested in having a certain status in life his psyche completely collapses when this is under threat, he no longer views his wife and children as people instead they become possessions which he wants to take with him.
Not trying to justify in any way, this is a horrific and awful tragedy, the appalling destruction perpetrated by men appears to know no bounds.

It's very common in the private educational sector. Gun ranges are quite a draw for some pupils.

And before it goes... I don't think the authorities have got how they reveal details right in a range of headline hitting cases. It may be that this is HOW things have to be done, but news and speculation cycles are so short today. After reporting that something has happened it would head off a lot of speculation and online weirdness if it was followed up in fairly short order by 'it would seem that [whatever] but Police are keeping an open mind are appeal for any information others might have about whatever else]'.

Currently we have 'something has happened and... [silence] interpreted as 'off you go with the speculation and accusations]'.

Highly unlikely if the family have just suffered an unexpected possibly violent bereavement they'll be logging on for a trawl through this cess pit of opinions

The telegraph have reported that gunshots were heard by a member of staff in the middle of the night who then called emergency services.

You have absolutely no idea what these people will be doing, they've likely been awake all night and may be trawling pointless sites, with a view that any mundane shit may take switch their minds off for 30 seconds.

Grief takes on all different guises.

So it's hardly speculation then is it?

I think the wording the police used is etiquette for family annihilation though.

As PP have pointed out, if it was a gas leak or carbon monoxide poisoning it would be worded differently.

For me, the tasteless part is speculating despite what the police have said.

Very normal with most big independent schools.

My state grammar had two rifle ranges on site, as did my prep school.

We spent Wednesday afternoons doing CCF, either Army or RAF and we were all trained to shoot.

My DD isn't at a school with either CCF or a range, so she's learned to shoot outside school. It makes children far less likely to have accidents should they ever come across a gun.