Teachers banned for affair on school grounds

The pair admitted having sex on multiple occasions in the school's art room

Two married teachers have been banned from the profession indefinitely after embarking on a sexual affair on school grounds.

Liyarna Beamish and Gareth Collins were employed at Ribston Hall High School in Gloucestershire, a grammar school for girls, when the two-year affair began.

At a misconduct panel, the colleagues admitted they had sex on "multiple occasions" in the art room and two art cupboards, insisting the doors were locked.

The panel concluded their conduct was "entirely unacceptable and irresponsible and undermining of the profession", for which "limited remorse" was shown.

Both teachers may apply for the ban to be reconsidered, but not for two years.

Ms Beamish and Mr Collins were dismissed from the school in July 2024

Ms Beamish had been employed as deputy headteacher at the prestigious all-girls school since 2016, and Mr Collins as an art teacher since 2015.

On 26 June 2024, the school was contacted by a third party regarding the pair engaging in sexual intercourse on the school's premises.

Screenshots were also taken of messages of an explicit sexual nature between Ms Beamish and Mr Collins, sent and received during school hours.

There were also some detailed arrangements for "liaisons that took place in school", the report added.

The matter was referred to the Teaching Regulation Agency on 19 July 2024.

After initially denying it, Ms Beamish admitted the allegations were true.

The panel determined both were willing participants, despite her claims Mr Collins had "emotionally manipulated" her and instigated the affair.

Submitting a written statement to the panel, she stated she did not think she behaved in a way that could have resulted in harm to children, as she took "many precautions" to ensure that she would not be caught in the act.

'Serious implications'

The panel determined Ms Beamish would have fully understood her sexually motivated actions on school premises constituted "very serious and repeated acts of misconduct".

It added "the implications for any pupil who had discovered them could have been serious", and she had not considered those implications sufficiently.

"Ms Beamish's conduct had fallen very far short of the standard of behaviour which was required of her as a teacher and had seriously breached professional boundaries," the report stated.

The panel reached the same conclusion for Mr Collins, and found his conduct "fell significantly short of the standards expected of the profession".

The report said: "In light of the panel's findings against Mr Collins, which involved engaging in repeated sexual activity during the school day on school premises at a time when he was expected to be working as a teacher there was a strong public interest engaged in the safeguarding and wellbeing of pupils."

It added Mr Collins had expressed "some remorse" for his actions.