A woman has been banned from teaching indefinitely after drinking alcohol on the school premises and failing to respect the boundaries of one of her pupils.

Ms Michela Hall, who worked at Lincoln House School in Burnley, was suspended in July 2019.

Earlier this month, the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) found Ms Hall behaved inappropriately whilst intoxicated on the school premises.

Ms Hall, who worked as a teacher for more than 20 years, also locked herself in a room alone with a child on more than one occasion and wore some items of clothing belonging to a student.

One witness told the TRA they saw Ms Hall drinking from a Greggs cup, believed to be filled with wine, on the school premises on 3 July 2019.

The witness said she could “smell alcohol on Ms Hall” and later took photographs of the cup and two empty wine bottles in the bin behind Ms Hall’s desk.

Another witness said “it was clear Ms Hall was drunk” and said they could also smell alcohol on her.

The panel found it was more likely than not Ms Hall was in possession of alcohol, consumed alcohol and was intoxicated whilst on school premises.

The school’s management expressed concerns about Ms Hall’s boundaries with one of her pupils.

A witness told the TRA panel she had took a put on a pupil’s watch, baseball cap and hooded jumper.

The witness said Ms Hall was “strolling around with them on” and the pupil was angry that Ms Hall had taken his things.

She also took the pupils bike and attempted to ride it but a witness said she was “too unsteady” to do so.

A witness also stated she saw Ms Hall "pull on the pupil’s arm in an attempt to drag him out of the office".

She was also said to have locked herself in a room alone with a child.

During the Clifton Street-based school's investigation Ms Hall did not deny her conduct and said it was "one stupid mistake" and she had apologised at the time.

Ms Hall, 42, has been banned from teaching indefinitely, with a review period of two years, and cannot teach in any school, sixth form college, relevant youth accommodation or children’s home in England.

The panel found Ms Hall was in breach of the following standards:

  • Teachers uphold public trust in the profession and maintain high standards of ethics and behaviour, within and outside school, by treating pupils with dignity, building relationships rooted in mutual respect, and at all times observing proper boundaries appropriate to a teacher’s professional position, having regard for the need to safeguard pupils’ well-being, in accordance with statutory provisions o showing tolerance of and respect for the rights of others
  • Teachers must have proper and professional regard for the ethos, policies and practices of the school in which they teach.
  • Teachers must have an understanding of, and always act within, the statutory frameworks which set out their professional duties and responsibilities

Lincoln House School has been approached for comment.