A secondary school teacher who had sexual relations with a 14-year-old Stockton boy has been found guilty of “unacceptable professional conduct”.
Andrew James Duffell, a former ICT teacher at Easingwold School, was also ruled to have brought the teaching profession “into disrepute” by his actions.
The 29-year-old faced a hearing at the National College of Teaching and Leadership (NCTL) yesterday over allegations he struck up a relationship with the Stockton boy, first via social media and texts, then in person in 2012.
His sexual activity with the schoolboy, who was not an Easingwold student, was exposed when the youngster’s mother discovered “inappropriate messages” between Mr Duffell and her son.
The NCTL panel heard that from the content of the text messages she had seen on her son’s phone, the boy’s mother “considered that there was a serious risk that Mr Duffell had been grooming her son or treating him in a predatory manner”.
Cleveland Police immediately launched an investigation and he was suspended by Easingwold School.
Mr Duffell - who had been promoted to the post of assistant principal teacher in business and enterprise in 2011 - resigned from his position in September 2013.
In December of that year he was informed that police would take no further action in relation to the allegations against him.
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When interviewed by police Mr Duffell said he assumed the boy was 16 as “this was stated on his Facebook profile” and he claimed the boy had told him that was his age.
But the NCTL hearing, which Mr Duffell did not attend, felt that as a secondary school teacher “Mr Duffell should have known” the boy was under 16.
In her own evidence the boy’s mother said at the time her son was 14 and “very much looked like a child”.
In finding Mr Duffell guilty of “unacceptable professional conduct” the panel said it was “satisfied that the conduct of Mr Duffell fell significantly short of the standards expected of the profession”.
The panel went on: “As a teacher, it was inappropriate for Mr Duffell to engage in conversations of a sexual nature or any sexual activity with any person under the age of 18.”
Mr Duffell faces a ban from teaching when the NCTL panel meets again in the new year to decide what action to take.
Cleveland Police has confirmed there are no criminal charges against him.
A North Yorkshire County Council spokesman confirmed that Easingwold School, near York, followed all its policies and procedures when the allegations came to light and that Mr Duffell is no longer employed at the school.