A former principal convicted of stealing a substantial sum of money from a Munster primary school has been suspended from the register for one month by a fitness-to-practise committee.
Clodagh O’Hara, chairperson of the committee, said on Thursday that the committee had arrived at this sanction to make clear to the teaching profession and the general public the gravity of the offences.
The committee decided to censure the teacher in writing and added that his retention on the register would be subject to him not seeking or accepting a role of principal or deputy principal, and that he would not have access to or control over school funds, including cash, bank accounts, credit cards or other funds.
He must also notify any future or prospective school employer of the conditions attached to his registration, and attend an addiction support group at least monthly or as advised by his GP.
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Further, the teacher must give permission to his GP to notify the Teaching Council of any reoccurrence of his addiction or other breaches of conditions.
The committee noted that thefts at a much lower level than those in this case would normally automatically warrant removal from the register.
However, the committee further noted that the thefts here occurred in the context of a serious medical disability, an addiction.
The committee also took into account the apology by the teacher, the insight he has shown and the treatment he has undertaken. They also took into account that he had repaid all of the money stolen and his importance to his current school.
The principal there gave evidence that the registrant was “a consummate professional” and that she would be “lost without him”.
The chairperson of the board of management of the teacher’s current school said the registrant was involved in many extracurricular activities there.
The inquiry heard on Wednesday that at the time of the thefts, which were more than 100 in number from the school’s bank and credit union accounts occurring over a four-year period, the teacher was then in the grip of an “all-consuming” addiction.
The teacher received a suspended sentence for the offences which were tried before a jury in the Circuit Court.
On Wednesday the committee found proven the allegation that the teacher had been found guilty of multiple counts of theft, an offence triable on indictment, and that this affected his fitness to teach, both of which the teacher also admitted to.
The teacher in his oral statement to the inquiry on Thursday apologised to the entire community at the school regarding the thefts, which he said had deprived the school of “essential resources”.
He said he was not the person he had been at the time of the thefts – that he ran six days per week, that he did not have a smartphone, that his finances were managed by a close relative and that he was a proud husband, father, son, brother and teacher.
He said that he was “deeply ashamed” of his conduct, that this shame would “never leave” him and that he never wanted to put his employer and family through the hardship that he has.
The direction regarding anonymisation of the identity of the teacher, his family, all witnesses and the nature of his addiction also applied to Thursday’s sanction hearing.
The teacher, if he so wishes, has 21 days to appeal the sanction decision of the committee.
