Reece Morgan

Introduction

Reece Morgan was a teacher of English with Classics and Latin at Seaford College, an independent school in West Sussex, where he had worked since September 2017 and also lived in a boarding house. A Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) professional conduct panel found that, in 2019, he failed to maintain professional boundaries with two pupils, known in the decision as Pupil A and Pupil B, exchanging hundreds of personal messages, giving one pupil a gift at his boarding house and meeting the other for coffee and a walk on the beach. The panel found he was guilty of unacceptable professional conduct and conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute, and on 31 March 2025 the Secretary of State’s decision maker, Sarah Buxcey, prohibited him from teaching indefinitely, with a review period of two years.

Background Information

Morgan joined Seaford College in September 2017 as a teacher of English with Classics and Latin. In 2019 he resigned from his role to take up a new job in Japan, and remained employed by the school until 31 August 2019. While teaching, he was working towards his PGCE and living in the school’s boarding house, which the panel noted he had found very difficult to balance with his teaching and pastoral role. Concerns about his behaviour towards Pupil A were raised at a safeguarding meeting on 5 September 2019, and the school later referred the matter to the LADO; the police found the criminal threshold was not reached but asked the school to investigate.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

The panel heard that between June and July 2019 Morgan exchanged what it described as in excess of 40 emails with Pupil A, a pupil at the school. Many were sent late in the evening, and the panel found that academic references were often masquerading attempts to facilitate a deeper connection with Pupil A that went beyond what would be expected in a teacher-pupil relationship. The earliest email shown to the panel, from 18 June 2019, read “Hi Are you out for Friday’s double lesson…? Best regards”, while the last, sent at 00.19 on 4 July 2019, began “No need to thank me for what comes so naturally!”. Morgan referred to the pair as a “dynamic duo” and wrote “I’m very intrigued as to what your Reece will look like”. He admitted using nicknames such as “The Morganator” and “Big Morge” for himself and the pupil, and admitted switching to his personal email address, telling her “my school email will be deleted at some point”. He replied to a colleague’s instruction not to stay in contact with pupils that “if any Seaford pupils do come seeking help” he would get in touch straight away. Two days later he cycled to Pupil A’s house to drop off a textbook. The panel also found that at a school event he had given Pupil A a gift at the boarding house where he resided, away from the crowd, finding the “giving of a gift in these circumstances in this location to be deeply personal, such that it was intimate”, and that he hugged her outside her family’s home, with evidence that “Mr Morgan was sweaty and that Pupil A had felt that she had to hug him and that he did not let go for some time”. The panel found his contact with Pupil A had been inappropriate, personal and intimate.

A strikingly similar pattern followed with Pupil B after Morgan left the school. From around the end of the summer term in 2019 he messaged her daily over Instagram and WhatsApp, met her for a coffee and a walk on the beach in around August 2019 while still employed, and hugged her. When Pupil B’s mother raised concerns, Morgan visited her parents, telling the school later: “I thought it would be suspect to carry on without doing so, so I went to see them. We spoke to the parents to acknowledge that there is a chemistry there”. The panel found he had intimated that a relationship was possible. It accepted that the contact ended in December 2019, shortly after Pupil B disclosed it to a staff member on 7 October 2019.

The panel found allegations of sexual motivation not proven, noting it did not have any evidence before them of sexual motivation, but found the proven conduct demonstrated elements of building inappropriate relationships with both pupils.

Public Reaction and Consequences

The panel found Morgan’s conduct amounted to unacceptable professional conduct and conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute, involving breaches of the Teachers’ Standards and of statutory safeguarding guidance including Keeping Children Safe In Education. It heard some evidence of his good character and noted his insight and remorse, but observed that no references were provided from any colleagues or parents that could attest to his abilities as a teacher. The panel was particularly concerned that his behaviour had been repeated across two pupils, and recommended a prohibition order with immediate effect. Decision maker Sarah Buxcey agreed, concluding that a prohibition order was necessary in order to maintain public confidence in the profession.

Current Status

Morgan is prohibited from teaching indefinitely and cannot teach in any school, sixth form college, relevant youth accommodation or children’s home in England. The decision, dated 31 March 2025, was taken by Sarah Buxcey on behalf of the Secretary of State. He may apply for the prohibition order to be set aside, but not until 02 April 2027, two years from the date of the order at the earliest, and this is not an automatic right; without a successful application he remains barred for life. The order takes effect from the date it is served on him, and he had a right of appeal to the High Court within 28 days of being given notice.

Impact on Their Career/Life

Morgan’s planned teaching career ended before it fully began: he resigned from Seaford College in 2019 to take up a job in Japan, but the prohibition order bars him from the classroom in England for life. The panel acknowledged his good character and pastoral involvement at the school, but found that his behaviour fundamentally breached the standards expected of a teacher and that he sought to exploit his position of trust. The seriousness of the conduct and the risk of repetition were significant factors in the decision, and any return to teaching now depends on successfully applying to have the order set aside after April 2027.

Sources

• Teaching Regulation Agency, “Teacher misconduct panel outcome: Mr Reece Morgan” — source