Teacher accused of ‘grabbing’ and ‘swinging’ youngster

A TEACHER is accused of “grabbing” and “swinging” a vulnerable child through the air after he acted out in class.

Adrian John Dursley 33, was teaching at Court School in Llanishen, Cardiff, a primary school for children with emotional and behavioural difficulties when the incident happened in 2016, a hearing was told.

He is accused of holding the pupil by the wrist or forearm and lifting him off the ground before “briskly” escorting him out of the classroom.

The incident was witnessed by two other staff members who told a fitness to practise hearing held by the Education Workforce Council they reported the incident after feeling “shocked” by what they saw.

The committee heard the child was upset before the incident after he was told he couldn’t go to the playground at lunch break.

Colleague, Elizabeth Webb, who was observing the lesson, told the hearing Mr Dursley approached the child and “gripped his hand over the pupil’s left forearm”.

Then, using a “clenched” hand he raised the pupil’s arm over his head and into the air.

She said Mr Dursley then “lifted” the child “off the ground” and “swung” him around to face the doorway before taking him out to the corridor.

Another teacher, John Seaward, said he heard Mr Dursley shouting loudly like “someone had been hurt or property had been damaged” from the school corridor. When he went into the classroom he saw the teacher “escort” pupil A out “quite briskly”.

He added: “Which surprised me and the other adults in the room.”

He said he felt the teacher “may have used an excessive amount of force.”

The hearing committee was told the child, known as pupil A, suffers from complex emotional and behavioural problems and was known to have been aggressive and violent in the past. Mr Dursley admitted having contact with the child’s forearm, but denied grabbing and lifting him by his wrist. He told the hearing the child had climbed on to a window sill and was trying to climb out of the window before he approached.

He said he feared for the child’s safety, so decided to take the child’s left arm in his right hand and move it away from the window latch. He put his left arm around the child and supported him while he lifted him down.

Mr Dursley also denied “briskly” escorting the child from the room. The child suffered no injuries. Presenting officer for the Education Workforce Council Patrick Llewelyn asked if the action could have looked like “dragging”, which Mr Dursley denied.

He also denies allegations of breaching two different teaching policies which outline how to safely handle and move children who may be at risk of hurting themselves or others.

He also denied his actions amounted to “unacceptable professional conduct”.

The hearing continues.