Teacher who dubbed pupil ‘fats slug’ and referred to as dad and mom and workers impolite names avoids ban

From calling pupils ‘fat slugs’ to telling someone else they’re a ‘fat’ expletive, and making an extremly vulgar reference, how did this potty mouth primary head teacher avoid a teaching ban?

A former primary school headteacher has evaded a ban from the classroom after calling a pupil a “fat slug” to staff and another expletively “ugly.”

Nicola Brogan worked at Woodland Community Primary School in Heywood, Lancashire and led the school from 2011 to 2019 – the teacher was alleged to have created what was described as an uncomfortable and negative working environment.

Her comments included nicknaming another teacher “Captain Camp” in reference to his sexuality, calling a parent who was Scottish an expletive “jock” and calling someone else a “fat” expletive before making reference to a private and intimate act. They are reported by the Times to have been made both in person and online.

Despite a Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) panel finding that her actions equated to unprofessional conduct, they did not recommend Mrs Brogan to be banned from teaching. One witness withrew from the hearing, leading to other accusations being dropped.

The TRA panel also said the teacher deserved “considerable credit” for helping the 470-pupil out of special measures to achieve a “good” rating by Ofsted.

The comments of Brogan, who is now reported to work for an education consultancy, were allegedly not exclusively hurled at parents and pupils but also other staff members. She is claimed to have called a teaching assistant a “fat cow” and claimed another member of staff wouldn’t need an inhaler if she wasn’t “so fat” – after the victim arrived at a meeting late.

The teacher was cleared of several other allegations, including making staff members cry, mimicking a Polish accent and threatening to ruin a member of staff’s career.

She also described one pupil as a “wimp” and said to another that one man, “annoys the… out of me, he has no personality.”

The TRA report said: “The panel was satisfied that the conduct of Mrs Brogan, which concerned abusive and inappropriate comments about staff pupils and parents, was very serious.”

It added: “There was a significant weight of evidence from staff which confirmed this behaviour had a seriously negative impact upon the working environment of the school and adversely affected how staff felt and behaved.”

The panel concluded Mrs Brogan’s account of unacceptable professional conduct did not warrant a probation order and urged for a “proportionate and appropriate response.”

On behalf of the Education Secretary, Sarah Buxcey agreed with the panel’s recommendation not to ban Mrs Brogan from the classroom, she stated: “I have also placed considerable weight on the finding of the panel that ‘given her experience and prior good service, there was every prospect that Mrs Brogan would be able to make a contribution to the education profession in the future’.”

She added: “I consider that the publication of the findings made would be sufficient tosend an appropriate message to the teacher as to the standards of behaviour that were not acceptable and that the publication would meet the public interest requirement ofdeclaring proper standards of the profession.”