Teacher who told pupil she had ‘enormous breasts’, tapped her bottom, kissed her neck and remarked on her short skirt and ‘magic fingers’ was not sexually motivated, tribunal rules

Stephen Lindridge admitted sending a series of inappropriate messages to girl, but escapes classroom ban

A teacher who told a pupil that she had “enormous” breasts and that he was “distracted” by her short skirt should still be allowed to teach, a tribunal has ruled.

Stephen Lindridge, a former science teacher at Anthony Gell School in Derbyshire, tapped the girl’s bottom with rolled-up paper, kissed her on the neck and said he missed her “magic fingers”.

Mr Lindridge was found guilty of unacceptable professional conduct, including engaging in inappropriate physical contact and communication with the vulnerable pupil.

But a misconduct panel ​decided he should not be banned from the profession because he was “genuinely remorseful” and his actions were not “sexually motivated”.

The investigation into Mr Lindridge’s conduct between 2016 and 2018 was opened after the pupil confided in him about a serious safeguarding issue through a social media platform.

Mr Lindridge was dismissed from his post in 2018 following an investigation into the pair’s relationship.

The teacher admitted telling a female pupil that her breasts looked “enormous” in a photograph on his phone and he accepted that he had sent a series of inappropriate messages to the girl.

Remarks on Snapchat and text messages included “why did I get so distracted when you were sat in front of me in a short skirt having just taken your tights off” and “maybe I only miss your magic fingers”.

Mr Lindridge also admitted hugging and kissing the pupil on the cheek when he was proud of her, adding that sometimes “the peck hit her neck or head”.

He confirmed during the hearing that he had tapped the pupil on the bottom with “rolled-up papers” and told her to “get out of here, cheeky”.

He recognised that his behaviour could be interpreted as “flirtatious”, but he vehemently denied any sexual motivation to his actions.

The panel said that argument was convincing, and acknowledged that he was able to “provide plausible explanations”, which gave context to his words and actions.

Mr Lindridge was “genuinely remorseful” for his behaviour, the panel concluded, adding that it believed he now fully understands the impact of his actions.

On its decision not to ban him, the panel added that he was a “man of good character and a talented teacher” who would continue to make a valuable contribution to the profession.