Special constable hid school sacking when applying for job

The misconduct hearing was held at the force headquarters in Portishead

A former special constable hid the fact he was sacked by a Bristol school while applying for a cyber crime unit job.

The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, deliberately ticked a box marked "no" on a security vetting form asking if he had ever been involved in disciplinary proceedings.

The role he was applying for would have included contact with children and safeguarding.

An Avon and Somerset Police misconduct panel found it to be gross misconduct.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service a misconduct hearing at the force headquarters in Portishead heard the man applied for the cyber crime officer job at the Regional Organised Crime Unit in February last year while still a special constable.

The hearing heard he had been dismissed for gross misconduct from the school, which also cannot be named, in 2018.

The reason for his dismissal from the school was not given.

'Deliberate and dishonest'

The ex-special constable told the hearing that ticking the box was an innocent mistake because English was not his first language, and he assumed the police would do background checks.

"At no point was it my intention to cheat, mislead or lie on the application," he said.

Panel chairwoman Jenny Tallentire said: "We find that on the balance of probabilities, in ticking the 'no' box on the vetting form, that was a deliberate and dishonest act."

She said there were several "striking differences" between the answers he gave on the vetting form and the main job application form.

"The role for which he was applying included contact with members of the public including children, and would have been considered a safeguarding role, and it was on this form that he omitted his employment at the school.

"We see that to be significant."

The panel ruled, had he not already resigned, he would have been dismissed without notice.