Teacher who lied about Cambridge degree banned

A former private school teacher has been struck off after it was found he lied about having a degree from the University of Cambridge and serving as a magistrate.

Nicholas Martin, 43, had taught at St Edward's School, Cheltenham, since 2006 and was made head of sixth form in 2024 before discrepancies were spotted in a 2025 application for deputy head.

Investigations started after Martin said he was five years younger than in his 2024 application, bringing the rest of his CV into question and exposing the lies.

Marc Cavey, the decision maker on the Teaching Regulatory Authority panel, concluded "the conduct of Mr Martin fell significantly short of the standards expected of the profession."

"The findings of misconduct are serious as they include a teacher displaying dishonest behaviour," he added.

The panel heard that on his application for deputy head, Martin gave his date of birth as 17 November 1987, five years later than in his 2024 application.

He initially tried to explain the incorrect date by claiming someone had misread his handwriting.

Checks on his employment record found both his passport and driving licence had the 1982 date, but Martin continued to claim 1987 was correct and the discrepancy stemmed from a historic passport issue.

Further checks showed no records of him under that date but matches were found for 1982 and were corroborated by updated documentation he provided.

Martin then claimed he had become so used to writing the 1987 date he must have copied it over from his 2024 application but a review found he had in fact written 17 November 2012 on that document, the hearing was told.

His confused response to the issue led the school to investigate other elements of his CV, including his claims of holding a masters degree in history from Cambridge.

Martin provided a copy of a certificate he claimed to be from the university as the original was at home and he "liked to show it off to friends on weekends".

The University of Cambridge confirmed the certificate was false and told the school the course mentioned was not offered by the named college.

The panel heard Martin does hold a masters in history from the University of Lancaster and listed this in his 2024 application.

Martin also claimed he sat as a magistrate around once a month in his previous applications but checks with HM Courts and Tribunals Service showed no records of him.

At a hearing on 29 January, the Teaching Regulatory Authority panel found "Martin had demonstrated a high level of insight into his dishonest behaviour," but conceded he "recognised the seriousness" of it and accepted his remorse.

The hearing also heard there was no suggestion of previous misconduct in his years of working at the school and he had been described as a "good teacher" and "good with the pupils" but deemed this was not evidence of him "demonstrating exceptionally high standards or significantly contributing to the education sector".

The panel decided the public interest considerations in "maintaining confidence" in the profession meant a prohibition from teaching was appropriate, meaning Martin is barred from teaching.

Martin can appeal for a panel to review the prohibition order after two years.

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