Teacher faces hearing over blog

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/england/manchester/6502031.stm

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A psychology teacher in Greater Manchester faces a disciplinary hearing after posting allegedly "inappropriate messages" to students on a blog.

Catherine Young-Southward was suspended from Hyde Clarendon College after it was revealed she also allowed five students to stay overnight at her home.

Mrs Young-Southward, 37, who has taught at the college for two years, was suspended after a parent complained.

The college said she had been suspended pending an internal investigation.

During a disciplinary hearing on Thursday Mrs Young-Southward will be asked to explain messages posted on her personal MySpace internet page, encouraging pupils to believe there were "no real boundaries".

'Modern approach'

She will also be asked about an allegation that she took five pupils to a city centre bar before allowing them to stay at her home in Macclesfield.

Responding to the allegations ahead of the hearing, Mrs Young-Southward, a mother of three, said the venue was a cafe, rather than a bar.

She said that allowing pupils to stay at her home was "a mistake", but she said her husband and children were at home and the students had informed their parents.

Mrs Young-Southward said her "modern approach to communicating with pupils" had been misconstrued by the college.