A former PE teacher described as "flirty" is on trial accused of having sex with a 16-year-old pupil, asking him to call her "Miss" when they were together.
Bronwen James, 30, from Chippenham, Wiltshire, faces four charges of sexual activity with the pupil, alleged to have occurred while she was employed at Bitterne Park School in Southampton, Hampshire. The trial is taking place at Winchester Crown Court.
Prosecution alleges exploitation
Edward Culver, prosecuting, said: "This case is about a teacher who exploited her position to engage in sexual activity with one of her pupils. She flirted with him, exchanged messages with him, took him to her home and she had sex with him."
James denies having a sexual relationship with the boy and claimed he had been "put up" by someone to make the allegations against her, Mr Culver said.
Relationship details
The prosecutor told the court that the relationship began after the pupil asked for James' Snapchat username, which she initially refused before accepting, and they began exchanging "flirty" messages.
The prosecutor said James first met up with the pupil by picking him up in her car and parking at Weston Shore, Southampton, where they "kissed". The pair then went to James' home where they "kissed and cuddled" while watching Wimbledon on the television, before going to her bedroom where they performed sexual acts on each other and had sexual intercourse, Mr Culver said.
He said they had sex three or four times at her home and added: "They messaged daily and she told [him] she cared about him and they even discussed moving in with each other. She told him she loved him and wanted to move away together."
Pupil's account
In a video interview with police, the pupil said they "always used to flirt in lessons" before they met up in her car. He said the following day she came up to him in class and asked him in a "flirty" manner: "Where were you last night?"
The boy said they progressed to having sexual intercourse at her house and added: "At the time I was overwhelmed, it was great, but looking back at it, it was wrong."
Describing the first encounter at her home, he said: "She was coming to me on the sofa, head in my lap, watching TV, her dog was there as well, just relaxing, then I leaned in for a kiss. We were kissing, then things progressed, I said 'Shall we go upstairs?', she said 'yes' and we had sex."
The boy added that in class, James, who he described as "quite attractive", would slip him vapes in his coursework and also said that she liked him to call her "Miss" when they were alone together. He said: "She is a bit weird but I rolled with it, it was a little bit dodge but I didn't care."
The boy also told how James had called him while she was at her leaver's party and told him - with other teachers in the background - that she loved him. He added: "I thought she cared about me." The trial continues.
