Teacher struck off over sex with boy

Published on Monday 7 September 2009 22:03

A TEACHER convicted of having sex with a 15-year-old pupil has been banned from the classroom.

However, Alison Smith, from Aberdeen, was spared a prison sentence after it emerged the boy's mother did not want to press charges, feeling her son had "suffered no damage".

Ms Smith's conviction in January led to her being struck off the teaching register by the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS) yesterday.

Smith was 29 when the boy's mother sent a letter to Aberdeen Sheriff Court in her defence in January.

Smith, who taught in a secondary school in Aberdeen, spent the night with the teenager when he visited her flat in December last year.

Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard the boy kissed her and this led to sex, but the former teacher felt so guilty she confessed to church friends and gave herself up to police two weeks later.

She did not appear for the hearing at the GTCS headquarters in Edinburgh yesterday, which was automatically triggered by the conviction.

Smith wrote a letter stating she did not feel she should be subjected to such a hearing as she had already indicated a wish to be removed from the register.

However, the disciplinary sub-committee of the GCTS ruled she was subject to their decision and said she should be struck off the register.

The move means she will be banned from teaching at state schools in Scotland and with other councils in the UK. Ms Smith has the right to appeal the decision but would likely fail.

James Thewliss, chairman of the disciplinary sub-committee, said: "We were of the unanimous view that the respondent's actions demanded that young people should be protected from this kind of behaviour and accordingly there was no option but to remove her name from the register." The sub-committee will also refer the case to the Scottish Government to decide whether Smith's name should appear on a list of people banned from working with children.

In January, Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard Smith had previously applied for a new job after she became aware a relationship was developing with the boy.

She later pleaded guilty to abusing a child's trust by engaging in sexual activity with someone under the age of 18.

Sheriff Kieran McLernan said that the case was unusual because the boy's mother had written to the court, saying her son had "suffered no damage".

He said: "This offence is normally regarded with considerable seriousness because it's a significant abuse of trust."

Smith was put on probation for 18 months and ordered to do 200 hours of community service. She was also placed on the sex offenders' register for 18 months.