Teacher is banned for touching pupils
A KIRKLEES primary school teacher has been banned from the country’s classrooms for life after findings that he inappropriately touched pupils and that on one occasion his behaviour was “of a sexual nature or sexually motivated”.
Although Brendan O’Brien, 47, was cleared of a string of allegations including that he touched the penis area of some young boys and that he displayed favouritism, a teachers disciplinary panel found that the five allegations proved against him were sufficient to impose a life-time ban.
The National College of Teaching and Leadership (NCTL) panel which heard the case in Coventry found that Mr O’Brien was guilty of “unacceptable professional conduct” that could bring the teaching profession into dispute.
Those allegations they found proved against him included regularly putting his hand on pupils’ knees when such contact was not justified; touching or stroking the legs of two boys and putting his hand on the leg of another boy close to his groin.
Mr O’Brien, who did not attend the hearing and was not represented at it, had admitted touching boys when at a primary school in Kirklees where he taught from 2010.
However, he said in statements considered by the panel: “I have always stated that I was a tactile teacher.”
In its 7,000-word findings the NCTL panel says: “The panel considered that Mr O’Brien had not shown insight into his actions, as having admitted that he had touched pupils and had a tactile teaching style he did not recognise that this behaviour was at odds with the statutory safeguarding guidance.
“Mr O’Brien should have shown a greater appreciation of the appropriate boundaries that regulate the teacher/ pupil relationship.”
The findings say that he made physical contact with pupils and that in one particular instance this “was found to have been sexually motivated”.
Often when teachers are struck off the way is left open for them to seek to have the teaching ban lifted after a number of years.
However, Jayne Millions, NCTL head of teacher misconduct, who imposed the ban on behalf of Education Secretary Justine Greening, said: “I note the panel found that Mr O’Brien has not demonstrated any insight into his inappropriate conduct or the impact on the pupils.
“Neither has he expressed any remorse for the resultant consequences of his actions. For the reasons stated above, I support the recommendation that there be no review period.”
It is open to Mr O’Brien to mount a High Court challenge the findings.
In January 2015 Mr O’Brien was cleared at Leeds Crown Court of assaulting five boys at the school. The sevenwoman-five-man jury took just over an hour to unanimously find the teacher not guilty on 17 charges of sexual assault and one of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.