Teacher groomed by pupil

He was 44; she was 16. He was in a position of authority – power. Doesn't that say it all?

The London Evening Standard reported that she lost her virginity to him, so was hardly skilled in manipulating and grooming men.

Is not 16 the age of consent? This appears to have been a consensual relationship. Granted he was her teacher. What would have been said if she was just a young woman going after an older man? I'm not trying to defend this man, what he did was wrong, but the young woman was as much to blame.

There is no such thing as a consensual relationship between a teacher and a pupil, or for anyone in a position of trust. The law is very clear about that (at last) and ethically it has always been the case.

I feel sorry for his wife as well - what does it say about her self esteem that she has stood by such a man. My feelings about the judge are not printable.

hildajenniJ Not simply an older man but her teacher – that's different because there is a previous and formal relationship that results in an imbalance of power because of his position of authority. A bit like priests and children, whether boy or girls.

What planet is that stupid judge on

vampirequeen you have expressed my thoughts exactly. The sentence is being reviewed but I do feel the damage has been done and yet again we get back to the "men cannot control themselves so women are to blame". However old she was, however old he was, whatever the circumstances, she was a school student and he was her teacher.

I'd read she was a virgin. I couldn't see how she had the experience to seduce him but even if she had slept with half the boys in the school the man was still in the wrong.

I am quite irritated by the term grooming , a sixteen year old is capable of seduction, she is called a child yet with parents consent can marry, at sixteen she can indulge in sex when ever she chooses.

The man was so wrong , the girl did what so many her age and younger do, sadly.

I don't think questioning the self esteem of the wife is kind, she has decided to stay in her marriage , why can it not be as simple as she loves her husband and is capable of forgiveness

Annie at 16 a schoolgirl can indeed indulge in sex whenever she chooses however, by law, her teacher is not allowed to indulge in sex with a pupil.

She may not have known the law but the teacher certainly did.

You do wonder what is going through the minds of some judges and if they have an agenda.

Oh! A female judge, I didn't realise when I heard it on the news this morning.
I still wonder what was going through her mind.

Grooming seems a remarkably inappropriate term in this context.

He did wrong; he should receive the appropriate punishment.

i couldn't believe this when I heard it - he was her teacher, he was older than her and knew it was an inappropriate relationship.

I am sure there are many male teachers out there who are aware some of their female pupils have a crush on them but they do not take advantage of that.

This man knew this relationship was inappropriate but considered only his own feelings and needs. He gave no thought to the effect it would have on the girl or his wife.

The sentence certainly needs to be reviewed and the judge advised on appropriate sentencing

That judge needs educating about the difference between exploiting children and giving them guidance when their behaviour is inappropriate.

I was disgusted when I read it. To even begin to use the excuse he was emotionally vulnerable because of his wife's condition. His wife was emotionally vulnerable, not him, he is the type of person who will blame everyone but himself. His wife must be reeling now after going through a miscarriage to find out her husband has been having an affair with a sixteen year old girl. I doubt the marriage will last for long, how can the wife ever trust him again. Some people, still reeling after discovering their spouses infidelity don't end the marriage immediately, but it usually ends eventually. They just need time to figure out their next step.

Again this man shifts the blame to the schoolgirl who must also feel she has been let down by being told it's her fault. She is the child, he is her teacher.

The judge should be sacked!

Whilst I totally agree with the OP and subsequent points I have to point out that this type of story, teachers grooming pupils, is nothing new.

I can't help but notice there are also many reported cases of female teachers grooming both female and male pupils too.

What the hell is going on? How has the moral compass we now have in the UK hit rock bottom? Is it simply we now have more media coverage and hear of more cases? Is it kids now understand what grooming is and they report their teachers?

I have never seen so many cases of teacher / pupil inappropriate sex related stories as I have noted over the past few years, committed by teachers and pupils of both sexes. Under 16 years of age it is pure and simple paedophilia , over 16 years of age it is grooming and abuse of their position. They should never be allowed to teach again and I am sorry to say IMHO the sentences received have rarely appeared to match the brevity of the prosecution.

In this case the judge said the pupil was grooming the teacher!!

I'm disgusted by this verdict.

I thought there was a law forbidding people in positions of trust (teachers and others) from having sex with someone under the age of 18.

He will not work as a teacher again, he is on the sex offenders register, why the demand for prison ? Prisons are bursting at the seams, better he does community work .

I don't understand the demand for prison sentences when anyone commits a crime, there are other forms of punishment

Yes, that's presumably why this case went to Court.

I hope the review decides that this Judge was wrong. What sort of message does this type of verdict send out to people?

It's not so much the punishment that annoyed me. It was the fact that the girl was blamed. He was the adult. He was in the position of authority. It was his fault.

This is appalling. This ruling could set a legal precedent and see more teachers using this as an excuse for being involved with a pupil. Even if the girl was coming on to him, even if she was sexually experienced and promiscuous (which she wasn't) he should not have become involved with her. She must feel terrible. The judge should be made to publicly apologise to her. A teacher is in a special position and he has thoroughly abused this. Of course there are girls who will "come on" to male teachers. Teenagers are working out how to relate to the opposite sex and any sensible teacher will recognise this and take care to keep the relationship professional.

Children and young people are bound to try to copy the behaviour and attitudes they see in tv programmes and pop videos.
The teacher should have acted like an adult, not like a teenage boy.

Whether he gets a jail sentence or not, the comments about the girl's "grooming" of him should be publicly retracted.

Utterly unforgivable, total abuse of trust and abuse of his position as OP have said.
I feel so sorry for his wife.