Teacher sacked over 'pupil prayer'

pa.press.net, Updated: 20/12/2009 18:35
Teacher sacked over 'pupil prayer'
A Christian teacher dismissed from her job after offering to pray for a sick pupil said she felt she had been treated like a criminal.




A Christian teacher dismissed from her job after offering to pray for a sick pupil said she felt she had been treated like a criminal
A Christian teacher dismissed from her job after offering to pray for a sick pupil said she felt she had been treated like a criminal.

Maths teacher Olive Jones was let go from her job teaching children who were too ill to go to school after visiting the home of a pupil for a lesson and discussing her faith with the girl's mother.

The girl was too poorly for the lesson so instead Mrs Jones, 54, spoke about her belief in miracles and asked whether she could say a prayer, but says when the mother said they were not believers she did not go ahead.

A complaint was then made by the mother that Mrs Jones' comments had distressed her and her child.

As a supply teacher who did not have a formal contract, Mrs Jones was told her services were no longer required just hours after the visit on November 25.

Mrs Jones, whose youngest son is a Royal Marine who has served in Afghanistan, has worked part-time at the Oak Hill Short Stay School and Tuition Service North in Nailsea, North Somerset, for almost five years but has been teaching for more than 20 years.

"If I had done something criminal, I believe the reaction would have been the same," said Mrs Jones, from Weston-super-Mare.

"It is like a black mark against my name and character when it comes to getting a reference for another job, just because I shared my testimony, as if I committed a criminal act.

"I simply wanted to encourage them to be open to prayer but if they did not want to then I would never force it down their throat."