Horse kicker teacher ‘did not deserve to get sack’
BACK EMPLOYER
THE teacher who made headlines after she was sacked for kicking and hitting a horse should not have lost her job, some people have claimed.
Sarah Moulds was captured on camera kicking and slapping a horse following a hunt meeting in Leicestershire earlier this year.
The clip, which was filmed by antihunt activists, led to condemnation by the RSPCA and to the school suspending and then sacking Ms Moulds, who taught at Somerby School.
The Pony Club also terminated her position as a team manager and described her behaviour as “unacceptable”.
But on Twitter several people have questioned the school trust’s decision.
One said: “I don’t condone the kick or the slaps but the horse ran into the road beforehand and none of us watching the video knows the full story. “To lose her job on the basis of that?” Another said: “Is it right that a woman who may be a very good teacher is sacked for behaving badly with an illtempered horse?
“This is yet another social media witch hunt.”
But many others were happy to see some action taken against Ms Moulds, with one saying: “While I think it’s harsh that Sarah Moulds lost her job over something completely unrelated to her job, I’m glad that her actions are not going unpunished.
“As an animal-lover, the video was horrible to watch.”
The RSPCA said it has not decided
SOME DEFEND ACTIONS DURING HUNT – OTHERS
whether to prosecute her over the incident.
The statement issued earlier this week by Mowbray Education Trust, which employed Ms Moulds, said: “I can confirm that Sarah Moulds’s employment with the trust has been terminated.
“As a trust, we are committed to ensuring the best standard of education for all of our young people.”
The footage was originally shared by Hertfordshire Hunt Saboteurs.
It appears to show a rider, described by the Cottesmore Hunt as one of its followers and later revealed to be Ms Moulds, repeatedly striking the horse after it ran into the road.
In a statement, the Cottesmore Hunt said at the time: “The chairman and masters want to make it quite clear they strongly disapprove of any such actions and assure you that they take a matter such as this very seriously and will deal with it in an appropriate manner.”