Craig Slater

Introduction

Craig Slater is a former English secondary school teacher whose career ended in a criminal conviction and a permanent ban from the profession. An ICT teacher at Byrchall High School in Wigan, Slater was jailed in April 2021 for a series of sexual offences against a 15-year-old boy he met through an adult dating application. In September 2022, a professional conduct panel of the Teaching Regulation Agency found the conviction allegations proved, and the Secretary of State for Education prohibited Slater from teaching indefinitely, with no review period and no entitlement to apply for restoration.

Background Information

Craig Slater was born on 6 February 1981. He commenced employment as a teacher of ICT at Byrchall High School in Wigan on 1 September 2003, and was still employed there when the criminal investigation began in 2019. His Teaching Regulation Agency reference number is 19913. The panel found that his conduct did not involve pupils or colleagues at Byrchall High School itself, but concluded that it was nonetheless relevant to teaching and to working with children.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

On 31 October 2019, the Sexual Crime Unit of Greater Manchester Police “executed a warrant at an address in Wigan”. A mobile phone was seized from a 15-year-old boy, and when the device was later examined, WhatsApp messages were recovered that were sexual in nature, contained sexual images and suggested that Slater and the boy had engaged in sexual contact. The material recovered that day became the foundation of the criminal case that followed.

The decisive disclosure came on 28 May 2020, when the boy stated that he had engaged in sexual intercourse with Slater and that Slater was aware of his age. The boy explained that he “met Mr Slater on an adult dating application, Grinder”, initially telling Slater that he was 16 years old before later admitting that he was, in fact, 15 years old. Notwithstanding that admission, the two met on at least 6 occasions. Slater was arrested on 28 May 2020 and was later charged.

Slater was convicted on his guilty pleas. On 23 April 2021, Bolton Crown Court sentenced him to a term of “five years and three months imprisonment”, the sentences to run concurrently, a total of 63 months. The convictions comprised five counts of sexual activity with a child, three counts of making indecent images of a child, engaging in sexual communication with a child, inciting a child to watch sexual activity and inciting a child to engage in sexual activity. He was also placed on the Sex Offenders Register and made subject to a forfeiture order.

The professional process followed the criminal one. A notice of hearing dated 3 May 2022 alleged that Slater had been convicted, at any time, of a relevant offence. In his response to that notice and in a letter to the TRA, both dated 20 August 2022, Slater admitted the facts of the allegation and admitted that they amounted to a conviction of a relevant offence. A professional conduct panel convened by virtual hearing on 12 September 2022. Slater was not present and was not represented; he had confirmed in writing that he voluntarily waived his right to attend and was content for the panel to decide in his absence, and the panel concluded that his absence was voluntary and proceeded without him. The hearing took place in public and was recorded.

Public Reaction and Consequences

The panel found all of the allegations proven, treating the certificate of conviction from Bolton Crown Court as conclusive proof of both the conviction and the facts necessarily implied by it. It specifically noted that the certificate recorded that Slater had been convicted upon his own confession. The panel found that his conduct breached the Teachers’ Standards, including observing proper boundaries appropriate to a teacher’s professional position and safeguarding pupils’ wellbeing, and that it breached the responsibilities and duties set out in the statutory guidance Keeping children safe in education.

The panel found that Slater’s actions were deliberate and calculated, that his conduct was at the most serious end of the spectrum, and that he demonstrated a concerning lack of insight and remorse. It was particularly concerned that, upon learning the boy was 15, Slater continued to pursue sexual contact and conversations for his own gratification. A letter in which Slater attributed the offences in part to working conditions, increased pressure and an unrelenting emphasis on targets was not considered compelling, although the panel noted that he did not wish to teach again and accepted that a prohibition order was appropriate. Given the gravity of the offending and the risk of repetition, the panel recommended that a prohibition order be imposed with immediate effect, with no review period.

Current Status

On 15 September 2022, Sarah Buxcey, deciding on behalf of the Secretary of State for Education, accepted the panel’s recommendation and concluded that a prohibition order was proportionate and in the public interest. Slater is “prohibited from teaching indefinitely” and cannot teach in any school, sixth form college, relevant youth accommodation or children’s home in England. The order was made with no provision for a review period, so there is no future date on which he may ask for it to be reconsidered. The decision went further still: in view of the seriousness of the allegations found proved against him, Slater shall not be entitled to apply for restoration of his eligibility to teach. The order takes effect from the date on which it is served on the teacher, and Slater has a right of appeal to the King’s Bench Division of the High Court within 28 days of being given notice of it.

Impact on Their Career/Life

The conviction and the prohibition order that followed ended a teaching career that had lasted more than sixteen years at a single school. The indefinite prohibition ensures he can never return to the classroom, and the bar on applying for restoration removes even the theoretical possibility of a return. Together with registration on the Sex Offenders Register and the permanent publication of the panel’s findings, the consequences of his offences will remain with him for life.

Sources

• Department for Education, “Teacher misconduct panel outcome: Mr Craig Slater” — source