A teacher at one of Scotland’s leading private schools has been struck off after she admitted having sex with teenage pupils.*
The unnamed woman said she had had repeated liaisons with a number of boys at the school in Edinburgh between 2014 and 2015. The pupils involved were aged between 17 and 18.*
At a hearing the woman, who was 34 at the time, also admitted sending sexually explicit videos to a pupil.*
Details of the case were heard yesterday in Edinburgh at the General Teaching Council for Scotland, where the identity of the teacher and the school were not disclosed.
The council accepted a 'removal with consent' order after the teacher, identified only as Respondent A, admitted the charges and agreed to be struck off.
The charges stated: “Whilst employed as a teacher... in the knowledge that pupils were not permitted to leave the school premises, you did repeatedly permit the pupils to leave the school premises through your residence at the school and in so doing you did breach the school’s residency policy.”
A second charge stated: “During the 2014-15 school session, whilst employed as a teacher at the school, you did on school premises repeatedly engage in sexual intercourse with male pupils who were then aged between 17 and 18 years of age."*
“During February 2015, whilst employed as a teacher at the school you did repeatedly send, by electronic means, videos of a sexually explicit nature to a male pupil.”*
The council approved an application from the teacher for the entire hearing to be held in private on the grounds of protecting vulnerable pupils, but that decision has been criticised by a charity for sexual abuse victims.
A spokeswoman for the Survivors Trust said: “In our experience we have seen the benefits of naming an alleged offender of a sexual offence as it allows other people who’ve witnessed this teacher’s behaviour and indeed other victims to come forward and inform the police. This may be unlikely if the name of the teacher and/or school is not publicised. We hope the case has been passed to the police in order that a full investigation can be carried out to ascertain the facts.”
A spokesman for the teachers’ council said: “Our Fitness to Teach panels consider a range of evidence including the risk of vulnerable witnesses being identified when taking the decision to hold any hearing in private. The panel will publish an outcome following the conclusion of this hearing which will explain more about its decision.”
A Crown Office spokesman said yesterday: “The procurator fiscal received a report concerning a 34-year-old woman in connection with alleged incidents in January and February 2015.
“There are currently no proceedings but the Crown reserves the right to raise proceedings should further evidence become available.”
A member of staff at the school declined to comment when contacted last night.
*Coverage of this case is truly awful. Somehow Merchiston and the GTCS both managed to suppress the fact that the teacher in question was also Merchiston's Child Protection Officer.
