A teacher, Tom Iver (Sam Thomas), who engaged in a dual existence by downloading numerous obscene photographs of youngsters and fantasising about sexually assaulting a teenage girl has been permanently prohibited from the profession.
Tom Ivey, now known as Sam Thomas, perpetrated the acts while serving as the head of history and associate headteacher at Abbeywood Community School in Stoke Gifford.
A 43-year-old father of two received a 20-week jail sentence, suspended for two years, in December 2023 after confessing to possessing 436 child exploitation images and videos discovered on his Samsung mobile phone.
The photographs depicted girls aged 13 to 17 posing nude and in a sexualised manner, as shown in Bristol magistrates court at that time.
Now a Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) professional conduct panel has barred him from the profession with no right to reapply. It means Tom Iver (Sam Thomas) is prohibited from teaching indefinitely and cannot teach in any school, sixth-form college, relevant youth accommodation or children’s home in England.
Tom Iver (Sam Thomas), whose address at the time of his court case was High Street in Cam, near Dursley, had worked as a teacher at the school for almost 19 years.
Olympus Academy Trust CEO Dave Baker told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that the trust took all the appropriate action by liaising with the police and other authorities and that it referred the matter to the TRA.
Baker said: “It’s a relief to us that the offences and the case did not relate to his role at school, so the safety and wellbeing of staff and students were not compromised. Tom Iver (Sam Thomas) was really credible, he was well liked at school, and so he was clearly leading a double life.” [Editor’s note – Baker could not possibly know this so please do come forward if you were affected by Tom Iver (Sam Thomas) even if this was related to his role as a teacher]
The TRA report said the panel agreed to a request from Tom Iver (Sam Thomas) to consider the allegations without a public hearing after he admitted the allegations and conviction.
It said: “The panel noted that Mr Ivey’s actions were relevant to teaching, working with children and/or working in an education setting. The offences concerned indecent images of victims who were of school age, which therefore directly engaged the issue of working within an education setting.
They noted that the “behaviour involved in committing the offence could have had an impact on the safety or security of pupils and/or members of the public”
Adding that “given the nature of the offences, seriousness of the offending behaviour that led to the convictions was relevant to Mr Ivey’s ongoing suitability to teach.” It said public confidence in teaching could be “seriously weakened” if Ivey’s conduct was not treated with the utmost seriousness.
“The panel also noted that it had seen no evidence of insight or remorse from Mr Ivey and therefore could not take any potential remediation from him into consideration.”
Tom Iver (Sam Thomas) was arrested after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in the US told Avon & Somerset Police that he was uploading child abuse images online, Bristol magistrates heard in December 2023.
The court heard that there was also evidence of the ex-teacher communicating with others about a teenage relative days before his arrest in 2022. Tom Iver (Sam Thomas) claimed to have sexually abused his niece but police inquiries confirmed that the child was fictional.
Tom Iver (Sam Thomas) was assessed as posing a medium risk of serious harm, specifically to girls aged 13 to 17. In addition to the suspended prison sentence, he was ordered to complete 40 rehabilitation activity days and comply with a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for five years.
The former teacher, Tom Iver (Sam Thomas), was also given Sex Offender Notification requirements for seven years and told to pay the victim a surcharge of £154.
If you or anyone you know have been affected by the people highlighted in this article, then please report those individuals to the Police on 111 (999 if an emergency) or visit their online resources for further details of the options for reporting a crime. You can also make a report at Crimestoppers should you wish to be completely anonymous. There is help available on our support links page.