Medway Secure Training Centre, off Sir Evelyn Road in Rochester. Image: Andy Payton
A secondary school teacher has been banned from the profession after he “allowed pupils to access porn” during class time.
Bolanle Kareem, who taught IT at the Medway Secure Training Centre was ruled out after a misconduct hearing last month found serious failing in his actions.
Mr. Kareem, 61, qualified as a teacher in 2012 and joined the school at Sir Evelyn Road, Rochester in July of 2018.
Following a review of evidence, a report found that Mr. Kareem showed and allowed for pupils to access pornographic material in May, July, and November 2019.
CCTV footage showed that Mr. Kareem was more than aware that explicit material was displayed on an interactive whiteboard but took no steps to take down the material.
To make matters worse, footage also showed Kareem enlarging a pornographic image on the screen for ‘better visibility’.
The teacher was then seen attempting to press the play icon several times over an indecent image.
Evidence further revealed that on November 13, 2019, Mr. Kareem would view pornographic material alone with students during class time on numerous occasions.
Students would also simulate sex acts in his class, to which Kareem would fail to intervene, discipline, and report the pupils.
On occasions, it was alleged that Mr Kareem used his staff-level entry key fob to provide access to pornography, content that otherwise was out of reach to those with student fobs.
On November 25, 2019, a Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) referral was logged and reported to the police.
Following this, Kareem was then referred to the Teaching Regulation Authority.
A concluding hearing conducted by Sarh Buxcey, the decisive figure for Secretary of State for Education, said:
“In this case, the panel has found all of the allegations proven and found that those proven facts amount to unacceptable professional conduct and conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute.
“The panel has made a recommendation to the Secretary of State that Mr. Bolanle Kareem should be the subject of a prohibition order, with no provision for a review period.
“This means that Mr. Bolanle Kareem 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. Kareem shall not be entitled to apply for restoration of his eligibility to teach.”