A disgraced Bishop Auckland teacher who was jailed for child porn offences has now been banned from the country’s classrooms for life.
Robert Johnson, 40, who taught at St John’s Catholic School and Sixth Form College was jailed at Durham Crown Court in 2020 for 27 months after admitting two counts of distributing indecent photographs of children between March and August 2018.
Now Johnson, who was also added to the sex offenders register for ten years and issued with a sexual harm prevention order for ten years, has been banned for life from teaching following a Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) disciplinary hearing.
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In their findings, the TRA panel said they had seen no evidence of Johnson showing insight or remorse in relation to his actions.
In many cases where the TRA imposes teaching bans the way is left open for the teacher to seek to have the ban lifted after a set period of years.
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But in this case the disciplinary panel said in their findings: “The panel took into account that, in the Statement of Agreed Facts, Mr Johnson “acknowledged the sexual nature of his misconduct is likely to be considered as permanently incompatible with the teaching profession … “The panel consequently decided that the findings indicated a situation in which a review period would not be appropriate and, as such, decided that it would be proportionate in all the circumstances for the prohibition order to be recommended without provisions for a review period.”
Agreeing with them and imposing the ban on behalf of the Education Secretary, TRA decision maker, Alan Meyrick said: “I have concluded that a prohibition order is proportionate and in the public interest.”
He said that after considering what Johnson had done, and his “lack of insight or remorse” he considered that not making provision for Johnson to have the ban lifted in the future was “necessary to maintain public confidence and is proportionate and in the public interest.”
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