Teacher Robert Smith, 51, was found guilty of serious professional incompetence because he lived “in a time warp” in ignorance of modern methods, a General Teaching Council disciplinary hearing found. Thomas Fisher, who taught at Trinity High School in Redditch, Worcestershire, was found guilty of serious professional incompetence after pupils started listening to their iPods and playing games on their mobile phones during lessons. The maths teacher was banned from teaching for three years.

Cathryn Ierston, who taught at Gorse Hill Primary in Worcester, was found guilty of five charges of incompetence, which included her quality of teaching, planning and the use of teaching assistants. She was ordered to do a refresher course before returning to the classroom.