Which reminds me, meant to look up the spelling of Middlesbrough, since was pretty sure I'd misspelt it in a thread the other day, but forgot about it
Luckily no-one noticed. Or at least no-one said anything
Taxi driver's licence revoked after he 'mocked a vulnerable child and made sexual comments'https://www.gazettelive.co.uk/news/tees ... r-34509762A school headteacher also alleged the cabbie 'used racist, offensive and abusive language' and made derogatory comments about members of the publicA taxi driver's private hire licence was revoked after a headteacher complained he had "mocked a vulnerable child" in his car.
The headteacher also alleged the cabbie "on several occasions used racist, offensive and abusive language whilst driving, made derogatory comments about members of the public" and "made inappropriate comments of a sexual nature", minutes from a meeting of Middlesbrough Council's licensing committee reveal. The child, referred to as 'Child A', said those comments made them feel uncomfortable, the committee heard.
The unnamed driver was also accused of behaving inappropriately towards another child, 'Child B', on one occasion at school. "It required intervention by a staff member" who said the driver was bad-tempered and rude, say the minutes of a meeting held in June.
They add: "There was also concern for Child B that this was the second time in a month that she had been ridiculed by a driver operated by the same private hire operator."
The headteacher said the children were spoken to alone and confirmed the driver's behaviour. "The headteacher stated that the children’s accounts were felt to be fully credible. Nothing would indicate the accounts were not factual," say the minutes.
"The driver was noted to have been using inappropriate language, racist, mocking a vulnerable child which was also very unkind behaviour and very worrying and issuing an inconsistent account to his operator to what he had issued licensing."
Council officers found "these matters are substantiated" and they "have no reason to feel the children have been dishonest and the driver's own credibility is called into question".
He denied the allegations in an interview, admitting only swearing at a driver who pulled out in front of him. He denied swearing in his vehicle generally and said he would never swear in front of children.
His representative "asserted Child A would be referring to the one incident where a member of staff had spoken to the driver and it did not happen again", and that there were inconsistencies in information from the child's mother and the headteacher. He denied allegations regarding Child B, saying he was never bad-tempered or frustrated and "vulnerable children may perceive mannerisms differently".
Reviewing his private hire vehicle driver licence, the committee found his accounts were "inconsistent". They put weight on the conclusions of the headteacher and a council officer, who were "satisfied that the children had no reason to lie", and found them credible and supporting Child A's concerns: "It also considered the matters raised being multifarious in nature and the terminology used would be unlikely to be fabricated."
Revoking the driver's private hire licence immediately, they found he had been put in an "extreme position of trust over vulnerable children" and he was "not safe or suitable or fit and proper to hold the position of trust of a licensee. The behaviour towards vulnerable children cannot be permitted and was a risk to safety."
Login
Register
FAQ
