North Yorkshire man jailed for numerous child sex offences

Neil Francis, aged 46, formerly of Conyers Road, East Cowton in North Yorkshire, was sentenced to nine years imprisonment at Amersham Crown Court on February 8.

A jury found him guilty of 19 counts of sexual assault and eight counts of indecent assault.

In the 2000s, Francis sexually and indecently assaulted 11 female pupils while working as a teacher at a school in Milton Keynes.

The offences were first reported to Thames Valley Police in December 2017 and Francis was charged on February 26 last year.

Detective Constable Michele Weston, of the Child Abuse Investigation Unit based at Milton Keynes police station, said: “This investigation has taken four years to complete and involved the tenacity of several police officers and members of staff.

“This was a case where a teacher, who was in a position of trust, sexually abused 11 of his female pupils.

“I have nothing but admiration for each and every one of those victims who took the time to come to court and tell the awful tale of what happened to them - they should be extremely proud of themselves.

“I hope now that the victims can start to rebuild their lives with an assurance that they have played their part in protecting other vulnerable females from this defendant.”

The jury also found Francis not guilty of one count of sexual assault and were discharged on two other counts of sexual assault, which will lie on file.