Overview
- The Teaching Regulation Agency imposed an indefinite prohibition on Stuart Smith, a ban that removes him from the teaching register and is separate from any criminal case.
- The panel found he invited the girl to rest her legs across him on a flight home from a school trip and rubbed her thigh.
- Messages shown to the panel included WhatsApp notes calling her "Premier League" and saying he would have swapped his day to be "silly" with her.
- The panel also found he kept photos of the pupil, bought her a fabric bracelet as a memento, and exchanged personal mobile numbers with pupils.
- Police arrested him on suspicion of sexual assault in October 2023 and closed the probe with no further action in December, when he resigned; he can seek to lift the ban in 2029 or appeal to the High Court.