PETER GREAVES, FORMER LEICESTER PRIMARY SCHOOL DEPUTY HEAD, ADMITS LOOKING AT CHILD ABUSE IMAGES

In August 2012, Peter Greaves, a 43-year-old former deputy head teacher at Dovelands Primary School in Leicester, admitted to downloading indecent images of children and was subsequently sentenced to a suspended prison term.

Greaves had initially sought help from his general practitioner, confessing that he had been viewing illegal images. His doctor reported this to the police, leading to an investigation. Officers visited his family home in Clarendon Park, Leicester, and confiscated his laptop computer.

Greaves pleaded guilty to ten counts of making indecent images of children through downloading them. At Leicester Crown Court, prosecutor Alexander Davies explained, "The defendant explained to his doctor that he was having inappropriate thoughts in relation to children." He further stated that the concerning behavior had reportedly lasted approximately two months. The images involved ranged across various categories: 96 at level one, 44 at level two, 25 at level three, 54 at level four, and 16 at the most serious level five.

Davies clarified, "It’s not suggested any images related to pupils at school. An investigation did not find he had offended in relation to his employment."

Regarding sentencing, Recorder Gregory Bull QC remarked, "The fact you were a primary school deputy head is an aggravating feature. You can be sure members of the community would have been terrified their children had been preyed upon by you. I’m satisfied your actions have not involved your own or any other child's care. You are thoroughly ashamed, and you deserved to lose your job. Having said that, you had the foresight to visit your GP to seek help."

Defense barrister Paul Trotter noted that Greaves had also sought assistance from external agencies, stating, "He has no previous convictions, and testimonials speak well of him. There are a relatively small number of images in this case. For a short period, he had an unhealthy interest in these images, but his life has changed beyond recognition."

Following the incident, social services became involved with Greaves’s family, and he moved out of the family home after the matter surfaced. As part of his sentence, Greaves will be required to register as a sex offender and is subject to a five-year sexual offences prevention order, which includes conditions such as having no unsupervised contact with children under 16, apart from his own.

Wendy Martin, chairwoman of the governors at Dovelands Primary School, expressed their stance: "When these allegations were first made, we took them very seriously. As soon as it became clear they were well-founded, we dismissed the staff member immediately. We are glad the matter is now closed."