School admin worker, 43, faces trial for 'sexual activity with 16-year-old boy pupil over six months'

A school administrative worker will face trial after denying forming a sexual relationship with a pupil.

Leila Jackson, 43, pleaded not guilty to five charges of sexual activity with a boy aged 16 to 17 while in a position of trust which are alleged to have taken place over a six-month period.

During a hearing at Gloucester Crown Court on Friday, Jackson, of Gretton, Cheltenham, spoke only to confirm her name and enter her not guilty pleas.

A six-day trial is expected to take place in July 2027.

Jackson was released on conditional bail and ordered not to contact any prosecution witnesses, including the complainant.

It comes after disgraced paedophile teacher Rebecca Joynes was convicted last year in May after she slept with one pupil before falling pregnant by a second.

Just days after the damning conviction, a former colleague of Joynes, 30, has revealed how the shocking scandal eroded the relations between pupils and staff as a 'toxic' atmosphere led to an exodus of 'distraught' staff.

'They completely stopped trusting us,' the teacher at the secondary school in Greater Manchester told The Times.

She added that after Joynes was suspended, rumours started to spread that she had been buying alcohol for teenagers whom she had invited to her flat for a party.

As the scandal engulfed the school, eight male pupils jokingly identified themselves as Joynes' victims on an online group. Others made TikTok videos calling her a 'paedo' who 'likes kids' and graffitied the toilet with 'Free Ms Joynes'.

Joynes was described as acting like a 'cool girl' who would stop to chat with female pupils about fashion during breaks and would 'strut' down corridors between classes while they cheered her on.

Looking back, they feared this was 'over-friendly'. In contrast, although Joynes had a good working relationship with her colleagues, she never interacted with them 'on a personal level'.

'Rebecca never joined,' the colleague told the newspaper. 'Even the near-retiring teachers would have had a drink.'

A court heard that Joyce also allowed a third boy to visit her home twice, although no sexual activity took place.

The teacher was suspended in October 2021 after Childline received a report that she had had sex with a 15-year-old pupil after buying him a £345 Gucci belt and driving him to her home.

While on bail for having sex with the pupil, she then became pregnant by one of his classmates, whom she slept with around 30 times.