Matthew Smith
(Picture: Facebook )A deputy head at the first school attended by Prince George and Princess Charlotte is facing jail for child sexual exploitation and the distribution of indecent images.
Matthew Smith, 34, admitted using the encrypted app Telegram to receive and share sexual images and films of children over the last four years.
The Oxford and Cambridge-educated teacher was appointed as deputy head of pastoral care at Thomas’s prep school in Battersea in September this year, after a five-year stint teaching in Nepal.
In a message to parents on Wednesday, headteacher Ben Thomas said Smith was arrested on Sunday by the National Crime Agency (NCA).
“We understand from the NCA that there is no suggestion that any of these offences relate to Mr Smith’s employment at Thomas’s or to any current or former pupils of the school.”
He said Smith was sacked as deputy head when charges came to light and pupils will be told of his departure. Smith entered guilty pleas on Wednesday at Westminster magistrates’ court . “I do not for a minute underestimate the shocking and deeply concerning nature of this news”, Mr Thomas added. “Our focus right now is on our pupils, parents and colleagues.”
The children of the Prince and Princess of Wales attended the school, where fees are up to £25,000 a year, until last July before switching to Lambrook School near Ascot.
According to the court Smith pleaded guilty to six charges — including the sexual exploitation of a child aged around eight to 10 years old. The abuse took place “at various locations”, the charge said, when a child was forced to be involved in pornography.
Smith admitted two counts of causing the sexual exploitation of a child between 2018 and November this year. He also pleaded guilty to three charges of making a total of 45 indecent images and films of children which were found on an SD card and his Telegram account. This included 22 images in category A — the most serious type of abuse. Smith also confessed to distributing two category A images using the chat function on Telegram.
The teacher, from East Dulwich, was held in custody after his NCA arrest and remanded to prison by the court yesterday. He will face a sentencing hearing at Southwark crown court on a date yet to be set. The NCA said this would likely be in the next month.
The school has vowed to handle news of Smith’s departure in an “age-appropriate way”, and is holding drop-in sessions for concerned parents.
In a statement, the school said: "We have been shocked and distressed to learn of these charges.
“The safety and wellbeing of our pupils is, and always will be, our top priority. As there are ongoing criminal proceedings, it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time other than to say that there is no suggestion that the offences relate to Mr Smith’s employment at Thomas’s or to any current or former pupils of the school.
“Mr Smith’s employment at the school, which commenced in September this year, has been terminated with immediate effect.”
The NCA said the investigation remains live with “early indications of significant online offending and international lines of inquiry”.
“These guilty pleas are a significant step in what is an ongoing, complex investigation”, said Tony Cook, NCA Head of Child Sexual Abuse investigations.
“Child sex abuse perpetrated online and across borders is a substantial threat to the UK, and the NCA is dedicated to investigating in these challenging spaces in order to safeguard children and pursue the highest risk offenders."
