Mother ‘devastated’ over teacher claims

AN emotional mum has told a jury how devastated she felt to be told her young son had been sexually touched by a teacher at school.

She came close to sobbing as she described her reaction to learning of the allegations involving 25-year old Neil Carr on Valentine’s Day last year.

The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had been unaware of anything untoward until another mother knocked at her door and said her son had also been inappropriately touched by the teacher.

Giving evidence at Manchester’s Minshull Street Crown Court, the mother said: “We asked him if anything had happened at school, and he just looked at us and said: ‘Yes, but it’s weird’.”

She went on: “When he knew that we knew, he seemed almost relieved.”

Earlier the court had heard evidence from the boy via video link about how Carr had touched him.

In a statement to police, he said Mr Carr had touched his trousers near the pocket “on the right hand side”.

Cross-examined for the court hearing, however, he said the teacher’s hand had been inside his boxer shorts, though he had not touched him.

The teacher pleads not guilty to a total of 20 offences of sexual activity with a child, concerning seven young boys.

The court has been told that in each case the story is very similar. A youngster would ask for help with a problem and the teacher would go over to him and sexually touch him under the desk.

Mr Carr has strenuously denied ever touching a child in an inappropriate way, and claims a number of pupils have spread malicious gossip, spurred on by over-zealous parents.

The case continues.



By law we are unable to report the defendant’s address, the school or any particulars that would lead to the identification of any children involved.



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