Teacher who bought vape for pupil banned

A teacher has been banned from the profession after admitting buying a vape for a pupil and hiding other students' vapes in his classroom.

Hassan Moosa also admitted having sexual conversations with pupils and giving one girl a lift home unaccompanied, against school policy.

The 28-year-old, a former teacher at Warlingham School and Sixth Form College (WSSFC) in Surrey, was given the prohibition order after written evidence was presented to the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA).

A WSSFC spokesperson welcomed the outcome, adding that Moosa had been immediately suspended and then dismissed in late 2023 "when it became apparent he may have crossed professional boundaries with students".

In a statement to the TRA panel, Moosa said he had "acted on a stupid impulse" when he gave a vape to a female pupil, telling her not to tell anyone else, actions he said he deeply regretted.

Moosa added that he gave the same girl a lift in his car because her journey by public transport would take an hour, while it was a 10-minute drive.

He also admitted allowing students to store vapes in his classroom, hugging them and asking some female pupils intimate questions about the boys they were seeing.

The TRA said Moosa had admitted he was guilty of unacceptable professional conduct and conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute.

In their judgement, the TRA panel said it considered Moosa's conduct could "potentially damage the public's perception of a teacher".

It said it felt Moosa had displayed "insufficient insight into the impact of his conduct" on pupils and had chosen to disregard previous advice on his conduct, meaning there was a risk of him repeating his behaviour.

The panel did note Moosa had "taken steps to reflect on his conduct", and he will be allowed to appeal for his prohibition order to be lifted from January 2029.

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