Teacher found to have sexually assaulted pupil banned

A teacher, who a panel found sexually assaulted a pupil on school grounds, has been banned from the profession for life.

Jeremy Cotton, 40, worked at Perins School in Alresford, Hampshire, and conversed with the girl on Instagram but her parents raised concerns with managers and he was warned against doing so again.

But the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) said he turned to a "more deceptive and surreptitious" method on another messaging service to hide their chats, which the panel found became "highly sexualised".

The girl accused Mr Cotton, a computing teacher who taught at the school between 2014 and 2020, of sexual assault, which he denies. Police have never brought charges against him.

The TRA found Mr Cotton had discussed his private life with the girl and over about a month sent 109 emails to her on his work email account.

Mr Cotton had asked the girl to roll her skirt up for him, or words to that effect, and to wear a black bra under her shirt, the agency found.

The pupil said Mr Cotton later sexually assaulted her on school grounds and the panel said it was "satisfied that it was more likely than not" that her account was correct.

Mr Cotton told the TRA he has a new career away from teaching and that the TRA "without fail, always sides with the student when it comes to things like this".

He did not attend a hearing last month.

The panel found that Mr Cotton's misconduct was "near the top end of the spectrum" and that it was "fundamentally incompatible with working as a teacher".

It decided that he will not be able to apply to have his teaching registration restored.

A school spokesperson said ensuring pupils' safety and wellbeing is its "absolutely priority" and any safeguarding concerns are "always treated extremely seriously".

"Following the conclusion of our own response, we referred this matter to the TRA and Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) in line with the standard processes," the spokesperson added.

"We are satisfied to see that the outcome of this investigation reflects the seriousness of the individual's conduct."

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