21 Nov 2013 11:03

A secondary school teacher has been banned from the classroom indefinitely for having an “inappropriate” relationship with a 16-year-old ex-pupil.

Claire Louise Horton, 31, resigned from her position as head of year at Fitzalan High School in Cardiff on July 21 last year, after admitting to the head teacher that she had “slept with” a 16-year-old boy who had recently sat his GCSEs.

Mrs Horton, who denied the charge of having a “sexual” or “inappropriate” relationship with a pupil, said: “He slept at my house and so did I.

"I slept alongside him. We did not have sexual intercourse.”

Challenging her evidence, presenting officer Martin Jones, said: “That is not a phrase that anyone would use unless they were referring to sexual intercourse.”

A panel from the General Teaching Council for Wales heard that Mrs Horton had been going through “an acrimonious divorce” in June 2012 at the time she started exchanging Facebook messages with the pupil, who had started revision leave on May 31.

Mrs Horton told the panel she had arranged a “rendez-vous” with the teenager outside a building in Cardiff in the late afternoon.

She then drove him back to her house in Newport, where they spent approximately two and a half hours together.

Giving evidence, the teacher then claimed that she and the teenager both fell asleep for about an hour around 6pm, before she realised she had “overstepped a professional boundary” and drove him home, before collecting her children later that evening.

During cross-examination, Mr Jones suggested it was unlikely that the pair would have fallen asleep in the late afternoon.

In response, Mrs Horton said: “I had been crying a lot. My body was physically and mentally drained.”

The teacher, who broke down in tears while giving evidence, said: “Within days of the event, I felt I had committed the ultimate sin and made the decision to go to the head and tell her what I had done.

"I have no excuses to give you. I was in such a bad place mentally. The feeling of shame and regret is something I will never be able to get rid of.”

After taking two weeks’ sick leave, Mrs Horton spoke to a fellow member of academic staff, before approaching head teacher Catherine Bradshaw, who then referred the matter to the police and social services.

The police investigated the incident, but no charges were brought.

Social services contacted the pupil, who alleged the pair had engaged in sexual intercourse, but stated he did not want to make a formal complaint.

Mrs Bradshaw, who joined Fitzalan High School as deputy head in 2006, said: “She was very professional with pupils and staff alike and was very well-liked.

"I feel her actions were out of character. She was going through an extremely difficult time at home.”

Wearing a pink shirt and black jumper, Mrs Horton, who first started working at the school in September 2000 and was appointed head of year in September 2011, said: “In my opinion, I do feel that I deserve to be punished.

"I do feel that what I did was an abuse of the teacher-pupil relationship. I feel I crossed a boundary.”

Summing up, Mr Jones said: “Teachers base their relationships with pupils on trust and respect.”

Delivering the findings of the panel, chairwoman Helene Mansfield said: “We are satisfied that the facts have been proved.”

She acknowledged that the teenager had been a “former” pupil at the time of the incident, “albeit by a few days”.

She added: “As his head of year, she should have had pastoral responsibilities for his wellbeing and progress.”

She concluded the panel found Mrs Horton’s arguments “unconvincing”.