A teacher who had a sexual relationship with a student and tried to conceal it after he was seen kissing her in a pub has been permanently banned from the profession.
Joshua Reed, 32, was employed as a music teacher at Haven High Academy, Lincolnshire, from 2010 and became assistant head of the music faculty from 2016, until his dismissal in March 2019.
Between March 2014 and April 2015 he had a sexual relationship with a student, which he had continued despite written advice from the school not be alone with her.
The relationship was first investigated by the school in 2014 after a colleague saw Mr Reed kissing the student while in a pub with other staff and students after a school social event.
But Mr Reed tried to conceal the full extent of the relationship during the investigation, and failed to comply with advice issued to him by the school that said he should not be alone with the student and not exchange mobile numbers.
Teacher entered pub toilets with school student
The Teaching Regulation Agency panel report notes: “His unprofessional conduct lasted for over a year, and had an adverse impact on [the student’s] wellbeing both at the time and subsequently.”
The allegations, to which Mr Reed made “full admissions”, included directing the student to drive him to local woods and engaging in a sexual activity with her, entering the ladies’ toilet of a pub with her, and discussing sexual activity and sending messages to her while drunk.
The report notes: “This was outside school premises and hours. Mr Reed and/or [the student] had consumed alcohol, sometimes to excess, on some of the occasions when the messaging and/or sexual activity took place.”
During an investigation meeting at the school in September 2014, Mr Reed denied having exchanged phone numbers with the student and denied having contacted her after the incident at the pub, in which a colleague saw them kissing.
However, as the panel report notes, after the incident he messaged her to ask what she had told his colleague about the incident, and asked her to “cover” for him. Mr Reed admitted the allegations “unequivocally”.
He also tried to conceal the relationship by instructing her not to tell anyone about it, to delete messages and not to attend a play at the school campus in July 2014.
When advising a permanent ban, the panel noted: “Mr Reed has made full admissions, but the panel was not satisfied that there were any genuine indicators of remorse or insight into the effect of his conduct on [the student]. His apology focused on the impact on himself, not [the student] or the wider public interest.”
