Mr Peter Hoare

Introduction

Mr Peter Hoare was a classroom teacher at Three Peaks Primary Academy in Tamworth, part of the Creative Education Trust, from 1 September 2012 until his resignation in June 2022, with his last day at the school on 31 August 2022. Between approximately August 2018 and August 2022, while he was employed as a teacher, he posted sexually explicit pictures, videos and messages about himself on a public Twitter account, alongside comments about drug use. He admitted the facts and that his conduct amounted to unacceptable professional conduct and conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute. On 2 July 2024 Marc Cavey, deciding on behalf of the Secretary of State for Education, prohibited him from teaching indefinitely, with no review period and no entitlement to apply for restoration of his eligibility to teach.

Background Information

The matter came to light on 24 March 2023, when a parent reported concerns to the headteacher about a Twitter account that appeared to be run by a former teacher at the school. The account’s profile was public — viewable by anyone without restriction — contained material dating from 3 August 2018 until 23 March 2023, and had in the region of 10,000 followers. The investigator reviewed hundreds of posts, finding sexually explicit pictures and videos of Mr Hoare, photographs of him engaging in sexual activity with adults, comments and pictures that appeared to show him taking money for sexual favours, a video of him masturbating in public, retweets of other explicit material, and tweets referencing taking drugs. There were no posts of any underaged individuals. As he had already left the school, the matter was referred to the Teaching Regulation Agency on 25 April 2023.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

The panel considered the case at a private virtual meeting on 27 June 2024 without a hearing, at Mr Hoare’s own request, on the basis of a statement of agreed facts he signed on 3 February 2024; the decision was announced in public and recorded. He admitted the account was his and that he had posted the content as alleged, his admissions being described as unequivocal. In explanation he said the account began for personal use in 2018 but that he posted nothing of himself until 2020, when he was suffering with his health and unhappy with much of his life; he sought help in 2022, and said that was why he decided to leave the profession. He also pointed out that his drug-related posts concerned ‘poppers’, which he described as party drugs that are legal. The panel found poppers still fell within the definition of a drug subject to supply restrictions, and proved all four particulars: the sexually explicit pictures, videos and messages, and the comments about drug use.

The panel then addressed directly why the online setting did not keep the conduct private. It noted the posts did not refer explicitly to his being a teacher or to the school, but held that the account’s public nature meant anyone could see them, that a parent had in fact found the account and identified him, and that the investigator’s evidence established he was clearly identifiable from the posts. With around 10,000 followers and thousands of explicit posts, his conduct ‘could not be considered as purely a matter which had occurred within his private life’ — particularly as some of the conduct depicted had occurred in public settings. The volume, number and prolonged period meant this was not a one-off lapse in judgement but ‘a lifestyle choice that Mr Hoare had made at the time to post such content’, made before he left the school and in the context of his being a teacher. The panel stressed it was not judging his private lifestyle; the severity lay in the public, identifiable nature of the posts. All four particulars amounted to unacceptable professional conduct and conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute.

Public Reaction and Consequences

The panel found strong public interest in protecting pupils and the public, maintaining confidence in the profession and upholding proper standards, noting the public rightly expect teachers to act appropriately and professionally at all times. It weighed in mitigation that there had been no previous concerns about his teaching and that he had admitted the allegations, but found no significant mitigating factors: his health explanation was unsupported by medical evidence, and although he admitted the allegations there was nothing before the panel to show he recognised the severity of his conduct or had put support mechanisms in place to prevent recurrence. He presented no character references or testimonials and had indicated he had left the profession. The panel also noted it is not easy to remove publicly available explicit content from the internet, and concluded there was a high risk of repetition. It recommended prohibition with immediate effect and no review period, finding his behaviours on par with the advice’s listed circumstances that count against one.

Current Status

The decision maker, Marc Cavey, decided on 2 July 2024 that Mr Peter Hoare is prohibited from teaching indefinitely and cannot teach in any school, sixth form college, relevant youth accommodation or children’s home in England. Giving considerable weight to the panel’s finding that there was no evidence he had attained insight into or remorse for his behaviour, he judged that ‘the lack of evidence that Mr Hoare has attained insight into and remorse for his behaviour means that there is some risk of the repetition of this behaviour and this puts at risk the future wellbeing of pupils’. In view of the seriousness of the allegations found proved against him, he also decided that Mr Hoare shall not be entitled to apply for restoration of his eligibility to teach. The order takes effect from the date it is served, with a right of appeal to the High Court within 28 days.

Impact on Their Career/Life

Mr Hoare had already left teaching by the time the parent’s report triggered the investigation, and the prohibition order forecloses any return to an English classroom: with no review period and no restoration rights, the only challenge is an appeal within 28 days of service. The posts themselves remain the lasting liability — the panel observed that publicly available explicit content is not easily removed from the internet, and found the posts publicly accessible and Mr Hoare identifiable in them. The panel’s reasoning marks the line it drew: a teacher’s private life is his own, but a public, searchable account of thousands of explicit posts, under a real identity, maintained throughout his employment, is conduct the profession will not tolerate from someone whose role requires pupils and parents to trust him.

Sources

• Teaching Regulation Agency, “Teacher misconduct panel outcome: Mr Peter Hoare” — source