Teacher’s behaviour could have influenced pupils ‘in a harmful way’, panel finds
A panel will consider whether to request a lifetime ban for Joseph Amankwah over his conduct while a maths teacher at Castle Manor Academy.
A Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) panel will consider whether to request a lifetime ban for Joseph Amankwah over his conduct while a maths teacher at Castle Manor Academy, in Haverhill.
The teacher was convicted of drink-driving on July the 15th, 2022, after being caught with 128 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath, more than three times the legal limit.
He also resisted arrest by the police on August 9, 2023, for which he accepted a conditional caution the following day.
Mr Amankwah, who represented himself, accepted the allegations but disputed they amounted to conduct warranting a prohibition order due to ‘mitigating circumstances’.
These circumstances were not revealed publicly to protect his privacy, but the teacher said in his closing remarks he and his family were going through ‘extreme stress’ at the time.
The panel found his behaviour amounted to unacceptable professional conduct or conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute.
It heard from witnesses throughout the week, including two police officers who attended Mr Amankwah’s home in 2023 for a potential domestic issue linked to alcohol.
They said the teacher was ‘actively resisting’ when asked to leave his home and threatened to bite them when he was being handcuffed.
The two officers said they had to call for extra help to arrest him.
Mr Amankwah told the panel he was not proud of his behaviour and, in hindsight, could have done things differently.
Julie Wells, one of the panellists, said although teachers are not ‘expected to be paragons of virtue’, the teacher’s conduct could have had ‘a much wider implication’.
“In considering its views, the panel was mindful of the influential role that teachers hold in the lives of pupils,” she said.
“The panel considered that this conduct, as proven, would clearly affect the way a person fulfils their teaching role and may lead pupils to being exposed to, or influenced by, the behaviour in a harmful way.”
The panel heard earlier in the week a school investigation found no evidence ‘the teacher’s conduct impacted the school’, with concerns only known ‘by a small number of senior leaders’.
It also noted written evidence that there had been no concerns relating to alcohol consumption or police involvement before the drink-driving incident.
The panel will now consider whether to recommend a prohibition order to the Secretary of State.
In doing so, it will need to weigh up Mr Amankwah’s conduct against any mitigating circumstances, including remorse.
They will do so in private before the summary and outcomes of the case are published by the Government.