Line that should never be crossed

THANK goodness for Dani ­Garavelli’s article in last week’s Scotland on Sunday. I was ­beginning to think I was inhabiting a parallel universe over the “Megan case”.

As a secondary teacher of many years’ experience I have been horrified by the casual ­attitude portrayed by the ­discussions in the media.

Megan’s age is an important legal fact but in other respects is an irrelevance. The crux of the matter is that he [Megan’s teacher] was in a position of trust and, regardless of her age, should not, under any circumstances, have allowed this relationship to begin, never mind develop the way it has.

It also worries me that commentators have largely ignored this fact. Is it because teachers’ professional status is not what it once was? Imagine the outcry if this had been a social worker or doctor.

In conclusion, as Dani Garavelli rightly says, there is no grey area in pupil/teacher relationships. He was the adult and the professional teacher and should have known better.

Anne McEwen, Linlithgow