Head teacher applauded by children for coming out

Colin Scott, left, with husband Drew Dalton

A head teacher has been applauded by his school after coming out to students during an assembly for Pride Month.

Colin Scott, 54, had previously kept his sexuality hidden from pupils and parents at Risedale School in Catterick, North Yorkshire.

But on Monday he took the opportunity to tell students and introduce them to his husband Drew Dalton, a lecturer at the University of Sunderland.

He said: "It was time for me to be true to myself and be honest."

Speaking after the assembly he said he felt he had been "lying" to his students because he had often mentioned "the wife" but that "she never showed up at any social events."

He added: "Since I told them they haven't treated me any differently."

Colin Scott delivering his assembly

Mr Scott grew up in Hebburn, South Tyneside, and joined the Navy in 1984.

Being a gay teenager in the Eighties had its challenges he said, adding that for years, he "suppressed" his sexuality.

"When I attended secondary school I felt that there was something different about me," he said.

"I really struggled with that, and I eventually figured out that I was probably gay."

Even though he "loved the navy", Mr Scott said he left because he could no longer pretend to be something he was not. Until 2000 it was illegal to be gay in the British military.

Entering the teaching profession in the 1990s, he said he again found himself forced to hide his true identify.

Section 28 of the Local Authorities Act, introduced in May 1988, prohibited "the promotion of homosexuality by local authorities". It was repealed in 2003.

Speaking after the assembly one pupil said: "It was lovely to see, and it made me feel proud of the headteacher. He was very, very brave to do what he did."

Another pupil added: "I started crying a bit because it was really emotional. I know what it's like to come out."

Follow BBC Yorkshire on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail] or send video here.