Headteacher who kept porn stash on school iPhone and stole from PTA collection box

[Ulquiorra]

A HEADTEACHER who kept a porn stash on her school iPhone has been banned from the classroom for life.

Catharine Jones, 42, also stole cash from the PTA fund and doctored exam results at Stoneleigh Academy primary school, now Willowpark Academy, in Oldham, Gtr Manchester.

She was caught with the X-rated images on her work mobile when she gave it to an IT technician to back up her photos.

The colleague said in a statement to the Teaching Regulation Agency that when backing up the device they had seen "images of an explicit sexual nature."

Two other staff members reported seeing "images of explicit sexual acts" and "explicit sexual activity", a report by the teachers watchdog said.

The shamed Miss also used the phone, given to her for work in June 2015, to badmouth and gossip about other staff.

In one text to a colleague she gave "personal information about members of staff and inappropriate and derogatory comments".

Jones had been promoted to become headteacher at the school, rated good by Ofsted, in 2012.

But she was suspended in May 2016 when staff came forward to report concerns about her behaviour.

Among allegations made to the regulators were that ex-history teacher Jones had stolen £350 from the school PTA collection box.

She was seen taking £900 raised from a school fair into her office — before telling a colleague she needed to pocket some because of "a mix-up" in her mortgage repayments.

The panel heard Jones used school funds to pay for her family to go on expensive trips — including visits to see Manchester United.

Jones spent more than £300-a-time on tickets, transport and refreshments for each of the matches she went on with her partner and children between 2015 and 2016.

She also altered pupils' marks in the SATs exams to the point that it "jeopardised" their education as their results could have been scrapped as a result.

And she posted vulgar comments on her publicly visible Facebook page — where she also ranted about politics and made jokes "in poor taste".

Jones was found guilty of unacceptable professional conduct by the teachers' panel earlier this month.

She did not attend the tribunal which met in Coventry between June 5 and 7.

In its 13 June report, the Teaching Regulation Agency said: "These behaviours include serious dishonesty - theft of school resources and cheating in national exams,' the panel had concluded.

"Cheating in this way undermines the integrity of national examinations and seriously undermines public confidence in the examination system."

Alan Meyrick, from the Department of Education, added: "These elements are the two elements of dishonesty, concerning the PTA funds and the school's money, the exam misconduct and the lack of insight or remorse.

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"I consider therefore that allowing for no review period is required to satisfy the maintenance of public confidence in the profession.

"This means that Ms Catherine Jones is prohibited from teaching indefinitely and cannot teach in any school, sixth form college, relevant youth accommodation or children's home in England.

"Furthermore, in view of the seriousness of the allegations found proved against her, I have decided that Ms Catherine Jones shall not be entitled to apply for restoration of her eligibility to teach."