Former soldier and teacher admits sexually assaulting pupil in Norfolk
The judge has warned Simon Taylor that a prison sentence is the likely outcome.
A former soldier who became a teacher has admitted sexually assaulting a teenage pupil while working at Hethersett Academy in Norfolk.
Simon Taylor, 43, pleaded guilty to offences that took place over more than two years. Norwich Crown Court heard that the married father, who lost part of his leg while serving in Afghanistan in 2009, “groomed” the girl and continued the offending even after she had left the school.
Reading her victim impact statement in court, the girl said:
"My childhood was stolen from me. I never had the chance to be a normal teenager."
Prosecutor Isobel Ascherson told the court that Taylor made the victim believe “he was the only one who cared or could help her,” regularly contacting her through the school’s messaging platform.
Despite receiving a written warning, Taylor’s inappropriate contact with the girl continued. He admitted to five offences at an earlier hearing, including sexual activity with a child by a person in a position of trust after touching her thigh under her skirt at school.
Taylor also pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual communication with a child and two counts of sexual assault. These include instances of Taylor touching the girl’s breasts, both while she was still at school and after she had left. One incident occurred in a car.
The victim reported Taylor to the police in 2022 and told his wife what had happened.
Richard English KC, mitigating, said that Taylor accepts the harm caused but noted his mental health may have contributed, though Taylor does not blame his actions on the injury sustained during his military service.
Judge Andrew Shaw adjourned the hearing until Tuesday but warned Taylor that “immediate custody remains the likeliest outcome.”
Taylor remains on bail until the sentencing hearing.