A former PE teacher who was banned from teaching 10 years ago when his wrongdoing came to light has now faced justice and been jailed for engaging in sexual activity with a former pupil.
Steven Laverty, 48, has been sent to jail for three years and told to sign the sex offenders’ register for life.
Liverpool Crown Court previously heard Mr Laverty had sex with the ex-pupil, who was under the age of 16, after she had left the school where he taught. At the time, Mr Laverty had falsely claimed she had been 16.
The former PE teacher from Walton was previously banned after he was found to have “showed a failure to observe proper boundaries in relation to his professional position” in a “clear abuse of trust”. But he did not face prosecution at this time as he had instructed his victim to lie and to tell investigators that she was 16 when they had sex.
This was despite the panel also finding out the dad-of-two had “grabbed a 14-year-old boy in the groin” during a PE lesson.
The prosecutor, Martine Snowdon said the girl was left self-harming and felt “isolated” as a result of his offending.
Charlotte Kenny, defending, said Mr Laverty was drinking heavily around the time of his mother’s death and it had had an impact on him.
She said: “The defendant says, as a result of that, he internally went off the rails. This was a gross error of judgement at a time when the defendant was in a very dark place, coming to terms with the death of his mother in the most tragic circumstances.”
She added: “This offence happened a long time ago now. Mr Laverty has been an excellent father. He is still in employment and he had been invited back to work in all the circumstances. He can continue to provide.”
Sentencing, Judge Louise Brandon said: “You knew she had been your pupil. The jury were sure you did not reasonably believe she was 16. The fact you find yourself in this situation after all these years is entirely of your own making. It is clear she has been deeply traumatised by what happened to her.”
She added: “I cannot conclude that you are genuinely fully remorseful. The only remorse you have is for the situation you find yourself in now.”
