Simon Schofield
Introduction
Simon Schofield was a supply teacher who worked through Yorkshire Education Ltd at schools in and around Thirsk, North Yorkshire. He is not the television presenter of the same name who appears elsewhere on this site. In October 2025, a professional conduct panel of the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) found him proved to have been convicted of the sexual assault of a female child under 13, and the decision maker, acting for the Secretary of State for Education, prohibited him from teaching indefinitely, with no review period and no entitlement to apply for restoration. The case was decided on documentary evidence alone: Schofield did not respond to the allegation and did not attend the hearing.
Background Information
Agency records showed that Yorkshire Education Ltd employed Schofield as a supply teacher from 18 March 2021 until 14 May 2024, placing him at various schools between December 2023 and his resignation. In July 2024, the TRA received information that on 29 November 2023 he had been convicted in France of a criminal offence of sexual assault on a female child under 13. When the agency confirmed the position in March 2025, it recorded that Schofield had never disclosed any conviction and had resigned by email on 14 May 2024 with immediate effect, saying he had to go to France for a family emergency.
The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation
A conviction in France, and teaching afterwards.
The allegation before the panel was that, on 29 November 2023, Schofield was convicted at the Criminal Division of the Court of Appeal of Caen – France for the offence recorded as Foreign Leg/Sexual Assault of Female Child Under 13 contrary to the Sexual Offences Act 2003 s7. The panel was not provided with a certificate of conviction, but the evidence before it demonstrated that the TRA had taken all reasonable steps to obtain proof of the conviction, including a Police National Computer printout recording the conviction as set out in the allegation. Under arrangements between the UK and France, information about UK nationals convicted in France is passed to the UK authorities and recorded on the PNC. The panel was satisfied there was sufficient evidence that Schofield was the person convicted, and that the identification process had not been flawed or resulted in mis-identification. It did not consider it necessary to draw any adverse inference from his silence, because the other evidence was sufficient, and decided that on the balance of probabilities he was convicted as alleged.
The panel found the conviction was for conduct that would be a criminal offence in England and Wales and was therefore capable of amounting to a relevant offence. It found Schofield in breach of the Teachers’ Standards on upholding public trust, treating pupils with dignity and observing proper boundaries, safeguarding pupils’ wellbeing, and acting within statutory frameworks, noting that the use of the word “pupil” in the standards could properly be interpreted to include a child under the age of 13 in the UK or France.
The panel had limited information about the circumstances of the offence but was satisfied that, by its nature, it was an extremely serious offence: a sexual assault on a child under 13. It had no evidence of any mitigating circumstances relevant to the offence, and noted that his behaviour ultimately led to a sentence of imprisonment, albeit that it was suspended, which was indicative of the seriousness of the offences committed. It also found no evidence of insight, remorse or remediation, and no evidence that his actions were not deliberate or that he was acting under extreme duress.
The panel recorded that it was not provided with a certificate of conviction, but that the evidence before it demonstrated the TRA had taken all reasonable steps to prove the conviction — and it cautioned that the panel had no evidence about the nature of the relationship between Schofield and the victim of his sexual assault.
Public Reaction and Consequences
This was a regulatory record rather than a press controversy: the decision documents no media coverage, and the hearing took place in public and was recorded. The panel found the safeguarding of pupils, the protection of the public, the maintenance of public confidence in the profession and the declaration of proper standards all engaged, and that there was a strong public interest consideration in the future protection of children. It concluded that prohibition was both proportionate and appropriate, that the public interest considerations outweighed the interests of Mr Schofield, and recommended a prohibition order with immediate effect, with no provision for a review period.
On 6 October 2025 the decision maker, Marc Cavey, acting on behalf of the Secretary of State, accepted the recommendation. He found the misconduct particularly serious as it included a teacher receiving a conviction for serious sexual misconduct involving a child, which led to a sentence of imprisonment (albeit suspended), and concluded that a prohibition order was proportionate and in the public interest. The concrete consequences were the loss of Schofield’s teaching career: indefinite prohibition from teaching in any school, sixth form college, relevant youth accommodation or children’s home in England, with no right to apply for restoration.
Current Status
Schofield is prohibited from teaching indefinitely. The order carries no review period, and because of the seriousness of the allegations found proved, the decision maker decided that he shall not be entitled to apply for restoration of his eligibility to teach — the order is, in practical terms, permanent. It takes effect from the date it is served on him. He has a right of appeal to the High Court within 28 days from the date he is given notice of the order. The decision records no response from Schofield to the allegation or attendance at the hearing, and no evidence of insight or remorse.
Impact on Their Career/Life
The prohibition order ended Schofield’s career in English schools. A teacher who had been placed in classrooms by his agency as late as May 2024 is now barred for life from any school, sixth form college, relevant youth accommodation or children’s home in England, and the findings of a relevant conviction for a sexual offence against a child under 13 stand against him permanently, with no route to review or restoration.