UK teacher jailed for sex with student

Madeleine Martin, 39, of Knutsford, Cheshire, admitted beginning a week-long relationship with the boy, who was under 16 at the time, when she appeared in court in September.

On Wednesday she was sentenced to 32 months in prison at Manchester Minshull Street crown court. Martin was also suspended from her job at a Greater Manchester school, which cannot be named for legal reasons.
The court was told that Martin had qualified as a teacher four years ago and first met her victim in September 2008.

The pair began communicating via the Facebook social networking website and their contact escalated into a sexual relationship.
On 9 February she asked the boy to do something that would remind him of her when they were apart. She drove him to a tattooist and paid for him to have “Mad” and a heart etched onto his skin.

They then drove to a secluded area, where they had sex. The boy quickly decided to end their involvement and told Martin.
He eventually told his mother what had happened and she reported the matter to police in April.

Mark Fireman, in mitigation, said his client had brought “shame on herself and her family” and had lost her career, and her friends. He said at the time of sexual contact she was going through a “very difficult time in her personal life”.
He added: “It is an incident that she bitterly, bitterly regrets. She knows that she has caused great harm.”

Detective Sergeant Dave Moores of Tameside Child protection unit said: “I would like to praise the bravery of the victim in speaking out and ensuring justice was done for him.” However, Martin would remain on the sex offenders’ register, he added.