Richard Leighfield, who worked at Northwick Manor Primary School in Worcester, was jailed for 30 months for child sex offences and has now been banned from teaching
A teacher who delivered vile sex instructions to a ‘schoolgirl’ and created ‘horrific’ child abuse images has been barred from the profession. Paedophile Richard Leighfield believed he was communicating with a child when he ‘initiated’ sexual conversations online and made disturbing demands.
When he was caught by police, sick indecent images of children were discovered concealed on his phone. Now, a professional conduct panel of the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) has ruled Leighfield violated teaching standards and that his behaviour constituted misconduct.
Leighfield pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to cause or incite a girl aged 13 to 15 to engage in sexual activity; three counts of making indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of a child; one count of possessing prohibited images of a child; and one count of attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child, reports Birmingham Live.
The defendant, previously of Home Meadow, Worcester, was sentenced to 30 months at Worcester Crown Court in January 2023. He was also subjected to a sexual harm prevention order and was ordered to remain on the sex offenders register for life.
A report from the panel stated: “The panel noted that the individual’s actions were relevant to teaching, working with children and working in an education setting since these were serious sexual offences involving children or someone Leighfield thought to be a child.
“Although there was no evidence that any child involved was a pupil that Leighfield taught, they were of school age.”
The panel heard how Leighfield worked as a year five class teacher at Northwick Manor Primary School, in Worcester, from September 2012.
On August 22, 2024, police informed the school that Leighfield had been arrested. He was suspended by the school on August 27 before being dismissed at a disciplinary hearing on December 11.
Leighfield, now 55, did not offer any mitigation but the panel noted that no previous misconduct or disciplinary action was on his record at the school.
The report read: “Although Leighfield has made full admissions, he has not provided any explanation for his conduct, nor was there any evidence as to his understanding of the impact of his conduct.
“He has not provided any evidence of rehabilitation. The panel therefore had no evidence upon which it could be given any assurance that Leighfield would not repeat the conduct.”
In his job application, Leighfield stated that he had worked as a teacher since 1994 and was promoted to assistant headteacher at a previous school.
At the TRA hearing in May 2026, Leighfield was made subject to a prohibition order, which means he is banned from teaching.
He cannot teach in any school, sixth-form college, relevant youth accommodation or children’s home in England.
West Mercia Police previously said that Leighfield was arrested in August 2024 after he ‘initiated sexual conversations with an online child profile purporting to be a 13 year old girl’.
The force said: “During these conversations, which took place between July 30 and August 20, he gave instructions to the ‘girl’ to carry out sexual acts on herself and encouraged her to watch and engage in a sexual act.
“At the time of his arrest, indecent images, which he had made, were found hidden on his phone.
“These included one category A – the highest category, eight category B and 10 category C photographs or pseudo-photographs of children.”
Detective Constable Giuseppe Saladino, from the force’s online child sexual exploitation team, said at the time: “Leighfield demonstrated predatory behaviour towards children and was responsible for making horrific images.
“Fortunately, his behaviour was intercepted by an online child profile, but this in no way lessens the seriousness of his offences.”