'A marked man': Fired Christian educator warns ‘every teacher is at risk’ after court loss
A former Christian mathematics teacher in the United Kingdom lost his High Court appeal against a teaching ban, cautioning that "every teacher is at risk" for sharing personal beliefs in classrooms.
The ban was upheld due to his refusal to use a trans-identified student's preferred pronouns and his comments about homosexuality.
Joshua Sutcliffe, a former teacher from The Cherwell School in Oxford, faced consequences from the Teaching Regulation Agency, which concluded he breached safeguarding duties by misgendering a trans student in 2017 and condemning homosexuality as sinful. He was prohibited from teaching following a professional conduct panel's decision.
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The case escalated to the High Court, where Justice Edward Pepperall dismissed Sutcliffe's appeal Thursday, solidifying the ban based on findings of "unacceptable professional conduct," the U.K.-based group Christian Concern said in a statement.
Pepperall criticized Sutcliffe for failing to treat the student with "dignity and respect."
Sutcliffe plans to appeal the ruling to the Court of Appeal.
Furthermore, Sutcliffe faced allegations at St. Aloysius College in Islington, where he supposedly showed students a video on gender roles, contributing to the TRA's decision, The Telegraph noted. The video allegedly taught that women are attracted to "real men" more than a "passive man."
In defense, Sutcliffe's legal representatives argued that the ban constituted "an unjustified interference" with his freedom of speech and religious expression. They contested the TRA's findings as "perverse" and lacking in substantial evidence. However, the court maintained that educational settings require respect for each student's identity to preserve their well-being.
Reacting to his failed appeal, Sutcliffe expressed determination to continue his legal battle, asserting that the decision threatens the freedom of teachers to express their beliefs without repercussions.
"I have been a marked man ever since I dared to express my Christian beliefs in a school," Sutcliffe, whose outspoken Christian beliefs include opposition to Islam, homosexuality, pornography and abortion, stated. "With this ruling every teacher is at risk if they share their beliefs and views in the classroom."
He believes "affirming children in a transgender identity in the classroom is psychologically damaging for them."
Sutcliffe said a former colleague first reported him to the TRA because of his open-air street preaching.
When he requested a reference from his former employer, he was reportedly referred to the U.K.'s counterterrorism watchdog Prevent, which has policed similar situations, including one involving the Rev. Bernard Randall. The Church of England minister and teacher was reported to Prevent in 2022 for telling his students that they are allowed to make up their own minds about the claims of LGBT activists.
Sutcliffe said TRA's investigation of him last year shifted to his alleged misgendering of a trans-identifying female pupil at an Oxford school in 2017
Sutcliffe earlier told The Christian Post that God had sustained him and that the Scriptures regarding affliction had "come to life" for him. He noted that his relationship with the Lord had been "the most precious thing from the very beginning" of his ordeal.
"The thing I've clung on to is that God knows the beginning from the end," he said. "All the things that have happened couldn't have happened by chance. God has called me according to His purpose, and it's such an honor. It's the greatest honor of my life to serve God, to love Him and declare His praises."
Supporting Sutcliffe, the Christian Legal Centre's CEO, Andrea Williams, said he is a victim of a biased system that misrepresents factual expressions of gender, potentially stifling teachers' ability to discuss sensitive topics without fear.
"The teaching profession is not a safe place to navigate for Christian teachers," she said. "Expressing long held Christian beliefs on marriage and gender can get you suspended, investigated and barred."
