Teacher terminated after allegedly telling students gay and trans people are ‘mentally ill’
Allegedly, he went on to express his support for Vladimir Putin and Russia's war in Ukraine, saying he was "happy" Putin was killing "satanic Nazis"
By Aaron Sugg
A teacher has been banned from teaching indefinitely following a misconduct investigation in which he allegedly told students that gay and trans people are “mentally ill”.
William Garwood, a 60-year-old history teacher at St Mary’s Menston Catholic Voluntary Academy in West Yorkshire, was investigated by the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) following claims that he used discriminatory language during a Year 11 lesson.
Garwood was removed from teaching duties after a pupil claimed he linked Ukraine to Nazis and described gay and transgender people as “mentally ill”.
William Garwood allegedly said he was “happy” Putin was killing “satanic Nazis” and “billionaires are the cause of transgenders”
Allegedly, he went on to express his support for Vladimir Putin and Russia’s war in Ukraine, saying he was “happy” Putin was killing “satanic Nazis” created by billionaires, while describing Ukrainians as “evil”.
Other claims made against him included that one pupil said he stated: “Ukrainians are Satanists that are funded by the banks and billionaires”, and “billionaires are the cause of transgenders (sic) and they print it in the media and influence people”.
The TRA panel concluded that his comments justifying Russia’s invasion of Ukraine were unrelated to the history lesson and involved inappropriate generalisations and labelling of groups, amounting to discriminatory behaviour.
Garwood Section 10 of the Equality Act 2010 defence was rejected
Garwood, who is Muslim, defended his comments, stating that he was entitled to express his religious beliefs and his philosophical belief in anti-Nazism under Section 10 of the Equality Act 2010, which protects “religion” and “belief” as protected characteristics.
His arguments were rejected, with the panel concluding that his comments were inappropriate and fell outside the standards expected of teachers.
The panel said the remarks were “clearly inappropriate and wholly unrelated” and “had no relevance to the curriculum content being delivered”.
“This means that Mr William Garwood is prohibited from teaching indefinitely” – the Teaching Regulation Agency concludes
According to the official TRA document, the panel concluded: “This means that Mr William Garwood is prohibited from teaching indefinitely and cannot teach in any school, sixth form college, relevant youth accommodation or children’s home in England.”
The document notes that he may apply for the prohibition order to be set aside, but not until 23 June 2032, following a six-year review.