Teacher Richard Robin Greenwood was babysitting the boy at the time of the offence

The parents of a child who had his wrists and ankles bound together with cable ties by a private school teacher have expressed their dismay that he was cleared by a sheriff and is continuing to teach.

Richard Robin Greenwood was found guilty of assaulting the seven-year-old boy following a three-day trial at Edinburgh Sheriff Court.

However, Sheriff Peter McCormack admonished Greenwood and granted him an absolute discharge, saying the court proceedings had been a “lesson learned”.

The child’s father and stepmother said they cannot understand why the court did not punish Greenwood - nor why he is still allowed to work at the prestigious Merchiston Castle School.

His father, who cannot be named for legal reasons, described his son as “distressed and distraught” when recalling the incident, which the parents first became aware of in 2023.

The couple were watching a film with the boy and his brother - aged seven and 10 at the time - at a house in Fife when a scene in the movie prompted the older boy to say to his sibling: “That’s like what happened with you.”

“Of course, we paused the film because there was obviously something that needed to be teased out here,” the father said.

“My son’s face changed. He instantly looked shocked, and he said, "I don't like to talk about that’.

“It was obvious to us that he was distressed and distraught.”

Greenwood, of Edinburgh, had been asked to babysit the boys when their mother went out one evening.

The father added: “My youngest son is very attached to his mum and getting quite stressed by the fact she had gone out,” the dad added.

“He made an attempt to leave the house and said he was going to go and find her on the bus."

Greenwood, who has been teaching for 18 years, then left the room, returned with cable ties and bound his wrists and ankles.

The teacher claimed in court it was a game of “cops and robbers”, with the child laughing as he was tied up.

The court proceedings also involved a second child, who Greenwood was accused of pushing and causing to fall and strike their face and forcing their arms behind their back at a separate address in Edinburgh. He was found not guilty of those charges.

The father described the court proceedings as “just surreal”.

He added: “The sheriff believed the information given about the use of cable ties but had to decide whether it had been done as a game or not.

“Essentially a child cannot consent to being placed in restraints in that manner.”

In his ruling, the sheriff said the cable tie incident was a one-off lapse in judgement and that Greenwood, a chemistry teacher, had learned his lesson.

The father added: “It was extremely frustrating to hear that a teacher, who is a caretaker of children, has just been found guilty of assaulting a child, but to not impact on his career teaching and being around children.

“I would have hoped for an acknowledgement of the gravity of what happened, it warranted more than just essentially a slap on the wrist.

“It was a guilty verdict, but ultimately there's not really a consequence as a result.”

A spokeswoman for Merchiston Castle School said the school had “noted” the court verdict.

She said the case did not involve pupils from or any allegations connected to the school and was a matter “related entirely to circumstances outside any professional setting” and that safeguarding responsibilities and specialist advice had been taken into account.

The General Teaching Council for Scotland said it could not comment on individual cases but it is understood no action is being taken against Greenwood.