A Church of England school teacher who handed his former deputy head a handwritten confession admitting he used Instagram to find photographs of female pupils to “fantasise for my own pleasure” has been banned from teaching indefinitely.
Jacob Woodland, 28, the head of physics at Ripley St Thomas Church of England Academy in Lancaster, surrendered the note in August 2024. In it he wrote: “I am truly sorry but I have done something inappropriate and I cannot live with myself without being honest. I have looked at publicly available Instagram content of some senior female pupils at school and used these to fantasise for my own pleasure.”
He was suspended the following day and resigned in October 2024. More than a year later, on 5 May 2026, a professional conduct panel convened to consider his case, and on 4 June 2026 the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) published its written conclusion, imposing an indefinite ban from teaching.
Misconduct and Confession
The Teaching Regulation Agency panel heard that Woodland admitted searching for pictures of several pupils over a number of years. Three of the girls were under 18. He described the images as showing them “clothed or partially unclothed”, adding that there “may” have been photographs of them wearing bikinis and that the pupils were of a similar “type”.
In a written statement to the panel, Woodland said: “I recognise that I was on a concerning path. However, I would now like to be clear that having confronted this issue over the last 15 months, I do not have any desire to repeat this behaviour.”
School Context and Safeguarding
Ripley St Thomas Church of England Academy is a large mixed secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 18, with more than 1,700 students including around 350 in the sixth form. It is part of The Bay Learning Trust. Woodland had worked at the school for nearly five years before his admission.
The school’s online safety policy warns pupils about the dangers of uploading images to social networking sites, stating that “these images could fall into the wrong hands and potentially put your child at risk and also hinder future chances of employment.” Its behaviour policy emphasises self-discipline and respect, and outlines consequences for poor behaviour, including “behaviour beyond the academy gates.” The designated safeguarding lead is Deputy Headteacher Mr J. Quarry, whose role includes ensuring a safe environment for pupils.
Police Investigation
Woodland was investigated by police but answered “no comment” to all questions during his interview. No further action was taken.
Panel’s Concerns and Decision
The TRA panel expressed concern about the “limited amount of remorse shown” by the teacher, who appeared to consider that he had not caused harm to the pupils because they did not know about his actions until the academy informed them. The panel found Woodland had committed serious misconduct, and a senior official adopted its recommendation to ban him from teaching indefinitely.
The TRA’s published decision notes Woodland’s date of birth as 13 June 1997 and lists his teacher reference number as 1789857.
