A CATHOLIC college teacher has been banned from teaching after he was found to be drunk while in charge of students on a school trip to Lourdes.
Niall O'Hagan, 36, was a physics teacher and Head of House at St Bede's College in Manchester during the trip in August 2015.
A National College for Teaching and Leadership panel heard the allegations against Mr O'Hagan and found him guilty of unacceptable professional conduct and conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute.
He had been working at St Bede's College for 10 years.
The panel, comprised of two teacher panellists, a lay panelist and a legal advisor, sat last month in Coventry.
Mr O'Hagan was present at the hearing where the panel heard that from August 3-5, 2015, he had led a school trip of 16-18 year olds to Lourdes.
During the trip Mr O'Hagan was "visibly intoxicated" while in charge of students at a morning mass.
He was also drunk at a fancy dress party and on a trip to Lac de Lourdes, the glacial lake.
The Panel heard the Mr O'Hagan had been visibly intoxicated whilst in charge of students on the Lourdes trip. (Picture: iStock)Mr O'Hagan also left students unsupervised at their hotel while he was drinking elsewhere, and provided vodka and wine to at least one student.
The former physics teacher was relinquished from his duties and sent home from the trip.
In mitigation, the panel heard evidence from Mr O'Hagan and his Alcoholics Anonymous counsellor.
Mr O'Hagan stated in his evidence that his father passed away in July 2012, just before his first trip to Lourdes with the School, and that trip had been very special to him.
He also said that in the month prior to the 2015 trip, he had visited his mother who was not coping well with grief.
This visit brought his father's death "back to the front of his mind" and made the 2015 trip to Lourdes an emotional experience for him.
The panel heard the day after Mr O'Hagan was sent home, he made a decision to attend Alcoholics Anonymous and that he has been actively engaged with the programme since.
His AA counsellor, known only as Witness A, confirmed Mr O'Hagan was practising the programme and he had "little doubt" Mr O'Hagan will succeed in his programme of recovery.
Also called as a witness was Witness B, a headmaster of a school Mr O'Hagan was working for from November 2015 until this summer.
Witness B said Mr O'Hagan had informed the school of what happened, and they had "intensely" monitored his performance.
Witness B also maintained that Mr O'Hagan had acted "completely professional" whilst in employment at that school.
Mr O'Hagan acknowledged his underlying alcohol problem at that time which impacted on his behaviour and judgement.
While the panel accepted that the trip was emotional for Mr O'Hagan, they noted his misconduct took place over a period of several days and had endangered the wellbeing and safety of pupils.
The panel recommended a prohibition order to be served to Mr O'Hagan, with opportunity to review the order.
Mr Alan Meyrick, the decision maker for the Secretary of State agreed with the panel's recommendation and prohibited Mr O'Hagan from teaching indefinitely, subject to a review in two years.
Mr O'Hagan cannot teach in any school, sixth form college, relevant youth accommodation or children's home in England.
He cannot appeal the order until September 2018.
The Irish Post has contacted St Bede's for comment.
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