A teacher banned from the profession after being accused of misgendering a pupil and “inappropriately” sharing his Christian faith claims he was wrongly barred because regulators disliked his religious views.
Joshua Sutcliffe formerly taught maths at Cherwell Secondary School in Oxford, but the Teaching Regulation Authority (TRA) found him guilty of unacceptable conduct, meaning he is now banned from the profession.
Amongst other accusations, the TRA said Mr Sutcliffe condemned the use of preferred pronouns for transgender students, and cited one example of him saying “well done girls” to a group of teenagers, of which one was a transgender boy.
He also told students about a former roommate who “left the gay lifestyle”.
However, Mr Sutcliffe says the evidence against him is “loose,” and would never stand in a court of law.
He told Premier Christianity Magazine: “They didn’t like me very much, they didn’t like my Christian views very much. Their accounts of these so-called conversations I'd had were so loose. It was actually shocking how loose they were, but the allegations stood because the TRA doesn't like Christian beliefs very much.
“If you go to a criminal court, the evidence would be dismissed in an instant, but the TRA had discretion.
“The TRA can make up their own rules as they go along.
“And the wider point is that up and down the country you’ve got schools being taken over by children. It’s a sad state of affairs.”
However, it was his comments on Piers Morgan’s evening television show that sparked national condemnation, including from Christians.
Going head-to-head with the talk show host, Mr Sutcliffe has been accused of suggesting those that cheat on their spouse should be put to death.
Clarifying his comments to Premier Christianity Magazine, he says the comments weren’t meant to be taken literally.
He said: “I was trying to quote, Romans 6.23, which says, ‘The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord’.
“I was trying to say that we will one day stand before a righteous and holy God and according to His law, we all deserve death, as in the wages of sin is death.
“We deserve judgment, but we have hope and Jesus who took our place on the cross, he took the judgment of God up upon himself and those that trust in Him might know life not only in this life, but in the life to come, and so they won't know the second death.
“So I was really trying just trying to teach…but I wasn't really able to finish and I wasn't really able to formulate my thoughts.
While Mr Sutcliffe recognises that most Christians in the UK are not likely to agree with him, he says he wanted to encourage those watching Piers Morgan: Uncensored to “live right by what God says”.
A Department for Education spokesperson said: “We do not comment on specific cases or individuals.”
“More broadly, the Education Secretary is working closely with the Minister for Women and Equalities to support schools in relation to children who are questioning their gender, following calls from schools, teachers, and parents.
“This guidance will clarify schools’ legal position and the importance of involving parents when making any decisions relating to their child.”
