Teacher banned for explicit photos
A Northants teacher has been banned indefinitely from the profession after taking indecent photographs of a child
A former Northamptonshire teacher has been banned from the profession indefinitely after he was found with indecent images of children. A teaching watchdog ruled Stuart Davies’ actions to be “calculated and motivated”.
The 40-year-old was formerly employed by Beachborough School, near Brackley, as a peripatetic musician. He was dismissed after seven years of teaching in July 2021, following his arrest by Northamptonshire Police over uploading photographs of children to an online platform, Discord.
In March 2023 Davies was convicted at Northampton Crown Court of three offences of taking indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of a child and three offences of making indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of children.
A Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) panel heard Davies had received a suspended prison sentence following the conviction.
Now the teaching watchdog has banned him for life from all schools and children’s homes in England.
Davies was absent from the hearing and did not provide any written submission. The TRA found there was no evidence that Davies’ actions were not deliberate and could not consider any mitigating circumstances due to his lack of engagement.
The panel found that Davies was in breach of many professional standards and that there was a “strong public interest consideration in respect of the safeguarding and wellbeing of pupils, given the serious findings of seriously inappropriate and sexual behaviour towards children”.
It also considered that the public confidence in the profession could be seriously weakened if conduct such as that found against Davies were not treated with the “utmost seriousness”.
The panel ruled that Davies should be “prohibited from teaching indefinitely and cannot teach in any school, sixth form college, relevant youth accommodation or children’s home in England”.
It also said that, in view of the seriousness of his actions, he would not be entitled to apply to teach again. The decision has been confirmed by the Secretary of State.