Teacher, 48, is banned for emails to former pupils

ATEACHER who admitted sending late night sexualised emails to two of his former pupils has been banned from the profession.

Gethin Bridge, 48, a geography and history teacher at Winchcombe School, sent love heart pictures and described desperately longing for them.

The ex-pupils, who cannot be named for legal reasons, were taught by Bridge but had finished studying at the school when the emails were sent.

He told one: “I imagined you this morning with your hair spilling over the pillow, watching me, looking for a story.

“The thought made skin tingle and that deep, soft, gentle shiver ran through me.”

Bridge also complimented the pupil’s “gorgeous legs” and said he “struggled to take [his] eyes off [her]”, adding that he wanted to “linger on the contours” of her face.

He said he was “mesmerised” by the student, referred to as Pupil A by a misconduct panel, and suggested she lived with him.

He told the other woman, Pupil B, he missed her “more than [you] thought possible”.

Bridge was sacked on April 17, 2018 after details over the emails emerged, a misconduct panel was told.

The messages to his former pupils at the mixed academy were sent between August and December 2017.

He admitted unacceptable professional conduct and conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute in a signed statement.

The conduct panel found the emails were “flirtatious” and “sexually motivated”.

The panel added that it “is satisfied that the conduct of Mr Bridge was misconduct of a serious nature which fell significantly short of the standards expected of the profession”.

Decision maker Alan Meyrick, writing on behalf of Secretary of State for Education Damien Hinds, said: “The findings of misconduct are particularly serious as they include a finding of sexual misconduct.

“Mr Gethin Hughes Bridge is prohibited from teaching indefinitely and cannot teach in any school, sixth form college, relevant youth accommodation or children’s home in England.

“Furthermore, in view of the seriousness of the allegations found proved against him, I have decided that Mr Gethin Hughes Bridge shall not be entitled to apply for restoration of his eligibility to teach.” echo.news@reachplc.com