Teacher sent lewd texts to boy, 14, 'leaving no doubt what she would like to do'

• Boy entered his number into teacher's phone
• She exchanged 'substantial number' of texts with him
• Teacher must now sign sex offenders' register
• Warned she may also face prison sentence

Position of trust: Teacher Kathryn Roach pleaded guilty to inciting a child to engage in sexual activity

A religious education teacher sent explicit text messages to a 14-year-old pupil leaving him in ‘no doubt of what she would like to do or what she wanted him to do to her’.
Kathryn Roach, 24, targeted the boy after he and some other pupils got hold of her mobile phone and punched their numbers into it.
Roach then sent a series of sexual texts to one pupil saying they should meet and describing what she would like to do to him, a court heard.
Last night her career lay in tatters after she admitted sending the lewd messages to a pupil at the school where she worked.
And a judge warned the newly-qualified teacher that, because of the seriousness of her crime, she could face a prison sentence.
Police arrested Roach – who appeared at Bolton Crown Court yesterday – after they were made aware of the catalogue of texts and she was immediately suspended from the school.
Although she never met the pupil outside the school, they had exchanged a ‘substantial number’ of messages, which the court heard had become increasingly sexual in their nature.
David Clarke, prosecuting, said the case was about the abuse of a position of trust and the nature of the messages exchanged.
He said: ‘Sexual activity didn’t take place. The extent it would have gone to is hard to tell.’
Mary McKeone, defending, said: ‘She accepts that by sending a number of text messages sexual in their nature she incited the complainant – a child – to engage in sexual activity.’
Judge Stephen Everett said: ‘She was the boy’s teacher and had sent him a substantial number of texts which, at least in part, became more sexual in nature.
‘She is a teacher in a position of trust being in contact, in this way, with a pupil.’
He told Roach: ‘You must now go and sign the sex offenders register. I have no thoughts as to what sentence is appropriate be it custodial or non-custodial. All sentence options are open and you must prepare yourself for that.’
At a previous hearing magistrates heard Roach was a newly-qualified teacher.

'All sentence options are open': Roach appeared at Bolton Crown Court yesterday. She was arrested after police were made aware of the catalogue of texts

Ruth Atkinson, prosecuting, said: ‘This lady, a newly-qualified teacher, taught RE three times a week having involvement with the victim during teaching.
‘There was a time when the boys got hold of her mobile phone and put their phone numbers into it.
‘Then she took it upon herself to target this one male, sending inappropriate text messages. The messages were completely inappropriate, of a sexual nature leaving no doubt what she would like to do or what she wanted him to do to her.’
The school, which cannot be identified for legal reasons, is a Roman Catholic high school with more than 1,000 pupils, considered good and ‘improving’ by Ofsted.
Roach, of Croxteth, Liverpool, who has no previous convictions, yesterday appeared in the dock pleading guilty to inciting a child to engage in sexual activity between March 22 and April 14 last year.
Sentencing was adjourned until October 31.