Secondary school teacher who had sexual relations with boy, 14, banned from teaching indefinitely

A secondary school teacher who had sexual relations with a 14-year-old Stockton boy has been banned from teaching indefinitely.

Andrew James Duffell, a former ICT teacher at Easingwold School, was last month found guilty of “unacceptable professional conduct”.

The 29-year-old was also ruled to have brought the teaching profession “into disrepute” by his actions.

Following the hearing before a National College of Teaching and Leadership (NCTL) conduct panel Mr Duffell has now been prohibited from teaching indefinitely.

He “cannot teach in any school, sixth form college, relevant youth accommodation or children’s home in England”.

In coming to the decision Alan Meyrick, on behalf of the Secretary of State, said: “Mr Duffell has shown no remorse or insight into his behaviour.

“His actions have had a deeply harmful effect on (the teenage boy).

“I agree with the panel’s recommendations that a Prohibition Order without the opportunity for an application to have it set aside is an appropriate and proportionate sanction.”

Mr Duffell has the right of appeal to the Queen’s Bench Division of the High Court within 28 days.

As reported, the NCTL panel heard 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.

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”.

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.