Teachers Accused or Banned for Sexual Misconduct

Cases in New Zealand and England detail teachers accused of sexually inappropriate conduct with pupils. In Auckland, a teacher admitted in an undercover police operation to indecent communications and grooming of someone he believed to be a 14‑year‑old, including sending naked photos, an explicit masturbation video and inviting the girl to his campervan. In England, a Teaching Regulation Agency panel permanently prohibited Gareth Llewellyn, formerly of Sidney Stringer Academy, after finding sexually motivated over-familiar communications (email/WhatsApp), unauthorised holiday meetings, gift‑giving and inappropriate physical contact and noting a lack of insight or remorse. Also in England, Rebecca Whitehurst, formerly of Wellacre Academy, was prohibited from teaching after exchanging thousands of messages with a 15‑year‑old pupil, receiving explicit images and meeting him outside school; she had been acquitted in criminal court but the TRA found her conduct amounted to serious professional misconduct. Regulators described these behaviours as a gross abuse of trust and imposed prohibition orders to protect vulnerable pupils.