Head teacher banned over abuse gossip

♦ A head teacher described a pupil as an “attention seeker” and gossiped about her with colleagues after the child made allegations about being abused, a disciplinary panel has heard.

Kathryn Bell, who was head teacher at Great Smeaton School, North Yorks, from 2012 to 2013, has been banned from teaching for a minimum of five years. The National College for Teaching and Leadership professional conduct panel heard how Ms Bell told the pupil’s alleged abuser of the allegations without first informing police or child protection agencies, which could have placed the child at risk of significant harm or impeded any inquiry. The panel found she had also acted in her own interests “over and above the welfare of Pupil A”.