Class Assistant at Sex-Scandal School Arrested
Posted on: Saturday, 17 May 2008, 00:00 CDT
A FEMALE member of staff at a scandal-hit Yorkshire school has been arrested for allegedly sending inappropriate text messages to a male pupil.
The arrest is the latest embarrassment for Headlands School in Bridlington, which has been rocked by a series of high-profile court cases involving teachers who had affairs with pupils.
A teaching assistant, 25, has been bailed until next month, following her arrest earlier this year. She has been suspended from the school.
Humberside Police said it was aware of the allegations, which are not believed to be connected with three recent cases involving male teachers at the school, and had launched an investigation with East Riding Council.
Science teacher Steven Edwards and senior art teacher Ian Blott were both convicted of having affairs with pupils at the school, which is now in special measures.
Former Headlands teacher Terry Mann was given a suspended sentence in January after admitting having a sexual relationship with a pupil from Withernsea High School.
The suspension comes a few weeks after the publication of a report looking into teacher/pupil relationships at the school over a 15-year period.
It revealed that a fourth teacher, who used to teach at Bridlington, has been dismissed from a school outside the East Riding for "inappropriate behaviour" with a 17-year-old girl.
Parents of pupils at Headlands said yesterday they were extremely concerned at the latest news.
One mother said: "What has happened at this place is unbelievable and we are starting to worry that we have sent our daughter to the wrong school.
"Every week there seems to be some problem, whether its class sizes, bullying or all these sex scandals.
"The problem is the school is too big; they need another school built because there are only two around here and that's not enough."
Another, who has a 16-year-old daughter there, said: "It's little wonder the place has been put in special measures.
"They can't seem to keep their staff under control and I'll
be glad when my daughter leaves."
She added: "The place seems to be in utter chaos and the worst thing is that when you hear something like this it doesn't surprise you."
The study by East Riding Safeguarding Children's Board said concerns about the behaviour of art teacher Ian Blott, whose admissions sparked the beginning of what became a major police investigation, dated from 1993 onwards.
One incident reported was as far back as 1984.
It said on at least half-a-dozen occasions complaints of inappropriate behaviour by staff were ignored.
That resulted in a culture emerging "which resulted in confusion for staff and pupils about professional boundaries."
Former headteacher Anthony Halford, who was severely criticised in the report, was interviewed by police last May.
But the Crown Prosecution Service decided against charges of misconduct in public office.
The school is now under a new management structure, with an executive head working alongside the current headteacher.
East Riding Council's assistant director (Children and Young People Services) Philip Holmes said the school had acted swiftly to deal with the latest issue.
(c) 2008 Yorkshire Post. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.
Source: Yorkshire Post
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