Matthew Thring

Introduction

Matthew Thring is a former English and Media teacher who became head of English at Fareham Academy in Hampshire. In spring 2022 he gave a pupil at the school his personal mobile number and his home address, exchanged WhatsApp messages with her, hugged her when she was upset, bought her chocolate, a card and a pencil case, and told her he “really enjoy her company”, or words to that effect. The pupil’s mother raised a safeguarding concern in April 2022; his employment ended that July and Hampshire police closed their inquiry with no further action. In July 2023 a Teaching Regulation Agency panel found the conduct proved, and he was prohibited from teaching indefinitely.

Background Information

Thring joined Fareham Academy as an English and Media teacher on 20 June 2016 and was promoted to head of English on 2 March 2021, giving him six years at the school by the time his employment ceased on 23 July 2022. Colleagues’ references to the panel attested to his “dedication to the education of young people”, and one traced his rise from classroom teacher to head of department across those six years as proof of his passion for the job. In a statement to the panel, Thring attributed the misconduct to a period of personal and professional struggle: he was finding the new head-of-department role hard to manage, was grappling with student behaviour and abusive TikTok videos, and felt he had “no coping mechanisms”.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

Personal number, address and gifts for a pupil. A panel found that Thring’s admitted course of conduct toward a current pupil amounted to unacceptable professional conduct and conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute.

It was alleged that between around February and April 2022 Thring behaved inappropriately in relation to Pupil A in seven ways, and he admitted all of them — first in his response of 6 March 2023, then in a statement of agreed facts signed on 29 April 2023. During the week before Easter, when the pupil asked for his mobile number, he wrote it on a piece of paper and told her to use it should she need to; he also showed her his home address. Between roughly 5 and 25 April 2022 they exchanged WhatsApp messages, he hugged her when she was upset, and he bought her a pencil case, chocolate and a card or postcard. In his classroom he told her that he really enjoyed her company and shared details of his personal life: that he had not seen his father for three years, that he rented because he could not afford to buy, and that he was going to the pub or “might be a bit drunk”.

The panel noted that the messaging took place outside the education setting, but that Pupil A remained a current pupil, so his actions “touched upon this profession as a teacher”. By then the matter was moving through formal channels: Mother B raised a safeguarding concern with the school on 25 April 2022; Thring was invited to a disciplinary investigation meeting on 24 May 2022; an investigation meeting followed on 17 June 2022 and a disciplinary meeting on 15 July 2022. He was told of the outcome on 22 July 2022, and his employment ceased the next day.

Having found all seven particulars proved, the panel found breaches of the Teachers’ Standards and conduct that fell “significantly short of the standards expected of the profession”. It found that Thring “had displayed controlling or coercive behaviour” in particular in the way he communicated with Pupil A, and concluded that his behaviour amounted to both unacceptable professional conduct and conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute. In his April 2023 statement Thring stated that he “deeply regretted his actions and took full responsibility”, that he could see his actions risked being misinterpreted and could have made Pupil A feel uncomfortable, and that they could have left her facing challenges with trusting adults in the future.

Public Reaction and Consequences

In recommending prohibition, the panel said its findings “involved engaging in an inappropriate relationship with Pupil A”, giving rise to a strong public interest in the protection of pupils, and warned that public confidence in the profession “could be seriously weakened” if such conduct were not treated with the utmost seriousness. It acknowledged the character references and that Thring had “contributed to some extent” to education at the school over six years, but found that his deliberate actions and the seriousness of the behaviours outweighed his interests, and recommended a prohibition order with immediate effect and a two-year review period. Hampshire police had already confirmed their investigation “resulted in no further action”, so no criminal charge was ever brought; their referral of the matter to the TRA on 9 November 2022 carried it to the regulator instead, where it was decided on the civil standard.

Current Status

On 21 July 2023 Sarah Buxcey, deciding on behalf of the Secretary of State for Education, determined that Mr Thring is prohibited from teaching indefinitely and cannot teach in any school, sixth form college, relevant youth accommodation or children’s home in England. He may apply for the prohibition order to be set aside, but not until 27 July 2025 — two years from the date of the order at the earliest. That is not an automatic right: if he applies, a panel will meet to consider whether the order should be lifted, and without a successful application he remains prohibited indefinitely. The order took effect from the date it was served on him, and he had a right of appeal to the King’s Bench Division of the High Court within 28 days.

Impact on Their Career/Life

The ban ended a six-year career that had carried Thring from classroom teacher to head of English, and it closes off teaching in any school, sixth form college, youth accommodation or children’s home in England — not just his old job. The panel’s finding that he displayed behaviours associated with controlling or coercive behaviour marks the conduct as more than a lapse in judgment, and it found no evidence his actions were not deliberate. The two-year review period leaves a narrow route back: from 27 July 2025 he may ask a panel to set the order aside, but the burden is on him to show insight and address his stated difficulties, and until any application succeeds he is barred for life.

Sources

• GOV.UK, “Mr Matthew Thring: Professional conduct panel meeting outcome” — source