A four-year-old boy walked out of a primary school in Liverpool alone after a teacher claimed he had been safely handed over to an approved relative. Evangeline Edwin, who was a teacher at Childwall Church of England Primary School, told her superiors she was "sure" she had left the youngster in the care of his mother despite no one coming to collect him.
A Teacher Regulation Agency (TRA) hearing heard how on November 27, 2019, the boy, known as Pupil A, had been expected to turn up to an after-school sports club at the Woolton Road school. Holly Quirk, presenting officer, told the three-person panel how a coach at the school notified officials the little boy was not at the session, the Liverpool ECHO reports.
A member of the public found Pupil A in their uniform and phoned the school to notify them of the missing pupil's name. The hearing was told that during his 10-minute journey from leaving the school, he managed to cross a series of main roads.
Gurpreet Rheel, representing Miss Edwin, said the former teacher understood she had let Pupil A go and “remains affected now.” She said Miss Edwin had sought to 'apologise for her failings' and said this was not a lesson she would be quick to forget.
Ms Rheel said Miss Edwin had not been able to take part in any investigation into the incident and was kept "very much in the dark". Wendy Mason, headteacher at Childwall Primary School told the panel that on the day of the incident, Miss Edwin had been with a reception class.
Mrs Mason said Miss Edwin had been "absolutely adamant" she had left Pupil A with a "lady" who matched the description of the boy's mum and asked for him by name. At the time of the phone call from the member of the public, Mrs Mason said she was under the impression the boy had wandered off from his mother and "wasn't alarmed".
The head teacher and senior leaders had "no reason" to doubt Miss Edwin's story at the time. The incident came to light the following day, when a colleague was overseeing Pupil A's class and the boy tried to "squeeze past" the teacher at the end of the day.
This led staff to check CCTV cameras to see what had happened the day before. When confronted, Miss Edwin who did not return to Childwall Primary School after the incident said she was 'sure' she had handed the boy over to her mother but 'it was noisy outside and she could have been confused by that'.
Mrs Mason said the footage showed the child was "clearly left on his own" and it had not been busy outside like Miss Edwin claimed it had been. Ms Rheel argued that Mrs Mason had not thoroughly attempted to obtain the full story from Miss Edwin.
The panel is deciding whether or not Miss Edwin's action amounts to unacceptable professional conduct and conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute. If found to be the case, a sanction might be inflicted on the teacher.
Miss Edwin is believed to have given evidence yesterday morning as the hearing continues.
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