It can. I know a teacher, well not personally but he was local, he upset some girls at school and they decided to make allegations. I remember people saying, "Well it must have happened, it's not just one girl complaining." Another woman with a child in his class said, "They were told off that day for misbehaving and they've cooked this up."
They were 10 year olds and in the end it came out it was all lies. He had been suspended and under suspicion for months while this all went on and by the time his name was cleared he was so unwell he couldn't go back to teaching and took early retirement.
It might be rare, I've no idea, but it can happen.
ancientgran I'm a teacher. When 10yo girls accuse a teacher of something inappropriate of course he has to be suspended and investigated. The alternative is that he stays on, on the assumption children are lying, and if he is an abuser he gets to continue his abuse whilst also teaching his victims. How else do you think it should be dealt with?
As teachers we are trained to ensure very little risk of false accusations are made - for example minimal 1-2-1 contact and propping doors open when alone with pupils. We also have to accept that as part and parcel of the job, if we get an allegation, even a false one, we must not teach until we are investigated. There's no other way to do it.
I assume this is all gossip anyway and not published in the local paper? If he was cleared I'd be very surprised if they published anything
My husband was a police officer, he would never give DDs friends a lift home, I always had to do it. He said it was too risky and I think he was probably right.
bit weird. What was he worried about?