Private school teacher banned after drunken fight with staff after Christmas party

A teacher at a private school near Essex has been banned after drunkenly fighting another member of staff in front of pupils after a Christmas work party. Andrew Dixon, 26, was a PE teacher and Head of House at St Joseph's College in Ipswich.

A Teacher Regulation Agency (TRA) hearing heard Mr Dixon was celebrating the end of term with colleagues on December 16, 2022, when he returned to the private school. Instead of heading to his staff flat Mr Dixon, who had been drinking alcohol, went to a different location on campus where a group of Spanish students were staying.

The TRA report says students reported at around 10.40pm Mr Dixon was fighting a male member of staff from the holiday company who was looking after the group of students. Mr Dixon was arrested on the school's campus and spent the night in police custody.

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The victim was left with a pain in his jaw that potentially required surgery. He also broke his thumb and sustained several bruises. Mr Dixon continued to be argumentative in the presence of police.

The hearing's report says Mr Dixon had heard noises from the boarding house so decided to investigate it. He also said he was "concerned" and "suspicious" about a man he did not recognise at the boarding house, which resulted in a verbal exchange that escalated to a physical altercation.

Mr Dixon was previously of good character and in a written statement he admitted feeling "ashamed about [his] actions" and recognised what he had done was "unprofessional, shameful and incredibly regretful". He is currently engaging in counselling sessions to explore issues with alcohol and anger management.

The 26-year-old teacher attended a disciplinary hearing on January 16, 2023, and was dismissed the following day. He was referred to the TRA on January 26, 2023, and on March 30, 2023, he entered a guilty plea to assault occasioning actual bodily harm and was ordered to pay a fine and compensation.

The TRA report said: "The panel noted that Mr Dixon did not receive a sentence of imprisonment, and instead was ordered to pay a small fine, which indicated that the seriousness of the offence was on the lower end of the spectrum. The panel was also mindful that the offence occurred in 2022, and since then, Mr Dixon had indicated a willingness to seek support and to learn from his behaviour.

"As a result, the panel found that whilst Mr Dixon was not currently suitable to return to the teaching profession, he should be given the opportunity to demonstrate that he has learnt from his behaviour and has rectified his issues, so that he could potentially return to teaching in the future, if he wished to do so."

Despite this the panel felt there was a risk of repetition that could impact the future wellbeing of pupils. Mr Dixon was banned from working in any school, sixth form college, relevant youth accommodation or children’s home in England until 2026 at the earliest.