A PE teacher from south London who was jailed for sleeping with an underage pupil has been banned from the profession for life. 

Sean Bettinson, 51, from New Malden, groomed the victim and engaged in various sexual activities with her between 2000 and 2003. 

In 2016 the victim came forward to police about what had taken place with Bettinson, who went on to become manager of the England rugby sevens team. 

In 2021 Bettinson pleaded guilty to three counts of indecent assault and two counts of abuse of a position of trust by engaging in sexual activity. 

He was sentenced to 16 months in prison. 

In September 2023 a Teaching Regulation Agency panel met to discuss Bettinson’s future in the profession. 

The panel noted: “The offending was deliberate, planned and sustained over a number of years.” 

It added: “Whilst Mr Bettinson appeared to have shown limited remorse and regret, there was no clear evidence of insight.” 

Bettinson was banned from the profession indefinitely. 

Decision maker David Oatley said: “In my judgement, the lack of insight means that there is some risk of the repetition of at least some elements of this behaviour, and this puts at risk the future wellbeing of pupils.”