PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHER THOMAS PAGE/WATSON BANNED IN GRAVESEND OVER SEXUAL MISCONDUCT AND CHILD PORNOGRAPHY

Thomas Page, also known as Thomas Watson, a primary school teacher from Larkfield, has been permanently disqualified from the teaching profession following serious allegations of misconduct. In 2023, he received a suspended prison sentence after engaging in conversations of a sexual nature with someone he believed to be a 13-year-old girl. Police investigations also uncovered his possession of child abuse images, with data revealing his participation in a group chat where such indecent images were downloaded.

Page, aged 37, was arrested in 2021 while employed at Whitehill Primary School and Nursery in Sun Lane, Gravesend. His arrest was the result of an undercover police operation after he thought he was communicating with a 13-year-old; however, he was actually speaking to an officer. Following the arrest, his phone was seized, and analysis of its data confirmed his involvement in a group chat containing numerous child abuse images.

He received an eight-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, and was placed on the sex offenders register. In addition, he was ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work, attend a 30-day rehabilitation program, and pay £600 in costs.

At a misconduct hearing conducted by the Teaching Regulation Agency on January 7, Page failed to appear and was unrepresented. It was revealed that he had been employed at the Gravesend school since 2011 until his suspension in 2021. Evidence showed he communicated sexually explicit messages, including graphic descriptions of sexual acts, with someone he believed to be a young girl.

The charges against him included possession of 35 Category A, 17 Category B, and 77 Category C indecent images, with Category A being the most severe classification.

Following the hearing, the TRA decided to impose an indefinite ban on Page from teaching, citing a strong public interest in safeguarding pupils and emphasizing the gravity of his misconduct. He will also be subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for ten years and is barred from applying for restoration of his teaching eligibility. While acknowledging his past good record and his early guilty plea, the decision noted that he demonstrated no insight or remorse for his actions.