GARY RYAN FROM EBBFLEET BANNED FOR INAPPROPRIATE ONLINE BEHAVIOR INVOLVING STUDENTS

In June 2018, a serious misconduct case involving Gary Ryan, a teacher at The Ebbsfleet Academy located in Southfleet Road, came to light, leading to his indefinite removal from the teaching profession. The incident centered around Ryan’s inappropriate online activities and conversations that raised significant concerns about his conduct and adherence to professional standards.

According to a panel from the Teaching Regulation Agency, Gary Ryan, aged 36 at the time, engaged in a series of troubling online interactions. The panel revealed that Ryan had visited a questionable website where he participated in conversations that were deemed highly inappropriate. During these exchanges, he claimed to have had sexual relations with seven of his pupils, including a 14-year-old student. These conversations took place in April 2016, and Ryan’s admissions during police interviews confirmed that he may have viewed images involving children aged between 14 and 16.

Ryan was employed at The Ebbsfleet Academy since September 2015, serving as a PE teacher and head of house. The panel found the allegations against him to be substantiated, including that he engaged in inappropriate online conversations and falsely claimed to a stranger—whom he believed to be an adult woman—that he had sexual encounters with multiple pupils, including a minor aged 14. During the online chats, the woman he was speaking with disclosed that she had also sexually abused her own children, adding a disturbing context to the conversations.

During police interviews, Ryan admitted to viewing images that may have depicted minors aged 14 to 16. He explained that on two occasions, he clicked on links to images without knowing their content beforehand, and he immediately closed the images upon realizing their nature, feeling uncomfortable. Despite these admissions, Ryan maintained that the sexual encounters he described had taken place in various locations, including his home, his car, and the school premises. However, the panel accepted that Ryan’s claims about these encounters were fabricated, intended to deceive his online interlocutor, whom he believed to be an adult woman.

While Ryan insisted that he had no sexual motivation towards children, the panel determined that his use of pupils in online comments and ongoing conversations was inherently sexual and indicative of sexual intent. This behavior was deemed to fall significantly below the standards expected of a professional teacher. As a result, the panel decided to impose an indefinite prohibition order, effectively banning Ryan from teaching. He has the right to apply for the order to be lifted, but not before June 2020.

In response to the incident, a spokesperson from The Ebbsfleet Academy stated, “The subject matter of Mr. Gary Ryan’s professional conduct hearing was brought to our attention by the police. We promptly informed the National College for Teaching and Leadership and the Disclosure and Barring Service in accordance with our obligations. No pupils from the academy were involved in these incidents. Mr. Ryan did not return to the school after we were informed of the matter and left employment at Ebbsfleet Academy on May 31, 2016.”