A MATHS teacher convicted of child pornography offences has been banned from the classroom for life.

Mark Perry worked at The Brooksbank School in Elland between September 1, 2018 and February 28, 2019.

On February 27, 2019, Perry was arrested for accessing child pornography.

A report from a recent misconduct heating said: "Following a police investigation, Mr Perry was charged with three offences of Making of Indecent Photographs of Children contrary to Section 1(a) of the Protection of Children Act 1978.

"Mr Perry pleaded guilty to the three offences at Bradford Magistrates Court on 30 April 2021. The matter was committed to Bradford Crown Court for sentencing, due to the seriousness of the offence."

He received a nine-month prison sentence which was suspended for two years. He was also ordered to attend a ‘Maps for Change’ course; complete up to 50 rehabilitation requirement activity days and 120 hours of unpaid community service, the report said.

The 61-year-old was also made the subject of a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order and will be on the Sex Offender Register for the same amount of time.

The report said: “There was evidence that Mr Perry's actions were deliberate.

“There was no evidence to suggest that Mr Perry was acting under duress.

“The panel took into account the sentencing remarks made by the Recorder when sentencing Mr Perry for the offences.”

While he had offered a guilty plea, had no previous convictions, was said to be of good character and had dedicated much of his life to educating young people without complaint, the report said the panel noted the judge was “mindful that Mr Perry had been accessing child pornography for over a decade (2009-2019), without having previously been caught and had not taken steps to stop his behaviour, until after he had been caught”.

The report added: “The panel noted that Mr Perry had accessed a significant volume of indecent images.

“The seriousness of the offence was reflected in his sentence, which included a (suspended) custodial sentence, a number of community penalties, a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for 10 years and registration on the Sex Offender Register for 10 years.”

It added: “The panel finds that the conduct of Mr Perry fell significantly short of the standards expected of the profession.

“The findings of misconduct are particularly serious as they include a conviction of three counts of making an indecent photograph or pseudo-photograph of children.”

Decision-maker Sarah Buxcey said a prohibition order would be proportionate and in the public interest.

She said there would be no review period to “maintain public confidence” and added: “This means that Mr Mark Perry 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 him, I have decided that Mr Perry shall not be entitled to apply for restoration of his eligibility to teach.”