‘Sex predator’ teacher jailed for six years after 'grooming and sexually exploiting' schoolboys

ITV Granada Reports' Correspondent Ann O'Connor was in court for the sentencing

A young teacher who had sex with two teenage boys "showed breathtaking gall" after she fell pregnant by one while on bail, the judge who jailed her has said.

"Sexual predator" Rebecca Joynes had been given time after conviction to allow her to see her child, but was told she should be “under no illusion” about what to expect when sentenced.

She was found guilty by a jury at Manchester Crown Court in May of six sex offences following a two-week trial.

Joynes, 30, had groomed the pupils from the age of 15 and was already suspended from her high school job and on bail for sexual activity with Boy A, when she then began a sexual relationship with the second youngster, Boy B, whom she later became pregnant by.

Neither teenager can be identified.

Joynes cried in the dock and wiped tears away as she was handed six and a half years in jail.

Parents of both boys watched as Joynes, wearing a gold necklace, black padded jacket and with blonde highlights in her hair, visibly shook and broke down in tears as she was jailed at Manchester Crown Court.

Sentencing her, Judge Kate Cornell, told Joynes: “There is a breathtaking arrogance in your conduct. You were the adult, the one in control and should have known better.

"You were trusted by the school, the boys and the parents, for caring and protecting their sons.

"You abused that trust and exploited that role for your sexual gratification. It is inconceivable you did not realise that too.

"You deliberately transgressed them and encouraged boys to breach that too. You turned a blind eye."

Judge Cornell said Joynes was a “high achiever” who had thrown her career away and had her baby taken away from her through her own actions.

She continued: “From the outside it may be easy to fall into the misconception these boys were not victims.

“It may be asked what 15-year-old boy would not want to have sex with an older, attractive teacher? Surely they would be up for it. How can this be a crime?

“Well Miss Joynes, there is no doubt this is a crime. Both boys were very much victims, obviously unworldly and vulnerable to the advances from an older attractive woman.

“You felt buoyed and boosted by their attention.

“You were the one with the car, the flat, the money, the life experience.

“There’s no real insight from you, you continue to deny the offences and have been silent on the distressing impact on these boys.”

In a victim impact statement, Boy B said the abuse had torn his family apart and he struggled to access help.

In the statement read out in court he said: "The term ‘victim’ has been used to describe myself and Boy A, but it's bigger than that.

"It reaches further than us. All our families have been profoundly impacted."

He added: "I was coerced, controlled and sexually abused, it was very upsetting this happened to me and I had little to no support from organisations.

"For months after the abuse it was a very dark time. I felt backed into a corner, I had just lived a double life for 18 months, and it had a massive mental toll on me and my family.

"It tore my family apart, they struggled to come to terms with the fact they brought me to school which was supposed to be a safe environment. My parents broke down every day and night."

Joynes who joined the school in 2018, as part of the Teach First teacher recruitment scheme after studying for a sports and exercise science degree at university in Liverpool, was described by the teenagers as “really pretty”.

But at the age of 28, the former childhood gymnast had undergone a messy break-up after a nine-year relationship, struggled during the Covid pandemic, and was lonely.

It was then she became “flattered” by the attention of teenage schoolboys, her trial heard.

Joynes, referred to by the boys as “Bunda Becky”, would “laugh off” inappropriate comments, instead of shutting down the behaviour.

Joynes gave one of the boys she taught most of the digits of her phone number and he guessed the rest.

When he began contacting her, Joynes reciprocated and on 5 October 2021 she arranged for the 15-year-old boy to stay overnight at her home.

Jurors heard both boys sent Joynes flirty Snapchat messages before Boy A was taken shopping, bought a £350 Gucci belt and went back to her flat in Salford Quays, where they had sex, with his semen later recovered from her bedsheets by police.

She later told the boy, "no-one had better find out".

The next day the boy’s mother noticed a love-bite on her son’s neck and by Monday morning rumours were circulating with Boy A’s distraught mother storming into the school reception as police were called in.

Joynes was suspended from her job and warned not to have no unsupervised contact with anyone under 18 as police investigated.

But she then began a relationship with Boy B.

Boy B told the court sexual activity began when he was 15, with kissing and full sex when he was 16 and while he was still a pupil.

He later told police he regarded the relationship as “friends with benefits” and said they regularly had sex while he was still at school.

She gave birth to their son in early 2024, but the child was taken away from her within 24 hours.

During the trial Joynes was accused by prosecutor Joe Allman of a “naked attempt to garner sympathy” from the jury by having a pink baby’s bonnet visibly tucked into her trouser front belonging to the child.

Joynes denied the charges and claimed no sexual activity ever took place with Boy A, while a relationship with Boy B - which developed while she was suspended from her job - only became sexual after she was dismissed and he had left school at 16, so no offence had taken place.

But following a two-week trial at Manchester Crown Court Joynes was found guilty in May of four counts of sexual activity with a child and two counts of sexual activity with a child by a person in a position of trust.

Jane Wilson, Senior Crown Prosecutor for CPS North West, said: “Rebecca Joynes was in a position of trust as a high school teacher.

“She abused her position to groom and exploit two schoolboys in the worst way, with no thought for the lasting impact it would have on them.

“Every parent sends their children to school expecting them to be safeguarded and taken care of; Joynes’s actions have eroded that trust.

“I would like to thank the victims for supporting the prosecution. I hope they can start to move forward knowing Joynes has been held accountable for her actions.”

Responding to the sentencing, an NSPCC spokesperson said: “Joynes abused her position of trust and authority as a teacher to groom and sexually abuse one of her pupils. While suspended she then used social media to start communicating with another teenage boy from her school who she then went on to sexually abuse.

“Child sexual abuse, in whatever form, can have a serious and lasting impact on the victims and it is so important the two boys in this case receive the support they need to move forward with their lives.

“This case also reinforces to anyone who has suffered child sexual abuse, that if they speak out they will be listened to and justice can be served.”

If you have concerns about the wellbeing of a child:

• The NSPCC Helpline is 0808 8005000 or you can email help@nspcc.org.uk .

• Children and young people can contact Childline on 0800 1111 or through the website www.childline.org.uk