A JAILED teacher been struck off following his conviction for possessing child pornography and secretly filming a schoolgirl in the shower.
The General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS) took the action against Gordon Milne, 33, following a hearing in Edinburgh on Friday.
The former Forfar Academy IT teacher is serving 18 months for having 1500 child porn images on a laptop.
The material included a video Milne took himself of a 17-year-old girl showering during a climbing trip.
In total Milne had 1,535 images and 13 videos.
The GTCS case was heard in Milne’s absence as Milne is serving an 18-month sentence imposed at Dundee Sheriff Court in May this year.
Milne wrote to the GTCS from prison saying that he wished to be removed from the register “in view of the allegations made against him relating to his fitness to teach”.
He wrote: “I freely and willingly consent to being removed from GTC Scotland’s Register of Teachers in view of my admission of the allegations set out above and understand that I will be prohibited from applying for restoration to that register for a period of two years.”
The panel took the decision also make a referral under section eight of the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007, in order that Scottish ministers may consider whether or not Milne should be barred from working with children and protected adults in the future.
Mr Milne, who was nicknamed “Flash Gordon” by pupils, had set up his hidden camera in a communal bathroom during an expedition in Derbyshire.
He filmed the girl undressing and showering – he later downloaded the footage to one of his computers.
Police raided Milne’s house in Forfar and seized a mobile phone and two laptops after being tipped off.
Milne was arrested at a teaching conference in a Carnoustie hotel.
He claimed he downloaded the child porn images out of “professional curiosity”, and police officers showed Milne’s film of the showering teenager to his wife who confirmed the girl’s identity.
Milne was placed on the sex offenders register for 10 years and will be on license for a year after his release from prison.
By Bob Malcolm
