A former primary school educator in London has been prohibited from teaching following the discovery of her past involvement in child exploitation. Ernestina Quainoo, 53, who taught children aged five to seven at Cherry Lane Primary School in West Drayton until December 2022, has been barred from the profession for two years.
The case came to light when a colleague received an old newspaper article revealing Quainoo's criminal history. In 2008, Quainoo was convicted for assisting in the unlawful immigration of a 14-year-old African girl into the UK under false pretenses. The victim was subjected to 18 months of unpaid labor, isolation, and mistreatment.
This incident highlights the ongoing global issue of modern slavery. The International Labour Organization estimates that 40.3 million people worldwide are in modern slavery conditions. In response to such crimes, the UK passed the Modern Slavery Act in 2015 to combat human trafficking and slavery.
The Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA), established in 2018 to regulate the teaching profession in England, conducted an investigation into Quainoo's case. The agency found that Quainoo had failed to disclose her conviction when applying for the teaching position in 2019. This oversight raises questions about the effectiveness of current background check procedures in schools.
The UK's Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks, introduced in 2012 to replace CRB checks, are designed to prevent individuals with certain criminal records from working with vulnerable groups, including children. However, this case demonstrates that the system is not infallible.
"Due to my inability to demonstrate that she [the individual] was a member [of] the family, I was charged with assisting her unlawful entry into the UK on 11th July, for which I pleaded guilty as I completely misunderstood the cultural differences that exist between the two."
The panel reviewing Quainoo's case found no evidence of deliberate dishonesty in her failure to disclose the conviction. However, the severity of her past actions led to the teaching ban. Sarah Buxcey, head of the TRA's teacher investigation unit, stated that Quainoo's past actions contradicted the core principles of teaching and the duty of care towards children.
This case underscores the importance of thorough background checks and the need for ongoing vigilance in child safeguarding within educational institutions. It also highlights the progress made in combating modern slavery, with the UK being recognized by the Global Slavery Index as one of the countries taking significant action to address this issue.
As the UK continues to strengthen its efforts against child exploitation and human trafficking, cases like Quainoo's serve as a reminder of the ongoing challenges in protecting vulnerable individuals and maintaining the integrity of the education system.