A TEACHER at a school for children with special needs has been found guilty of unacceptable professional conduct after failing to properly deal with pupil who was having a major seizure.
Elaine Remnant-Ashton had been a teacher at St Francis special school in Fareham for 22 years and judged to be an outstanding teacher by Ofsted just weeks before the incident happened.
Evidence given at a disciplinary hearing heard how Ms Remnant-Ashton failed to spot the signs that a pupil in her care was having a prolonged seizure which lasted for over five minutes.
The panel also heard how she then left the child in the care of a learning assistant until the school nurse came to administer emergency medication and that she failed to inform other staff of the incident.
The following day in November 2012 Ms Remnant-Ashton also failed to ensure that daily medication was given at the correct time to two of her other pupils, leading to one then suffering pain and vomiting.
Ms Remnant Ashton, 59, was not present for the disciplinary hearing but in her written defence she said that, as a result of high staff turnover and reorganisation, she was given staff who did not have experience of working with pupils in her class.
She also said that not enough time was given to her learning assistants to learn the complex needs of her pupils and that “workload imposed on both herself and the staff was too onerous and expectations of the staff were too high.”
In conclusion the panel said the allegations amounted to unacceptable professional conduct but, in an exceptional move, did not impose any punishment in light of the circumstances which included her experienced record and the fact she raised concerns about inadequate support to senior management six weeks before the incident.
Headteacher of St Francis Special school Steve Hollinghurst admitted errors of judgement were made and confirmed that Ms Remnant-Ashton had not worked at the school since that time. He said that the welfare of pupils was of paramount importance.
He said: “All staff are given considerable support, guidance and training to assist them in the leadership of their class. Furthermore, the school has extensively revised its guidance to staff on meeting complex medical needs.
“This was a very rare incident and every precaution has been taken to maintain the highest standards of care and welfare, and prevent a recurrence. My staff and I are passionate about providing outstanding education and care for the children and families and are committed to the highest level of professional conduct at all times.”
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