School, which prides itself on military traditions, has denied all allegations

Ms Austin has been suspended from £45,000 post and arrested, along with parent, Georgina Halford-Hall, for handling stolen documents

Staff at a boarding school for children from military families have been accused of creating a ‘climate of fear’ in which pupils were kept in solitary confinement.

Children were also made to sit on a hard chair facing a wall for hours in silence, according to former parents and pupils at the Duke of York’s Royal Military School – run by the ex husband of former BBC newscaster Jan Leeming.

Another alleged punishment involved pupils having to keep their mouths filled with water while performing a task such as collecting litter.

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Denied accusations: Chris Russell, headmaster at the Duke of York’s Royal Military School in Dover, pictured in 1999 with his then wife Jan Leeming.

But when teacher Tracy Austin spoke out about the treatment of pupils, she was arrested by police, along with a parent, accused of the theft of confidential documents.

According to Ms Austin, one teacher was sent to a hotel during an Ofsted visit because the school didn’t want inspectors to discover he had not undergone a Criminal Records Bureau check.

The Duke of York’s school denies all the allegations.

The school, in Dover, prides itself on its military traditions. Its most recent Ofsted report says pupils are happy and well looked after, with school life ‘underpinned by caring and aspirational values’.

But some parents claim incidents of bullying and self-harm by pupils have been covered up in an attempt to protect the school’s reputation.

The school has Academy status and is partly funded by the Ministry of Defence, with service families paying just over £1,000 a year in boarding fees.

Allegations: The Duke of York's Royal Military School in Dover has been accused of creating a 'climate of fear'

Ms Austin, who was suspended in May after three years in her £45,000-a-year job, says pupils, parents and teachers have been discouraged from speaking out.

The MoS has seen a school log book showing students were punished with something called a ‘custodial’.

Ms Austin says this involved them eating, sleeping and studying alone in a cubicle, furnished only with a bed, adjoining the school’s medical centre.

Rachael Ward, whose 12-year-old son was punished in this way, said: ‘He was marched to the sanatorium and shoved in this little room. No one was with him. He could have done anything. He could have taken his shoelaces and hung himself and we would be none the wiser.

‘He was stuck there for four hours until we came to collect him.’ Neither Ms Austin nor Georgina Halford-Hall, the parent also accused of handling stolen documents, has been charged. Both are on police bail until September 19.

The school’s executive principal Chris Russell was married for four years Ms Leeming. They separated in 2001. For the school, public relations firm Edwards Harvey said: ‘As criminal proceedings are active, the school cannot comment on issues that would affect these cases.