A TEACHER in charge of pastoral care who had “sexually motivated” communication with a pupil using Facetime and Snapchat has been banned from teaching.

Daniel Treamer was found to have had an inappropriate relationship with a pupil while working as an ICT teacher at Stewards Academy in Harlow, where he was also the pastoral lead for Year 9 and Year 10.

A Teaching Regulation Agency panel permanently banned Mr Treamer from teaching after his conduct “fell significantly short of the standards expected by the profession”.

Mr Treamer admitted giving his phone number to a pupil who he later communicated with using platforms like Facetime, Instagram, and Snapchat for about a month in 2020.

The panel heard how he had conversations with the pupil using Facetime and Snapchat, which sometimes ran into the early hours of the morning, every day in this period.

He also admitted meeting the pupil, who described him as a popular, laid-back teacher with “a lot of banter”, at her friend’s home address in his car and driving her to another friend’s house.

The pupil also claimed she’d watched Netflix with Mr Treamer in his classroom during lunch breaks, which saw the pair sat with a blanket around them on at least one occasion.

She also said she felt they both engaged in “flirting” between September and December 2019 which led to a “seed being planted” in her mind, and that he would later refer to her by pet names like “poppet” and “worldy”.

Mr Treamer denied his actions were sexually motivated, but the panel felt his actions involving the pupil he gave his phone number to were sexually motivated “in terms of seeking sexual gratification or seeking a future sexual relationship”.

In a written submission, he said: “We talked about how she was coping with the early school closure [in the coronavirus lockdown] and what her future held whilst engaging in a fun activity.”

He added: “I had developed a relationship with this young person over the years and she regularly asked me for support, referring to me in the report as a ‘rock’, something I take pride in, supporting the young people of the academy is a passion.”

A spokesman for the school said: “When a concern is raised, the academy follow policy without delay, and contact the relevant authorities.

"Safeguarding is our utmost priority, and the academy is meticulous in ensuring that staff are clear of the expectations of their own conduct.”