Manoj Nair

Introduction

Manoj Nair is a radiographer who was suspended from the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) register for twelve months in July 2026 after a Conduct and Competence Committee panel found, on the civil standard, that he had sexually assaulted a female colleague at Burton Hospital in April 2019. Nair was criminally charged over the same incident and tried by a jury at Stafford Crown Court, which acquitted him on 1 March 2021; the acquittal is part of the published regulatory record, and the tribunal’s finding is the HCPC’s separate conclusion on the balance of probabilities. He also failed to notify the HCPC of his criminal charge as required, a particular found against him. He did not attend the final hearing.

Background Information

The panel’s background findings record that Nair was on night duty on the relevant date in April 2019 when he was called to an emergency at Burton Hospital, working as the responsible hospital officer in the radiology department. Person A, a colleague, attended with a patient and a treating doctor to obtain imaging for further treatment. The panel found that Nair sexually assaulted her on hospital premises; police were called immediately after Person A reported the assault to colleagues. Nair was interviewed and charged at around that time, with his first appearance at Derby Magistrates’ Court on 5 September 2019. From July 2019 he was suspended on full pay by his employer pending an internal investigation. The published decision records no information about his current employment or the outcome of any employer procedure.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

Tribunal finding after acquittal. The jury’s acquittal at Stafford Crown Court on 1 March 2021 is stated on the record. The suspension rests on the panel’s own civil-standard findings, which the HCPC is permitted to make; no criminal conviction exists.

The particulars found proved alleged that on or around 5 April 2019 Nair behaved inappropriately with Person A: he took her mobile phone and went through her personal photos; asked if she had “any sexy pictures” on the phone, or words to that effect; said “You’re so sexy” to her, or words to that effect; felt her breasts over her tunic; placed his hand inside her tunic and touched her left breast; and attempted to grab her bum. The panel also found the second particular proved: he failed to notify the HCPC as soon as possible that he had been charged with the criminal offence of sexual assault. His conduct in particular 1 was found sexually motivated, and all of it misconduct impairing his fitness to practise. In the impairment decision the panel concluded that a future risk of repetition remains high in the absence of meaningful remorse and fully developed insight.

Public Reaction and Consequences

Nair chose not to attend the final hearing on 6 July 2026; the panel proceeded in his absence, satisfied that he knew of the hearing and was electing not to come. A communication he sent on 29 June 2026 referred to his distress and regret at his actions, but the panel found this fell short of the meaningful engagement the sanction decision required. On sanction, the HCPC identified lack of insight and ongoing risk to the public as aggravating features, and reminded the panel that sexual misconduct is treated as particularly serious. The panel judged that the criterion for a striking off order was not fully met because the misconduct was an isolated incident and could not be described as persistent. It concluded that a suspension order for twelve months was required to protect the public, declare and uphold proper standards of behaviour, and maintain confidence in the profession and its regulator.

Current Status

Nair is suspended from the register for twelve months, with an interim suspension order of up to eighteen months covering the appeal period before the substantive order takes effect. While the order stands he cannot practise as a radiographer in the United Kingdom. The panel set out what a future reviewing panel may find helpful: a reflective account engaging the findings and their impact on Person A, service users, colleagues, his employer, the public and the HCPC; an accredited face-to-face programme on professional boundaries; evidence of keeping up to date with practice; recent testimonials; and re-engagement with the regulatory process. As of the hearing he had provided none of this, and the decision notes the panel had no information about his current circumstances or employment.

Impact on Their Career/Life

The case is a study in the gap between the criminal and regulatory standards: an acquittal on the criminal standard did not end the matter, because the HCPC re-heard the same allegations on the balance of probabilities and reached the opposite conclusion seven years after the incident. The published decision therefore carries both facts side by side — the Crown Court acquittal and the tribunal’s finding — and readers can see exactly why the regulator says the two are compatible. For the profession, it records that a charge of sexual assault must be self-reported to the HCPC promptly, and that failing to do so is itself misconduct on top of the underlying allegation. The twelve-month suspension, with the striking off order held back only because the incident was judged isolated rather than persistent, leaves any return conditional on engagement Nair has so far declined to offer.

Sources

• HCPTS, “Manoj Nair — Final Hearing, Conduct and Competence Committee, Suspended,” July 2026. source